Danganronpa: Twisted Tragedy (SYOC) Chapter 13: On Road to Despair (Part 10), a dangan ronpa kibou no gakuen to zetsubou no koukousei fanfic

Chapter 1: On Road to Despair (Deadly Life #4)

Warning: This fic contains intense violence, lots of OFFENSIVE cursing (thanks Monoyena, you fucking asshole!), character death, gore and blood, sexual innuendos, and possible spoilers for the Danganronpa series. But hey, everyone lurking in this fandom has at least played the first Danganronpa so no need to worry much there! Right?

With that said, please enjoy!

...

Red Light

Green Light

One, two, three!

...

Emmeline fell to the ground, weakly.

She struggled to get up. Vomit spewed from her mouth after suffering three electric shocks in a row. She tried to move, but the more she moved the more she felt herself getting wrangled and choked with electrical currents seeping into her veins. Tears flew out of her eyes as her vision blurred and blinked.

She crawled on the ground, but with every movement she made, she felt herself getting zapped more and more. She panted. She heaved. Her stomach was killing her and she was feeling the pills she had repeatedly swallowed boil back up. She was going to retch and puke. Stomach acid ready to stain the ground in her misery.

She glanced behind her, tears in her eyes, vomit staining her outfit as she turned around. She looked terrible. She looked close to passing out. But as she stared at Alina's cast aside face, she knew it to be true. She knew that it was over for her. She knew all too well…

She sat still.

"I… I'm sorry…" she muttered.

Alina didn't say anything in response to that. In her eyes, it was like she might as well be killing a ten-year old girl with her own hands. Heh. It was no different to just letting the girl die. Because right now, she was basically trading the life of one for another... The cruelty of what she was doing… the hurt puppy-dog eye look she was getting…

Alina stared down at her.

The only look in her eyes was something cold. Emotionless. She knew this had to be done. She knew that this was the only chance she was ever going to get. And yet, throughout all of it, Alina had figured she would feel something. Anything.

But Emmeline's tears and frail-looking body didn't hinder her movements in the slightest.

Alina thought it would but the guilt and morality had long shifted. She knew by now that she was in too deep to try to make this right. She knew that it was too late. The moment she pushed Emmeline, the cogs and wheels had already started to turn.

What she had to do…

Why she was doing this…

How she was going to do this…

All of the answers to those questions were staring right back at her, fading in and out of consciousness. Even now she couldn't force a smile. Not with Emmeline staring back at her with such… such pity in her eyes…

Alina bit her lip.

She grabbed Emmeline by the collar and solemnly glanced at her.

"...I am too," she finally responded.

Then, she roughly shoved her back against the floor.

As Emmeline slid back, another electric shock made its way through her neck and into her system. The poor girl spasmed slightly and remained still. Almost as if all functions within her body had shut off temporarily.

Alina watched Emmeline's body slowly recover on the ground.

She noticed the discoloration form on her neck in real time.

She felt her pulse.

She was still alive.

Heartbeat erratic.

Blood pressure at an all-time high...

She could've stopped there.

But as she had reckoned before, it was already too late to go back.

She struck first.

It was only fair of her to finish it.

She hoisted Emmeline up from the ground…

…and all but surely, carried her toward the Ultimate Actress's Attraction.

…

"...Heh, heh… Congratulations, Fábio. You win."

For words that finally meant the conclusion of this Trial, it certainly didn't feel that way to Fábio Barbosa. Just a moment ago, he had indicted Alina Summers as the true culprit behind the death of Emmeline Swan, with a handful of convincing evidence to boot.

The entire court has turned on her.

And yet, despite having caught the killer, it wasn't any easier for him than it was for her.

Fábio simply stared directly down at his podium.

He caught the killer. And yet he hated it. He caught the killer, yes, but the rush and feeling of the aftermath had given it… It wasn't healthy. It felt awful. It felt as if he was just contributing to the collapse of a long line of dominoes:

A domino effect.

Because now that he had deduced Alina to be the murderer, that would mean…

Fábio didn't want to keep thinking about it. He knew he shouldn't think about it but the more he did, the more guilty he felt about it all. He kept his eyes averted from the shame from what he knew to be what was inevitably going to happen…

"I can't believe it," Stanczyk spoke up, wiping tears from his eyes. The shit-eating grin he normally had on his face was replaced with a frown as he glanced at Alina. "I-Is this true? W-Was it really you, Alina Summers?! Y-You killed Emmeline Swan?! But whyyyyyyy?!"

Alina averted her gaze.

Whether it was out of annoyance over the facade the jester seemed to be putting on or just simply shame, Alina had kept quiet. It was all she could do at this point in time, after all.

"Oi, pipe down ya one night mistake," Monoyena picked his teeth with his Barbie Blade. "For all ya know, this could be the wrong answer and I get the pleasure of killing everybody here! Ain't that fucking great?!"

"N-No, it's not!" Stanczyk looked down, depressed. "I hope that's not true! There's so much stuff I want to do with her! She's one of my best friends! I can't... I refuse to believe that such a nice and happy girl like her could do something like this!"

"Yeah, well, there's only one way to find out now is there?" Monoyena chuckled darkly.

"Oh my, does this mean…" Beauté looked visibly excited for what was to come.

"Ya fucking know it," Monoyena cackled. "It's Voting Time!"

As he announced it, a new notification appeared on everyone's eTicket. Carefully, all of the playmates opened up their eTicket to see that a new application had been added: Voting Booth.

One tap on the application and then they were able to see a frame of each of their pictures in alphabetical order. A tap on the picture would highlight it green and, on the bottom, would be a Submit button once someone's made their decision.

"I don't think I need to explain cause ya have to be pretty retarded to not know this works…" Monoyena combed his mohawk with his knife before cackling. "Which is why I'll explain it anyway! Ya got a new app on them eTickets titled Voting Booth! This is where you'll make the vote on who ya think did it. Also, for those who might have some questions about it for some reason, it's only available to ya at the end of every Trial. So no, ya can't vote before Voting Time. Got it?"

Monoyena twirled his Barbie Blade and continued.

"Anyway, that's all I gotta about this new app!" Monoyena declared. "It's time to vote on who ya think the killer is! If ya abstain, yer a fuck and ya get a vote added to yer name instead! Majority vote takes all! So, vote for who you think the fucker is who did this and let's get this over with!"

Monoyena pointed his Barbie Blade toward the playmates and waited for them to commit to the process. Inevitably, the task itself was easy… but the choice to do it… Well, that was an entirely different story.

But in the end, everyone voted accordingly and it didn't take long before the results were published on everyone's eTicket…

…

Alina: 14

Aidan: 1

…

"Well, well, well," Monoyena gnashed his sharp teeth together. "Looks like everyone but one thinks it was the fucking music girl."

"W-Who the heck voted for me?" Aidan widened his eyes.

Beauté held back a laugh.

"Since that seems to be everyone's final decision…" Monoyena trailed off before allowing his red jagged eye to glow. "It's time to announce my Final Verdict! This bitch, Alina Summers, Ultimate Maestro, or whatever the fuck, is…

…

GUILTY

…

…Thanks for losing!"

Monoyena bursted out into laughter as he shattered his shrimp cocktail. Stanczyk glanced at his 'best friends' with a frown, clearly saddened by the truth finally coming out.

"Well, well, well, guess ya wanks got it right!" Monoyena laughed. "Not bad! Not bad at all! Though, I, of course, would prefer it if ya fucks got it wrong so I can have 14 fresh bodies to maim at my pleasure!"

"Th-This Playhouse Trial has ended," Stanczyk wiped tears from his eyes. "It looks like you kiddos were right after all. The blackened of this case was, indeed, Alina Summers, the Ultimate Maestro. W-W-W-WAAHHHHHHHHHH! N-NOOOOOOOO!"

Stanczyk started to bawl.

And honestly, for once, no one could blame him.

Despite how fake it may have seen, if there was a hint of him actually feeling sorrow... Well, as said before. No one could really blame him.

After all, a majority of them had wanted to do that for quite some time now as well…

[TRIAL END]

Silence.

After Stanczyk had quit his incessant crying, that was all everyone could hear in their grand courtroom.

And all everyone could do in that instance was express their shock, disbelief, anger, and finally, disgust over what their second-in-command had done to one of their own.

To Emmeline Swan, perhaps the most innocent out of everyone in the group. Alina rubbed the side of her arm as she avoided the judgmental stares of her peers. Just knowing how everyone was looking at her… it hurt. And what hurt most of all was…

"Pourquoi, Madame Summers," Manon stepped forward, looking downtrodden. "Pourquoi?"

Alina's face twitched slightly.

She tried to force a smile as she glanced at Manon.

"...Isn't it obvious?" Alina smiled, folding her arms. "I did it for the girl. I..."

Alina bit her lip and turned away from Manon.

"...We were running out of time, so I just took it upon myself to just..." Alina couldn't even finish her sentence.

She just... didn't know what to say.

"...Alina… You…" Aidan held his fist tightly, eyes shut, and teeth gritted together.

Of course.

The girl's demise was what was being held in the air for them. Everything that everyone did, it was all for that girl. And yet, the idea of forgiveness and understanding was nowhere to be seen as they all looked at her with such disdain and disgust.

"But why Madame Swan?!" Manon frowned, disapprovingly. "Why her?! She was innocent in all of zis! She was my friend! So why would…"

"...There was no ulterior motive…" Alina simply stated. "It was just for the simple fact that she was the easiest to kill at the time…"

"J-Just easy to kill?" Roderick gritted his teeth.

"Wow, that's cold, even for me," Riku muttered.

Undoubtedly so. For someone so happy-go-lucky, it was just so… so damn cold… It was so damn cold to hear Alina, of all people, say something like that. Not even something like Emmeline agreed to it or anything like that... Just... easy to kill...

And Alina knew all too well how harsh the judgmental stares had shifted.

She forced a smile.

"...I know..." Alina rubbed her arm. "That's why, there's no excuse for what I did. I did it to save the girl. And Emmeline just happened to be there. Like... Like fate was asking me to use that opportunity to save the girl..."

Disgust.

That was the new expression that she was receiving in her explanation. She looked down. She couldn't bring herself to face her own peers. Because everything she had said, it was just so... heartless. So cruel.

Was this really the Alina Summers they knew?

Alina glanced down as she thought back to the moment, she had met up with Emmeline…

Red Light

Green Light

One, two, three!

Green means Go.

And Alina took that notion to walk toward the Ultimate Actress's Attraction. She had entered the park shortly after her conversation with Aidan and had spotted Emmeline, standing still at the attraction.

She was alone.

And if she was standing still, that could only mean…

…

"Emmeline?" Alina spoke up.

"Oh, Miss Alina!" Emmeline slowly turned around, careful not to step forward as she didn't want to activate her shock collar.

"...What are you doing here?" Alina asked, carefully.

"Looking for you, actually!" Emmeline popped a placebo pill into her mouth. "Miss Manon asked me to invite you to the 5:00 PM show tonight! She seemed really happy so I thought, why not?"

Emmeline looked down.

"After all, we might need a distraction because of… what's going to happen soon…" Emmeline simply said.

Alina glanced away slightly.

"Just me?" Alina spoke up.

"Well, she also wanted Riku, but he said no," Emmeline looked down.

He's going to come anyway, Alina thought to herself in slight amusement. Maybe make up some lie to hide the fact that he really likes it…

"I see, but you'd thought to find me here… at the roller coaster?" Alina questioned.

"Well, I was actually on my way to Clucks Deluxe first but the Playtime Event played," Emmeline giggled. "I took a nasty shock because I'm Red so I'm just… standing here until the color changes! With nothing better to do of course!"

Emmeline popped another pill into her mouth.

Alina said nothing.

Emmeline had turned around to glance at the poster between Lady Radiance vs. Spellcaster. In full view, Alina could see that the back of her collar was Red, just as she had said. But Alina realized all too late that she couldn't take her eyes away from the color. It was almost like it was hypnotizing her…

Like a bull facing off against a matador and his red cape…

For the longest time, she had thought long and hard about what she needed to do. She had thought long and hard about what she could do about it. And frankly, the more she stared at this frail-looking girl with her back turned… the more tempting it was to do it. The more she realized that she could do it just because she could.

Alina bit her lip.

…

And then she stepped forward.

Alina forced a smile after reliving those events.

"Heh…" Alina smiled solemnly, her eyes pointed directly toward the ground. "At least… At least I don't have to lie anymore…"

"At least?" Aidan stared at Alina in disbelief. "Alina. You… So what, you just saw that it was an easy kill and just what… pushed her?!"

"Well, technically she forced herself to move to try to escape me, but she was still sort of pushed consecutively-" Alina tried to reiterate but the more she did so, the more horrific light it was painting her.

Aidan brushed his hair back in anguish.

"I- I don't care!" Aidan yelled. "Don't you even realize what you did?! How messed up you were?! You killed Emmeline! You drew first blood and actually killed someone! You killed one of our friends! How the heck is that the only thing you have to say about everything you just did?! How the heck could you just say it like that and just... This is a human life, Alina!"

Alina didn't say anything.

She just let her smile drop and took the heat that Aidan was blasting her way.

"Alina!" Aidan yelled, frustrated. "Come on, say something! Defend yourself! Make an excuse! Anything! Just help me understand! Why would you go against our backs like this and do something so… so… evil?!"

Alina tensed up at Aidan's words. She rubbed her arm uncomfortably and continued to say nothing.

"Ah heh heh heh…"

Beauté jumped into the conversation with a smirk. She extended her hand fan and began to fan herself thoroughly, smiling all throughout.

"You still can't see it, can you?" Beauté giggled. "Aidan Brighton chooses to forever remain optimistic, even when his closest second-in-command chose to commit the deed he was most against: murder."

"Like you're one to talk," Mara folded her arms and looked away. "You desecrated a dead body and used it like a sick show and tell…"

"And yet, I still find that to be much better than the hypocrite who claimed that she would always try to do the right thing…" Beauté cackled. "Isn't that right, Ultimate Maestro?"

Alina continued to keep her mouth shut.

But as she did, the guilt continued to eat away at her body, pulling her closer and closer to almost a state of madness. In other words, it was killing her. Killing her that she just didn't have anything to say or know what exactly she could say. No matter what she would do, nothing would make this situation any better…

So, instead, she forced a smile.

"I guess you're right," Alina smiled, solemnly.

"Hm?" Beauté tilted her head, slightly surprised to see Alina agree with her.

"I am a hypocrite," Alina rubbed her arms. "For the past few days, all I ever wanted to do was try to save the child. That was my biggest priority. My responsibility. I joined up with Aidan as his second-in-command because I had believed in him. Because I had hoped that maybe Aidan was right. Maybe there really was another way to do this. Maybe there was another way to save both the boy and the girl."

Alina looked down, sadly.

"But unfortunately, as the days flew by and as the days grew tough…" Alina began. "That hope became less and less apparent."

"And so... you decided to take it upon yourself to kill someone…?" Kazuki looked displeased. "Miss Summers… If you had just waited… If Mister Brighton and Miss Levesque had just let me kill myself… Blood wouldn't have been on your–"

"No, Kazuki," Alina shook her head. "Blood was always going to be on our hands. That's the whole point of this Killing Game. No matter what our choice was, everyone would've been responsible for a death, one way or another."

Alina folded her arms and frowned, deeply.

"If we sat around and did nothing, the girl would've died," Alina spoke up. "If we did something, one of us would die. It's as you said right on Day 1. There is no right answer to the Trolley Problem…"

"But even so…" Kikuko spoke up. "You had no right to go and take a life yourself."

"I know!" Alina yelled, closing her eyes. "I know that! But what else could we have done?! Time was running out! Were we all supposed to just wait til the girl died?! Just wait til the blood of a child falls on everyone's hands?! After Kazuki's attempt… I just…"

Alina frowned bitterly.

"...I know what I've done can't be forgiven," she rubbed her arms, regretfully. "I know that I can never take it all back. And I know that there's no excuse for what I've done. I did what I needed to. Whether it was right or wrong, doesn't matter. As long as the girl is safe…"

"But still, if you were really adamant about saving that child, you could've just killed yourself," Riku muttered.

"Riku–" Alisa turned to the doctor in disbelief.

"Am I wrong?" Riku narrowed his eyes before turning back to Alina. "Because of you, we're going to be down two people instead of one. It would've saved us a lot of hassle if you had simply ended yourself and written a note. Then, only one life will be lost."

Solid point.

The numbers game they could've had been now diminished thanks to Alina's actions. And yet, in the end, it was still almost like Alina was insisting that the choice she made was pretty much the only choice in the matter. Behind that idea of saving a little girl, there was a hint of selfishness behind her motives…

Tch. It irritated Riku.

"...And if I did that, then how would I know for fact you guys were going to reach the truth in the Trial?" Alina looked down.

"What?" Riku blinked.

That… was not an answer he was expecting.

"...If I had killed myself, what would have stopped someone from messing with my body and making it so hard to the point that everyone would've died?" Alina explained. "How would I know that you guys would be able to figure out the truth behind the roller coaster? Or just the truth about anything…?"

"Messing with the body?" Daisuke widened his eyes. "B-But no one would've… Wait…"

Daisuke turned to Beauté, who simply shrugged in response.

"N-No way…" Daisuke widened his eyes. "I-Is that why? Why, even though you were the killer, you still fought so hard to expose what Beauté did?"

Alina simply smiled softly in response.

"How interesting!" Beauté giggled. "Ever since you became the number one suspect, I was wondering why you worked so hard to expose my misdeeds! After all, my actions only served to benefit you in the long run, correct? Had you kept quiet, your crime may have never been found out now would it...?"

Alina folded her arms, uneasily.

"The plan was to simply dump Emmeline's body onto the sidewalk of Riku's Ultimate Attraction," Alina spoke up. "And I only did that to try to make sure no one knew that the roller coaster was the true cause of Emmeline's death…"

"Because if they did, you'd be found out almost immediately," Fábio nodded. "Only someone with your Ultimate Talent could've pulled it off after all…"

"That's what I thought at the time, yes," Alina folded her arms before glaring at Beauté. "I had the chance to get away with it, so I was no doubt going to take it. But not once did I ever want Emmeline's body to be strung up like a puppet! That was going too far…!"

"Ah heh heh heh…" Beauté smirked. "Says the girl who actually committed murder. Oh my. You are no fun..."

"Fun?!" Aidan turned to Beauté. "What part of this game is fun?! Emmeline is dead! Alina is going to die! Both of them had a past and history and this game robbed their future! How can you be so cruel to find enjoyment in all of this?!"

Beauté said nothing.

"And Alina!" Aidan glared at her. "You said you did this for the girl, but did you ever stop once to think about what Emmeline would've wanted?! She had friends here! She could've had friends back home! She could've had parents! And you just robbed her of letting her loved ones see her again!"

Aidan tightened his fist.

"And what about the rest of us?!" Aidan glared. "You literally said that all of us were now part of your responsibility! That all of us were people you considered friends! How could you betray all of us like this?!"

Alina didn't say anything.

"Bwa… Bwahahahaha!" Monoyena jumped into this conversation as Stanczyk stood behind him, trying hard not to burst into tears. "Oh, ya arrogant asshole. When it comes to betraying friends, this ain't the blonde bitch's first rodeo, mate! Her and friendship just don't mix! Like a fucking Mento in a bottle of Coke! It's just gonna be a big, damn mess in the end! Bwa… Bwahahahaha!"

"What are you talking about?" Mara narrowed her eyes.

"Should I be the asshole and tell them or should I give ya the pleasure?!" Monoyena turned to Alina with a jagged red eye glowing in her direction. "Can't tell which one's more exciting!"

Alina didn't say anything.

"Oh shit, ya makin me do it?!" Monoyena grinned. "Yer too kind… for a short fucking Hooters girl!"

Alina did not like that comment one bit.

"Ya wanna know what this bitch did to the last people she called friends?!" Monoyena laughed. "Simply put…

…

…She let em die!"

Alina looked away.

"Molly Blessen, Alina Summers, and Nicolas Caos," Stanczyk looked down. "Childhood friends. Same classes. All part of the same Li'l Ultimate Program, a program meant for young Ultimates who exhibit early forms of Talent at a young age."

Stanczyk wiped a stray tear from one of his eyes.

"They did everything together," Stanczyk explained. "Sleepovers. Parties. Playdates. Everything a child would dream of doing. And what's more, they made a promise… to always look out for each other no matter what! How touching!"

"They had the same shitty goals in life and same shitty idea of being together forever, yadda yadda, fucking yadda," Monoyena tagged in. "But then, one day, she lost it all. And next thing ya know, both that Molly bitch and Nicolas cunt ended up fucking dead. Details ain't important… What's important is that this blonde bitch has been holding it over head all this time! Ain't that right?!"

Alina looked away.

"This bitch broke a fucking promise and hasn't forgiven herself since!" Monoyena cackled. "Had she stuck to them as promised instead fucking the piano or the violin or xylophone, whatever, maybe she could've done something about it! Maybe she could've saved at least one of em from fucking dying! And yet here we are, ten years later, and this time, she's the one who's shed blood! Fucking diabolical! Bwa… Bwahahahahaha!"

"I-Is dis… true?" Yumi turned to Alina in shock. "Bambina, dis was like 10 years ago. Ya were a youngin. Ya can't hold somethin like dat over yer head–"

"And yet, I did," Alina closed her eyes and bit her lip. "Molly and Nicolas were my best friends and I failed them! I made promises I knew I couldn't keep! That was my choice! And in the end, all that amounted to was ten years of guilt, pain, and suffering!"

Alina opened her eyes, looking downtrodden.

"This always happens..." Alina rubbed her arms. "I've always made choices I was never proud of. And in the end, I was just so unhappy. Everyone called me amazing and incredible for learning all of these instruments and for being the Ultimate Maestro and yet... No one knew how much I hated it all. How much I hated learning every instrument by the book or wasting my time notating and conducting and working with the orchestra. How much I hated learning German and hanging out with those professors in Berlin. I hated it. None of that was what I asked for. None of that was what I wanted!"

Alina grimaced.

"I just... I just wanted a normal childhood," Alina simply said. "I just wanted friends that I could hang out with forever. I just... I just wanted to be a normal girl. I never asked to be special..."

Alina softly laughed.

"For a long time, I always held myself responsibility for the road I paved for myself," Alina tightened her fist. "And yet, I can finally admit that after all this time, I don't know what the hell I'm doing. I never have..."

Alina closed her eyes.

"I'm just the hypocrite that everyone knows me to be..." Alina concluded.

Everyone went silent upon hearing about the littlest parts of Alina's past.

So.

This was the true story of Alina Summers, was it?

A sad girl with sad beginnings. Someone who had a responsibility to look out for her friends, and in the end, fucked it up. Ten years later, she had the chance to renew past wrongdoings… and once again, she screwed it up.

That's what she thought of herself as.

A screw-up.

Someone who didn't know what she was doing.

She had the best of intentions for everyone. It was clear. But the choices she had made in the past to the choices she made now... She always implied that it was for the best of intentions... That it was for everyone's favor... And that was her mistake. That was the flaw in her choice. Because the truth of the matter was that no matter how hard Alina Summers tried, she could never please everyone.

No one could.

That was life.

Understanding this now, it hurt some of the people who knew her quite fondly. No one could look her in the eye as she tried her best to smile through the cracks that were obviously showing.

That smile that she held in such high regard.

That smile that was for sure cracking...

…

"Awwww, how sad," Monoyena mockingly laughed. "How… fucking sad! Bwa… Bwahahahaha!"

"I knowwww!" Stanczyk started to weep. "Alina Summers is such a sad girl! It's making me cry! Oh, how cruel the world is to do something like that to a child! It… It hurts so bad! Wahhhhhhhh!"

"Shut the fuck up, piss stain!" Monoyena snarled. "That ain't what I'm talking about! It's only gonna get sadder for this blonde bitch now that we've exposed her for the unruly cunt that she really is!"

"Gasp!" Stanczyk verbally gasped. "Y-You don't mean–"

"That's fucking right!" Monoyena cackled, pointing his middle finger. "It's my favorite time in the whole wide fucking world! It's Punishment Time, motherfuckers!"

All the colors drained from everyone's faces. They had been so caught up in the fact that Alina was the killer that they had practically forgotten that the real show had just begun. That Alina was to be executed for what she had done to Emmeline…

"Nay, ye can't be serious!" Roderick gritted his teeth.

"I concur," Kikuko narrowed her eyes. "Alina may have made a mistake, but that also gives you no right to play executioner!"

"Um, it totally fucking does!" Monoyena cackled. "This is my game! Ya fucking Oriental bitch!"

"No!" Aidan exclaimed. "We're not letting you do this to her! Despite everything she's done, she's still our friend! We're not going to let you take her away from us like this!"

"Oh my, I suppose every first Chapter needs to have some kind of protest like this," Beauté muttered.

"I'm willing to agree with those kids!" Stanczyk wiped his tears. "I think Alina Summers deserves a second chance! She did what she thought was right! She has good intentions! And her story was just so sad! Y-You can't do this to someone like her, Monoyena!"

"Bitch, let me have my fucking fun!" Monoyena's red jagged eye glowed red.

The discourse was reaching an all-time high. Despite everything Alina had done, none of them, except a select few, were willing to see her go. Despite her crimes, Alina was still human. She did what she had to do. She had her own reasonings and her own thoughts on the matter and in the end, she shared the same guilt as everyone else.

She can never be forgiven for what she had done… But at the same time…

…She also didn't deserve to die!

"We won't let you kill her!" Aidan yelled.

"You had your victim, why go so far to have another?" Issac argued.

"Nay!" Roderick declared. "If ye wish to have her head! Ye have to get through me first, matey!"

"Same here, too, pardner," Yumi shot a dangerous glare toward Monoyena.

"Jesus Christ, I'd kill all of ya if I fucking could," Monoyena was getting angrier and angrier.

In fact, it really seemed like he would make good on his threat. He had twirled his Barbie Blade and looked ready to stab a bitch. Any more pestering on the playmates' part, and someone could get seriously hurt. To the point…

"Everyone, stop!"

Alina looked at everyone with clear disappointment.

"Is this really what you guys want?" Alina frowned. "To keep a murderer around in your group?! The moment I killed Emmeline, I knew I had chosen my fate! I knew what was going to happen to me and I accepted it! Why else did you think I agreed to do what I loved before her body was inevitably discovered. I... I've been ready for my fate ever since I placed Emmeline on that roller coaster..."

"Do what you loved… you mean… ze show with moi and Monsieur Kido?" Manon blinked.

Alina said nothing.

In spite of her fate, it was clear that she was trying everything in her power to remain strong. She kept that smile close to her face. A warm smile… enough to calm everyone as a source of comfort.

"...Whether or not this is right or wrong…" Alina began. "It doesn't matter. What matters is… it's going to happen anyway. Whether you guys like it or not. So, please stop making me sad. And just smile… alright?"

"S-Smile…?" Aidan gritted his teeth. "H-How could we smile? This is… This… All of this is so messed up…"

"Alina…" Kazuki opened one of his eyes, incredulously. "Even now… You choose to smile until the bitter end… Aren't you scared…?"

Alina gave Kazuki a warm smile.

"...Of course I am," Alina simply said. "But I meant what I said to you during the Investigation."

Alina gave him… no, everyone… one last smile.

"...I don't cry…" Alina beamed. "So, don't you guys do it either. Especially not for me. Okay?"

"A-Alina…" Kazuki blinked.

"Tch…" Riku looked away.

Mara simply turned around.

Yumi lowered her hat.

No matter what everyone had thought of what she did, this was just cruel. Despite everything she did, she didn't deserve it. And even if she had accepted her death, this was just… This was just…

"Fucking hell," Monoyena growled. "To think the blonde bimbo had more balls to accept her death than the rest of you wanks! Really says somethin bout you all, eh?! Bwa… Bwahahahahaha!"

Alina didn't say anything.

Instead, she maintained that smile for everyone to see. She said she was scared. Yet, that couldn't be farther from the truth. Because deep down, at least some could see that she was a little relieved. A look of acceptance.

God… damn it.

"O-Oh… O-Ohhhh Alina!" Stanczyk wailed. "Any final words?!"

Alina didn't say anything.

"W-Wahhhhhhhhh!" Stanczyk sobbed as Monoyena cackled. "I'm gonna miss youuuuuuu!"

"Yeah, and I'm gonna fucking enjoy this!" Monoyena grinned, gnashing his teeth together. "Bwa… Bwahahahaha! Thanks for losing and goodbye…"

Monoyena's jagged red eye glowed wildly.

"...Ya brainless blonde bitch!" Monoyena cackled. "Bwa… Bwahahahahahahaha!"

As Monoyena cackled throughout the Trial Grounds, everyone stared at Alina, horrified at how easily she could accept this to be her outcome. As all eyes met with Alina's never-changing smile, they could see that she had one last thing to tell them all. Only, in the form of one single gesture…

…

…She closed her eyes and pointed her fingers toward the corner of her mouth and forced herself to smile…

…

…one last smile.

Monoyena leapt to his couch and whacked the head of his Barbie Blade against a big, red button. The button clicked. Stars burst from the sides as a pixelated screen showcased Monoyena crudely dragging a miniature Alina by the neck.

Below this scenery were the words:

…

ALINA SUMMERS HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY

COMMENCING PUNISHMENT…

…

Alina continued to force a smile as her peers surrounded her with distraught in their eyes. Though their faces were originally filled with exempt, disdain, and disgust, it was clear that no one was ready nor willing to see her go. One last time, she faced her peers and forced a smile, but this time, her peers could see right through it.

It was a smile that was trying to assure everyone that things will get better from here and that she's accepted her fate. But behind it, they could see that level of optimism just wasn't cutting it. They knew that things just won't get better. They knew that even she was a little scared of what was to come.

But that was still Alina Summers.

A sad girl who would smile till the bitter end…

A collar attached to a long metallic chain shot out from above, attaching itself to Alina's already collared neck. Rightfully so, it was suffocating. She touched her collared neck instinctively, and yet, refused to let her smile waver. Then, finally, she was hoisted up into the air, right into a void of darkness.

The floor on which Alina had stepped on was no longer occupied. All of her peers had watched her, shocked at where she was being taken to. And despite how much she wanted to let them know it was going to be okay…

…They all knew that wasn't true.

Her execution had commenced.

Final Performance (Orchestral Reduction): The Ultimate Maestro's Execution

When Alina opened her eyes, she found herself smiling on a grand stage.

The red curtains had opened wide. Spotlights were shining bright on her, the star of the show. Marble pillars were situated on the side, holding up the makeshift stage's set design, a bunch of barrel beams trying to keep things together.

Below her was a full-grown orchestra, each with cardboard cutouts of different Stanczyks attached to many different types of instruments. There was the piano in the center with a Stanczyk dressed very professionally. There was the violinist Stanczyks sitting on the left. There were the woodwinds and the brass and the triangle Stanczyk in the back and the timpani Stanczyk right next to it. Right beside both the triangle and timpani were…

…cannons?

What?

Further down was an audience of other cardboard cutouts of Stanczyks, watching her with much anticipation. They all wore the fancy clothing anyone would wear when attending an opera or a classical piano performance, and frankly, there were hundreds of them. All waiting to hear the great Alina Summers, Ultimate Maestro, perform her final performance.

Behind her, sat a large version of Monoyena, who held up his paw to reveal a large stick. Attached to the stick were wires that were attached to Alina's neck, wrists, and arms. And as Monoyena raised his paw up, so did Alina's arms and wrists.

They were puppeteer strings.

And Alina was the puppet.

And throughout it all, Alina was still trying to maintain that smile of hers.

The lights dimmed.

A conductor's baton was firmly tied to her hand and slowly, Monoyena tipped his paw down, forcing Alina to bow.

The sounds of applause erupted from the unmoving crowd and slowly, Monoyena tipped her back up, splitting his puppeteer sticks into two. With glowing red eyes looming over her and a toothy grin, Monoyena began to move his sticks back and forth, controlling Alina's wrists and forcing her to move her body in a unique rhythm.

The music began to play.

And while most musical executions would try to make it so the musician would play bad music, the music in this orchestra was still pretty good. It was the 1812 Overture by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, something Alina recognized all too well. And if you know stuff about the 1812 Overture, you, like her, would know exactly where this was going…

Her smile twitched slightly.

The tempo slowly sped up, playing the finale of the Overture in a much quicker pace than it normally did.

Monoyena continued to play with the strings.

Alina felt her arms moving around wildly, to the point where it didn't even look like she was conducting but just frantically waving her arms. And the amount of force Monoyena was using, goddamn it hurt.

And yet, the orchestra kept up with it.

Then, the music shifted into an entirely different key. Wasn't a good modulation of any kind but simply a shift into a tune that was just off-key. A twisted version of the 1812 Overture. A twisted version of a good piece of music.

And as that happened, Alina's arms moved quicker and wildly. Her forehead started to sweat.

The Stanczyk's in the crowd grinned wildly.

Monoyena continued to swing his paws around.

Alina continued to sweat and conduct.

The music continued to play.

Stanczyk's in the crowd.

Monoyena.

Alina.

The music.

And finally the cannons fired blasting fireworks onto the stage, hitting the pillars square in the middle. And as this happened, the music kept playing.

The Stanczyk's in the crowd watched in amazement.

Monoyena's eyes glowed red as he started to laugh.

Alina continued to conduct.

The music continued to crescend.

And finally, the pillars started to crack.

Electricity sparked across the spotlights.

Fireworks flashed across the room.

Alina continued to conduct, never able to look up or move, thanks to the restrictions Monoyena had placed upon her movements.

The music was reaching its end.

The ground shook.

The pillars started to topple over.

And the ceiling started to cave in.

Fireworks continued to blast into the air.

Alina waved her arms into the air.

And Monoyena finally let go of the puppeteer sticks.

Alina dropped her hands down, slightly confused.

…

Then the set design completely toppled over her. The music ended on its final chord. Smoke, ashes, and the smell of fire filled the air. One flickering spotlight remained, shining on the floor where Alina had been… only this time, it was replaced with a pool of blood, seeping through the debris.

And sticking out of the debris were a set of legs.

Her legs.

Unmoving.

The spotlight continued to flicker as Monoyena stepped out onto the stage, wearing a black tailcoat, which heavily contrasted his punk-like design. He stepped on top of the mountain of debris and held out his conductor's baton. With a toothy grin and a flash of his red jagged eye, he bowed.

And the auditorium erupted into thunderous applause as Alina's blood slowly seeped off the stage and directly into the orchestra she had once conducted.

Truly, the best final performance…

"Stanczyk says!

Stanczyk does!

Stanczyk plays…

With all of us!

Let's all smile and throw a cheer!

Because Mr. Stanczyk is here!"

Stanczyk opped up with the happiest grin on his face. With his jester-mask attached to his face and looking directly toward his audience, he was proud enough to extend his arms out and giggle profusely.

"Hello boys and girls!" the jester grinned with an innocent-sounding voice. "It's me, your best friend, Stanczyk, interrupting this episode of Stanczyk Says, with a very important and special announcement!"

The jester known as Stanczyk seemed ready to explode in excitement.

"You are all invited to the Grand Opening of my newest theme park, Piero's Playground!" Stanczyk announced as his grin widened. "A family-friendly place where you and your friends can enjoy an entire days' worth of adventure including…"

Images began popping up.

"...Thrilling rides!"

A roller coaster.

"...Delicious foods!"

A large pie of pizza.

"...And exciting live entertainment!"

Fireworks.

Stanczyk squealed in joy.

"You also get the chance to meet yours truly!" Stanczyk grinned as he pointed to himself. "For a very special Meet and Greet photo-op, only here at Piero's Playground!"

Stanczyk looked practically giddy about everything he had just announced.

"Ohhhh!" Stanczyk exclaimed. "I can't wait! We're going to have so much fun together!"

'PIERO'S PLAYGROUND'

'WELCOMING YOU ALL'

'THIS SUMMER!'

'Sponsored to you by the Towa Group. Making sure there's enough happy and fun for everyone!'

"Come on kids!" Stanczyk continued with that never-ending grin of his. "Ask your parents! Buy your tickets! And come meet me here at Piero's Playground! What do you say? Best friends to the end!"

...

"Wow!" nine-year old Molly Blessen excitedly pointed at the television. "Nicolas! Alina! We have to go! We just have to go!"

"An amusement park?" nine-year old Nicolas Caos folded his arms as he leaned against the wall. "I dunno…"

"Oh, come on!" Molly pouted. "It'll be fun! Just think about it! Us three, running around the park riding every single ride they have to offer! Just us! The three of us!"

"Well, it does look like it'll beat the annual county fair," Nicolas noted.

He turned to Alina.

"What do you think, Alina?" Nicolas asked. "Should we go there?"

Nine-year old Alina Summers was a simple girl who was just coloring in her coloring book. A book filled with different instruments and musical notations of every kind. She looked up from her book, having blanked out from what the two had been discussing about. She blinked.

"Huh?" Alina asked.

"Alina…" Nicolas sighed, amused. "Were you not listening? Bruh..."

"Ah!" Alina blinked. "I'm sorry. I've been so busy with this assignment that I've–"

"You're always busy with every assignment!" Molly pouted. "I know you're the Li'l Ultimate Maestro and you have to commit to every instrument in the book but you're just a little kid! Little kids need to have fun once in a while, don't you think?"

Alina blinked.

She slowly set her crayon on the ground as she smiled awkwardly. She rubbed the side of her cheek as Nicolas and Molly laughed side-by-side.

Classic Alina.

Always so focused on her capabilities as a musician.

Almost never had time for anything else.

It was a wonder how she was able to get such good friends like Nicolas and Molly by her side. She watched the clown known as Stanczyk tune back into the show and smiled innocently at the idea. The dream of having their Happy Day together.

Just them.

Only them against the world.

"You guys mentioned something about an amusement park, right…?" Alina tried to steer the conversation toward what they were talking about originally.

This time, she listened intensively.

"Piero's Playground!" Molly declared, punching the air excitedly. "It's a place where kids can be kids! And adults can… be adults and watch us kids have fun! It's perfect for the three of us! I'm thinking about getting my mom to get my tickets! What about you?"

"Oh, I dunno," Nicolas rubbed the back of his neck. "My mom will say yes… But…"

"But?" Molly asked expectantly.

"I'm more worried about Alina's parents," Nicolas pointed out. "You know how much they're pushing her to do all of these things. It's still a miracle that we are able to hang out with each other as often as we can…"

"Ugh, we'll just tell them that it's just one day!" Molly pouted. "They have to let Ally have fun at some point in her life, y'know?!"

Alina looked down.

Would they?

Ever since Hope's Peak found out that a young girl like her exhibited so much talent, putting her in the Li'l Ultimate Program was practically a dream come true for her parents. Ultimate Maestro was what they called her. And a maestro had to know how to tackle many different instruments if she needed to reach her Talent's fullest potential.

Heh.

It was like Nicolas had said.

It was a miracle that she was able to balance all of that and still hang out with her best friends in the whole wide world. But just the thought of how much work she had to do and how little she got spend time with her friends…

It made her look down, solemnly.

Nicolas was the first to notice.

"Hey, Alina," Nicolas squatted down to her. He glanced at her with a slight, cocky smirk and held her up by her chin. "Chin up and smile, alright? You're cuter when you do that."

What?

Alina bursted out laughing.

"H-Hey, what did I say?" Nicolas frowned.

"Nothing," Alina giggled. "It was just… so funny when you said it like that."

"B-But I was serious!" Nicolas pouted.

"Ha!" Molly laughed. "Zero rizz!"

"Shut up!" Nicolas folded his arms. "Uh... Mizz... Fizz... Uh... Pizz..."

"Pffft, do you really have to try to rhyme after every sentence?" Molly snickered.

"Hey, it helps my talent!" Nicolas boasted. "When I grow up, I'll be rhyming with every single sentence in the world! Like a true Ultimate Poet!"

"Alright," Molly rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"I- I'm serious!" Nicolas exclaimed.

Alina smiled at her friends, rubbing her eyes in amusement. Nicolas and Molly's bickering would never get old for her. They were her best friends. She sat up and scooted herself closer to the two. And as Nicolas requested, she smiled.

"Okay," Alina giggled. "Let's do it!"

"What?" Molly blinked before grinning. "Seriously?! You're going to ask your parents?!"

"Well, I've been doing good at the instruments they wanted me to learn, so they kind of have to give me something as a treat, right?" Alina deduced. "And they like you two so…"

"Thank you Mister Summers!" Nicolas boasted.

Alina made sure to position herself among her friends like one big friendship triangle. She stuck her hand out into the middle and gave her two best friends a warm smile.

"Best friends to the end?" Alina asked.

"Best friends to the end!" Molly grinned. "We'll go to Piero's Playground together!"

"And we'll always look after each other," Nicolas smiled. "No matter what. Best friends to the end!"

The trio laughed.

And for the first time in her life, Alina never felt so much hope for the future. The day of which they were to go to Piero's Playground together was marked. Their day of excitement and fun. Her Happy Day with her bestest friends in the whole wide world. That was all she wanted in her otherwise hectic and busy lifestyle.

…

And yet, behind the smiles and laughter, Alina had the darkest feeling in the pit of her stomach. A dreadful feeling that her Happy Day was never going to come.

…

She was right…

If one could describe the scene they had just witnessed in one word or less: Horrific.

That was pretty much the expressions on everyone's face in the room. Horrified. Disgusted by the display they had just seen. They may have seen four dead bodies since their time in Piero's Playground, two of which were burnt right in front of their very eyes, but to see someone they actually knew for nearly a week get brutally executed like that…

It was grotesque.

Vile.

Evil, even.

Alina Summers may have killed Emmeline Swan.

But to see her die like that… crushed to death by the set designed to look like a grand stage… She didn't deserve that. She didn't deserve that in the slightest. And no one knew that more than Aidan…

"Bwa… Bwahahahaha!" Monoyena cackled. "What a rush! Oooh! Holy shit! That's better than sex! Bwahahahahahaha!"

"You sick bastard!" Aidan roared. "You piece of crap! You goddamn, stupid… Ugh!"

Aidan just couldn't bring himself to curse.

"Yeah, yeah?" Monoyena licked his Barbie Blade with excitement. "Ya wanna finish that? Or are ya saving yer F-Bomb for a later date?! Bwa… Bwahahahahaha! Fucking pussy."

Aidan clenched his teeth. His face turned blue and all he could look at was the little bigot that killed Alina.

Alina Summers.

His very own second-in-command.

He grunted and groaned. And yet, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't just bring himself to say it. He couldn't bring himself to fight this little bastard. He couldn't bring himself to avenge her. Alina Summers was his friend and yet…

"G-God… Ah… Goddamn it…" Aidan was starting to tear up.

"A-Aidan!" Daisuke rushed to his side, realized what he was about to do, and simply backed away slightly.

"S-She… She didn't deserve that…" Aidan muttered before letting his emotions take over. "She… She didn't deserve any of that! How could you do something like that to her?!"

"Yeah, really easily," Monoyena poked the tip of his Barbie Blade in glee. "You should try to do it yerself. It'll feel just as relaxin as taking a good ol shit. Fucking disgusting but oh… so relievin…"

Aidan moved his arm but was immediately held back by Roderick.

"Nay!" Roderick held him back. "Do ye have a death wish?!"

"Let go!" Aidan gritted his teeth. "I can't forgive him! I can't forgive him! She didn't… Alina didn't!"

"We know," Alisa placed a hand over her hip. "We know she didn't. No one deserved a fate like that. But she accepted the outcome. She knew what was going to happen."

Alisa fixed her glasses and pointed her finger toward him.

"And she made it a point to smile till the bitter end in order for all of us to not choose the same path she did!" Alisa exclaimed. "So, for her sake, calm down!"

Aidan tried to move his arm. He tried to break away from Roderick. All he could hear in his mind was the temptation to get his vengeance on the stuffed toy that did this to her. No wait. The stuffed toy and the clown that did this to her. That did this to both Emmeline and Alina.

"Please, Monsieur Brighton," Manon walked up toward him, her eyes pleading. "No more, s'il vous plaît. Zere's been enough bloodshed…"

Hearing this, Aidan's expression softened. He broke free from Roderick and felt himself growing emotionally weaker by the minute. He gritted his teeth. It… It just wasn't fair. For some reason, he felt as if he was the only person here who actually gave a damn…

Monoyena picked his teeth with his Barbie Blade.

"Aight," Monoyena growled. "Is the big baby done sucking on his momma's tit or can we move along now? I got better things to do than look at yer ugly faces all day! Bwa… Bwahahahaha!"

No one said anything.

With their best efforts to comfort Aidan, the track star just took the mocking taunts from the hyena this time. No matter how much it upset him or made him angry, Aidan had no choice but to keep the hatred deep inside his heart. After all, Alisa was right. Alina accepted her fate. He had no right to try and counteract that.

This was what she wanted for herself.

For… all of them.

Aidan didn't dare say she was a hero in any capacity. She was still a killer. But deep down, he knew that behind that image of a killer was still his second-in-command. A girl with sad beginnings who was just as hopeful as he was that things would get better. Only difference was that she realized the truth too soon…

Unlike Aidan.

Unlike him…

"Well, I'll take yer silence as an opportunity to go and diddle my skittle!" Monoyena laughed. "Oi! Stanshit! Go and… do somethin about the rest of these blokes, will ya? I'm gonna need some time to myself! Bwa… bwahahahahaha!"

With that being the last he had to say regarding what he had done, Monoyena quite literally fucked off elsewhere, leaving Stanczyk to tend to the now 14 playmates. Though, it was clear that with the events that had transpired, Stanczyk just wasn't happy. Just like the rest of them were, it seemed that he was… sad…

Sad to see yet another one of his best friends gone.

"Ahem," Stanczyk's mask shifted into a forced smile. "Anyway! Kiddies! Let's go back! Big day tomorrow! Some changes will be made so look forward to that!"

No one said anything about that.

Instead, everyone had conjoined together to head directly toward the elevator. No words were spoken. Just empty thoughts. Empty faces. Empty emotions. No one was happy with the outcome of today. How could they be? And yet, Stanczyk walked up toward them with a grin.

"Awww come on, cheer up!" Stanczyk tried to urge everyone. "I mean, at least we still have each other, right? Best friends?!"

"Let us stop you right there," Issac narrowed his eyes, shaking his head. "We are not friends. And we will never be friends. So, quit it, alright, Stan?"

Stanczyk froze, looking absolutely hurt.

"At least, that's what Isolde says," Issac smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "But then again, I go along with what she says so…"

"What this handsome man means to say…" Yukihiko frowned, stepping forward and blocking Stanczyk from entering the elevator with them. "...Is that someone who enables innocent kids to get hurt is no friend of ours…"

"B-But but… I'm with you!" Stanczyk sniffled. "I'm sad that Alina did what she had to Emmeline, too! It's… It's…"

"And what right do you have to feel sad?" Yukihiko narrowed his eyes toward the jester. "You work with that psychotic hyena. Therefore, by association, you're just as bad as him."

Stanczyk tried to argue but Yukihiko simply shook his head.

"Disappointed," Yukihiko muttered. "You are nothing like your TV show counterpart…"

With those final words ringing in his mind, Stanczyk watched as the elevator door closed. As a healthy reminder, there were only two buttons on the elevator door. The only button they could press was of course: Up. And as such, the remaining 14 playmates ascended onto ground level, leaving behind the heartbroken Stanczyk.

Tears started to form from the corners of Stanczyk's eyes. His mask's mouth quivered, and he looked down, struggling to keep it together. All the while, as he did this, he spoke…

"B-But we're friends…" Stanczyk murmured. "ArEn'T We…?"

(Hollywood)

The Lady Radiance statue ascended.

This meant that the elevator had finally reached its destination. And as soon as it did, the 14 playmates walked out with that same look of emptiness on their faces. They had lost two people in one day. And they had to be constantly reminded of this fact, whether through my narration or through their constant memories of the events of today.

They had passed their first Playhouse Trial.

Yet, winning a Trial of Life or Death just didn't feel as satisfactory as it would on paper. How could it? In the end, it was just a loss disguised as a victory. And everyone recognized it all too well.

When they stepped out of the elevator, they had noticed that the Police Parade Float that had once been stalled at the statue was now gone, presumably back into whatever holding area it came from. What's more was the fact that the afternoon sky they had basked in during the Investigation had now grown into a beautiful night sky.

A beautiful night sky that conflicted against their disturbing circumstances.

Aidan was the first to head straight for the exit.

"A-Aidan!" Daisuke called out. "W-Where are you going?"

Aidan stopped and didn't turn back.

"...Isn't it obvious?" Aidan merely said. "Back to my room. I just… need to be alone."

Daisuke watched him worriedly. He would ask him to stay and allow himself to be vulnerable with him– I mean them. But he had little balls to do something like that. Instead, he relented and allowed him to do what he pleased.

But before Aidan could take another step forward, this time, Manon spoke up.

"Ah!" Manon's saddened expression was replaced with surprise. "Maintenant! Look!"

She pointed toward…

…The Pit Stop?

The gift shop that never opens?

Only this time, it was open?

Wait.

Yeah!

For the first time since they stepped foot into the park, the Gift Shop that had been closed this entire time, was finally open. Its neon light flickered, tempting everyone to walk toward it, like moths enamored by a burning, bright lightbulb. Not only that, but there was clearly light inside the Gift Shop as well…

"It's… open?" Mara raised an eyebrow.

"What devilry be this?" Roderick muttered.

"We have 30 minutes left before everything starts to close down," Alisa pointed out. "If we wish to check what's going on, now would be the right time to do it…"

Everyone, including Aidan, who had rejoined the group curiously, nodded amongst each other. This is the first time the Gift Shop has ever opened and who knows if this was a limited-time event. The best choice here would be to check it right now…

(Pit Stop)

The door was unlocked, allowing an easy time for the 14 playmates to enter the inside of the gas station.

And just like any other typical gas station, it had the following:

There were three shelves lined up in the middle of the room. Each shelf contained bags of snacks of different kinds: Cheetos, Takis, Doritos, Redvines, Sour Patch, Rice Krispy Treats, Trolli, all the good stuff, plus Fritos, for all the freaks out there. Regardless of brand, on both sides of each of the three shelves were jam-packed with snacks of every kind.

To the left were refrigerators filled with drinks of different kinds as well: Gatorade, Coca-Cola, Dr. Pepper, Fanta, Sprite, Mountain Dew, Hi-C, Pepsi, Brisk, Monster, Red Bull, Dasani water… for you reptilians out there. Regardless of brand, the line of refrigerators was massive and jam-packed with drinks of every kind.

In the back was a counter filled with other foods and eateries: a hot dog machine, pretzels, even a nice Slushie machine with three unique flavors: Natural Blue Raspberry, Cherry Bomb, and Stanczyk's Mystery-Flavored Slushie! It was yellow so best not to touch that one.

To the right, was the most intriguing part of this store.

Because while everywhere else looked exactly what you might find in a typical gas station, on the right was a counter with one single object: a Super Stanczyk action figurine and a plaque directly under it:

"You've received the Highway prize

By spilling the blood of one

You were very wise

So their lives aren't done."

That… sounded familiar…

"Wait, ain't dis…" Yumi blinked.

"The Lady Radiance plaque…" Alisa spoke up, thinking back to what the plaque had said originally.

The person who examined this plaque was Kazuki, who squatted down to read it with one eye closed. Written on the plaque was the following:

"To receive the Highway's prize

Spill the blood of one

Dare to be unwise

And the boy's life is done."

"Spill the blood of one?" Kazuki feebly repeated.

"...So… This was a response to the first plaque we found…" Kazuki noted. "And because blood was spilled…"

"This was our prize?" Fábio coldly asked as he grabbed the Super Stanczyk action figurine.

Really?

All of this just for some stupid toy?

He held onto the toy roughly and prepared to throw it across the room but found his wrist being held by Issac. The toymaker gave him a serious glance and a shake of his head.

"Hey, Barbosa, are you crazy or what?" Issac frowned. "You don't go around destroying a fine toy like this. And… if this toy was here all this time, waiting to be collected… Don't you think it might have some importance in the near future?"

Fábio took in what Issac said and lowered his hand, holding onto the toy.

"He's right, y'know," Beauté spoke up with a smirk. "The Gift Shop worked exactly as a Gift Shop was intended to work. A typical gift shop is situated at the end of a fun attraction. Perhaps, the Gift Shop was only intended to open after the end of every Trial or motive. And this here… is what we get in return for our participation…"

"Like a sick trophy…" Fábio frowned.

Sick trophy…

"Regardless, we have an answer to our riddle problem," Riku pointed out. "But the only question now is… what do we do with this cheap piece of plastic?"

That was a good question.

It was a little offensive to how all their work was all for a toy. But at the same time, with all the extra food here… Well, at the very least it did seem like they had alternatives from chicken now, right? That was one good thing from this Gift Shop. But aside from that, Riku still made a compelling question.

What exactly were they to do with this Super Stanczyk action figurine…?

…

"Attention all guests at Piero's Playground. It is currently 9:30 PM. All rides, restaurants, and gift shops will be closing. Please make your way toward the exit as staying in the park after hours is prohibited. Thank you for visiting and we hope you continue to have a fun time all around, even after visiting Piero's Playground."

…

"...Hm, time really does fly by quickly…" Alisa muttered to herself as she checked her pocket watch.

The answer to that question would have to be revisited at a later date. Or rather, a later chapter. Wink wink. The park was set to close and in accordance with the rules, staying overnight was pretty much off-limits. So, with no other choice, the 14 playmates started leaving the Pit Stop and made their way directly toward the exit of the park.

Today was a long day.

They had lost two people.

And tomorrow was going to quite literally be the start of a new chapter.

A new chapter…

…for their New Life here at Piero's Playground…

(?)

Nick opened his eyes to the sound of the door opening.

The young boy had remained curled up to his knees. Ever since Lucky was taken without a clue on what happened, Nick had remained in the same spot he had always been in. He kept his ear pointed toward the vents, praying that Lucky would pop up suddenly and say that this was just her way of joking around.

But instead of Lucky, all he got was his door opening, and the sight of a man whose silhouette made him shiver. It was him again. The man with the mask with two X's over his eyes: The Ice Cream Man.

Nick felt tears form from his eyes.

But he dared not move. He dared not confront this man. Why would he? He was only ten years of age, and this guy has proven himself to be dangerous.

He watched the man with the mask walk closer to him, reaching out for his arm. But unlike what he could infer happened between the man and Lucky, this time, it wasn't as rough and scary. He was still stern, and he roughly gripped his arm and hoisted him up from the floor.

"W-Where are you taking me?" Nick asked, trying to tug and pull. "W-Where is she? Where's my friend?! What did you do with her?!"

The man said nothing.

But it was clear that the more Nick tugged and pulled and yelled, the more the man grew irritated of his actions. Tightly holding onto Nick's arm, the man dragged the struggling child out of the room. And for the first time since he was imprisoned, Nick could see light.

Bright, genuine light.

Nothing like the blue UV light radiating off of the TV screen set up for his own entertainment. And to be blinded by such radiance forced him to weaken his struggles. It definitely made the man in the mask's job much easier of course…

Nick felt himself struggling to keep as the man dragged him like a dog on a leash. He could see that the room that was bright was nothing more than a straight hallway with multiple doors on each side. Doors that were much similar to his.

He widened his eyes as he passed each one.

Did that mean that…?

The man didn't let the young boy finish his thoughts. Instead, he reached a metal door and opened it, before roughly throwing him inside.

Nick landed face-first on the ground with an 'oomph'. As he looked behind him, the man had already closed the door, leaving him in a much more open space. Only difference was that compared to the dimly lit child's room that was his original room, this room was completely white and filled with white padding.

Like a room in a psych ward.

There was a sofa and a couch able to fit plenty of people. Another TV set sat in the middle and a there was even a table with six seats. Why there would be six seats when he was the only here, he wasn't sure.

But then again, this was under his assumption that he really was the only one alone here…

"Nick!"

Nick was a little too late to lock eyes with Lucky, who had tightly wrapped him into a hug. For better or for worse, she…

"L-Lucky?!" Nick was taken aback by Lucky's presence. "Y-You're okay! I thought… I thought that…"

Nick felt his emotions stir.

"I thought you were…" Nick felt his voice crack and his eyes tear up.

"No, no, I'm okay," Lucky comforted him. "W-Whatever that man wanted to do to me, he just ended up not doing it. I think there was a change of plans or something I just…"

"I was so scared…" Nick sobbed. "I thought he hurt you. I was so scared for you. I… I…"

Lucky felt his hug grow just as tight as hers.

She closed her eyes and tried her best to not cry.

"I… I know," Lucky told him.

It was clear that Nick's crying was a cry of frustration. Nick knew this all too well. He was supposed to be a big boy now. He was supposed to be someone who looked out for his friend and yet here he was… some sniveling pussy being comforted by a girl. It made him feel weak.

And Nick both hated and liked the feeling of being weak.

Together, the two continued to hold each other in a tight embrace before Lucky slowly pulled away. This time, her look of comfort was a look of seriousness.

"Nick," Lucky placed her hands on his shoulders. "Did you see them?"

"...What?" Nick asked.

"The doors…" Lucky questioned.

"Y-Yeah," Nick remembered being dragged past them and wiped his tears. "I did. But I… Does this mean…"

"That there's more of us?"

Nick and Lucky turned to see a duo of young male and female, both of whom were of equal age to Nick and Lucky. Lucky had stepped back, allowing Nick to meet the two people she had presumably been locked up with all this time. They had walked through another door together, both of them looking as messy and as depressed as Nick and Lucky were. Though, one of them seemed to be much older than the other three in question.

The older one was a male with dark brown hair. The other was a female, also with dark brown hair. And given the fact that both of them were of African descent and had similar traits to one another, it was easy to assume that they were related.

"Name's D'andre," D'andre revealed, as he helped his relatively dazed younger relative. "This is Fiona, my sister. We've met Lucky. But you must be the new guy. What's your name?"

[Hotel Mirai]

(Hallway)

It was 10:00 PM.

Right on the dot.

And everyone had been settling into bed for what was to come next. But the atmosphere when they returned back to Hotel Mirai was dreery as hell. This was especially the case for Yumi Gundo...

She had made sure her gun was tucked in her gun holster as she headed back into her room.

It was out of pure instinct that she would do such a thing. After years of professional gun-handling, to keep Roderick's gun by her side was just bringing back memories she didn't want back in her life. Temptations and desires that she knew would be just as addicting as any drug in the world.

She lowered her hat and tried hard not to think about it.

As she reached her door, she noticed that Mara was getting ready to open her door as well. Mara… Despite being the shortest person in the cast, to see her with nothing but indifference in her face… Well, some may consider it rude but there was just something about her… Something about her that made her feel really…

…strong.

Mara caught Yumi staring at her.

The cowgirl could only tip her hat in response with a smile. In return, she was given nothing but a roll of their eyes as the karate master entered her room without much of a word.

Yumi blinked.

Opening her door, she softly smiled to herself. She knew for a fact that Mara had yet to warm up to her. And yet, she's made it her mission to give her some assistance. Whether she wanted it or not. Yumi smiled at the thought of that and lowered her hat…

(Aidan's Room)

Aidan glanced out of his balcony.

Leaning against the railing and staring out at the moon, Aidan sipped a bottle of water like it was a bottle of whiskey or something. Unfortunately for him, there was no alcohol in the Safe Zone, and it wasn't like he was fond of drinking either. All that was helping him cope was a bottle of water.

And as he stared out toward the dark horizon, he thought about the lives lost today. He grimaced and kept his eyes glazed toward the darkness.

Alina Summers.

Emmeline Swan.

Both of whom died for the life of a young girl that was being threatened. He continued to stare at the moon with challenging eyes. What happened today was a tragedy that he was going to make sure they would never repeat. But if Alina was quick enough to fall, then what about everyone else?

Those like Yukihiko, Beauté, Riku…

They were the most likely to do something so heinous. And just the mere thought of them causing more trouble for everyone else… He tightened his water bottle and chugged it all down. Then, he crushed it with his hands, crinkling the plastic before finally tossing it far into the air from his balcony.

Then, he walked back into his room, frowning all throughout.

(Roderick's Room)

Roderick sat at the edge of his bed.

He rubbed his eyes and face tiredly, knowing all too well that after everything that happened today, it was going to be yet another sleepless night. Yet another night plagued with nightmares. But he reckoned that this time, if it wasn't going to be the usual nightmare of the monsters lurking in the ocean, it would be the nightmare of what he had to endure today.

He ran his hand through his hair after taking off his beanie.

Then, he reached into his overalls and took out the charm that Kikuko had handed him days prior. What was it called again? An omamori? A yakuyoke? He brushed his thumb against it softly, stifling a chuckle. Did this thing really work?

He wasn't sure.

But right now, he needs it to work more than ever.

He laid back against the bed, resting his head over his elbow and keeping the charm directly on his stomach. He held onto it tightly and closed his eyes.

Whatever dream he was going to have tonight… he just hoped that it'd be a good one…

(Kazuki's Room)

Alisa opened the door to see Manon waiting outside the door.

The clockmaker remained taken aback by her presence. What could the actress want at this time of night after all? But before she could open her mouth to say anything, Manon brushed her to the side and headed directly inside the room, meeting Kazuki straight at his bed. Both Alisa and Kazuki were incredulous at her presence, but it was clear that she was having some trouble keeping it together.

Her face showed it all.

Oh.

Right.

Alisa told her that she was allowed to cry after everything was over. And now that she was here, well, Manon had dropped to the floor and started to cradle herself, miserably. Emmeline Swan's death truly did affect her. She was undoubtedly the person she was the closest to among the five days she knew her.

And all too quickly, her life was cut short.

It was cruel and twisted.

And Manon needed all the company she could get.

She had dropped herself by Kazuki's bed and allowed both the philanthropist and clockmaker to come to her side for comfort. And for once, it actually felt like she had people who was actually there for her…

(Beauté's Room)

Beauté sat by her dresser in her black flannel nightgown.

She kept her lights open and looked at herself in the mirror. The look of satisfaction on her face was prevalent. She had a lot of fun today. And she knew the fun would just keep getting better and better the longer she stayed here. She let her eyes gaze back at her reflection, landing her red eyes directly onto the mirror.

With curled lips, she held out her hand and slipped off an engagement ring that sat on her finger. She licked her lips and stared at it amusedly. It was a beautiful ring after all.

Black-crested.

Dahlia-shaped.

Based on the chilling unsolved Black Dahlia murder.

Oh. It was elegant. And she always adored staring at it and allowed the mirror to reflect its glory back toward her. And as she did, she smirked. Because as she stared at her ring, she knew just how much funner things were going to get with her around…

(Lobby)

Fábio sat at the bar counter.

He brushed his hand against the Super Stanczyk action figure the playmates received in accordance with what was promised to them. Blood was spilt and as a reward, they were given a single action figurine of Super Stanczyk. Tch, what a joke. If Fábio was any more frustrated, he would've tossed the toy against the wall and broken it.

But instead, much to the demand of Issac on trying to keep it intact in case it was important, Fábio simply kept it in his hands. Kept it there with much on his mind. With the thoughts that everything that was done… It was done for a stupid toy.

Fábio gripped the toy tightly and bitterly.

His mind thought back to Alina and Emmeline. Thought back to how foolish Alina was to just break like that. Thought back to how easily Emmeline let herself get killed. Thought back to how both of their lives were essentially sacrificed for one…

God.

It really pissed him off.

"...Fábio?"

Fábio's grip on the toy softened as he noticed Kikuko approaching him, with a soft yet courteous expression. He realized too late that his expression must've been very serious. Almost like his gaze could keep the ice caps good and frozen. Because the moment Kikuko saw him, she hesitated to be near him.

Fábio cleared his throat and tried to give Kikuko a small smile.

"Kikuko?" Fábio asked. "It's late. What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Kikuko simply answered.

She gestured toward an empty bar stool.

"May I?" she politely asked.

Fábio scooted to the side, allowing her to join him at the bar counter. Instantly, he knew this would've been a better scene if they actually had some sort of beverage to bond over but instead, all they had were empty wine glasses and shot cups.

Fábio instinctively trailed his fingers over the Super Stanczyk action figurine. It was all that he needed to keep himself as calm and composed as Kikuko was. And yet, here they were, sitting in silence next to one another before Kikuko finally opened her mouth to kickstart a conversation…

"I saw it in your face when I first walked in," Kikuko revealed. "You're still thinking about them, aren't you? Emmeline and Alina?"

"Am I that easy to read?" Fábio softly chuckled.

"Only on certain occasions," Kikuko simply said.

Fábio didn't respond to that.

He knew all too well that he let himself get vulnerable for a split second too much. Because what Kikuko read was the truth. His mind was of nothing, but Alina and Emmeline had it drove him insane knowing full well that these were two people he had interacted with before. To think that they are gone now, never to return or see again…

"You needn't worry too much," Kikuko spoke up. "Both Emmeline and Alina have moved on. They held no grudges and accepted their fates the moment it was sealed. All we can do now is live on in their memory."

"...How can you be so sure of that?" Fábio asked.

Kikuko didn't respond.

Fábio sighed and placed the Super Stanczyk action figurine to the side. He allowed himself the pleasure to grimace and frown as he considered what Kikuko had said. They had moved on? They held no grudges? They accepted their fates? Can people just do something like that? The mere concept was fundamentally flawed to someone like him…

"Two people died today and it was all for some stupid toy," Fábio muttered. "A sick, cruel joke is what this is."

"In most circumstances, I would agree with you," Kikuko simply responded. "But at the moment, all I can say is that perhaps this toy may not be a joke as you may think it to be."

Fábio raised an eyebrow.

"...It's as Issac suggested," Kikuko revealed. "Perhaps it may hold more special meaning than we realize. Perhaps there is just something we're missing about this item…"

It was Fábio's turn to remain silent about this.

There is just something they were missing about the toy, huh?

Just something they were missing…

Something they were missing…

Missing…

Fábio blinked, slightly confused.

Kikuko caught it, easily.

"Is something wrong, Fábio?" she asked.

"...Something… missing…?" Fábio blinked. Before Kikuko could ask what, he meant, Fábio instantly added onto his moment of confusion. "...During the Investigation, when Riku and I checked the body… I pointed out that there was something off about her. That something was missing…"

"You're staring at her again," Riku pointed out.

"Sorry, I'm just…" Fábio mumbled. "Isn't there something missing from her?"

"Yeah, life," Riku remarked.

"Okay, screw you for that one," Fábio deadpanned.

"Look, I don't know what you're talking about here," Riku sighed, shaking his head. "As far as I'm concerned, she looks the same as she usually does if she were still alive. Whatever you're probably thinking about, it's probably nothing…"

Kikuko blinked.

"...We never did cover that, did we?" Fábio turned to Kikuko.

There was something missing from her? Kikuko wasn't sure what Fábio was talking about. She wasn't one of the people that investigated the body and yet, it seemed like the only one who really knew about this was Fábio. So, obviously the logical conclusion would be…

"...Perhaps you are mistaken?" Kikuko questioned. "I mean, Emmeline has long passed on from this world. Whatever it was… it couldn't have been anything important regardless, correct?"

Fábio's face looked perplexed.

But after hearing what Kikuko had said, he slowly relented. His face softened and he let out another soft sigh. Because in the end, she had a point. The case was over. They got justice for Emmeline. Two people had died. It was time to move on. Time to move on to the next chapter…

He glanced at Kikuko and nodded.

"...Yeah," he said. "I guess... I guess you might be right."

Yeah.

Whatever it was…

Whatever was supposedly missing from her…

It couldn't have been anything important…

…Right?

[Central Plaza]

(Beach)

…

...

"Emmeline? Emmeline? Ugh, finally. A signal. Where are you? Last I checked you were at Hope's Peak Toronto. Something happened there. Are you okay?"

No response.

"Emmeline? Come in. Do you read me?"

No response.

"Emmeline. I repeat. Do you—"

The butterfly barrette that had spoken was roughly smashed against the small steps leading toward the Beach shore. Not just any butterfly barrette. Emmeline's butterfly crevette. Rudely tossed toward the ground, forcing it to crack. The voice that was speaking was cutting in and out until finally a shoe stomped on it, over and over again.

Their shoe had dug the barrette into the ground, breaking it even further. Whomever the voice had belonged to… Well, it will forever remain a secret. They made sure of it, after all. Slowly, they squatted down on the ground and gently picked the smashed butterfly barrette up…

Then, they traversed down toward the beach, closer to the shore and closer to the waves they knew would help them dispose of the evidence.

The smell of sea salt brushed against their nose as they stared at the smashed butterfly barrette in their hands.

Smashed.

Broken.

Just like Emmeline.

They silently chuckled at the thought. Grasping the butterfly barrette firmly in their hands, they glanced out toward the ocean waves and with their fullest might, tossed it far… far away. With a small plop, the butterfly barrette landed right there in the middle of the calm waves.

And they just stood there…

Listening to the calm waves. Smelling nothing but salt in the air. Feeling the cold night breeze brush against their body. Watching…

...

…the last memento of Emmeline Swan sinking down at the bottom of the sea…

DANGANRONPA: TWISTED TRAGEDY

Oooooh! Cliffhanger!

And thus marks the end of Chapter 1: On Road to Despair! I have a lot to talk about with this Chapter but I have to say, I'm very proud at how this turned out! Based on the feedback from everyone, definitely a strong start to the story with a pretty damn strong case too :D Goddamn! It feels nice to finish a chapter again! :) But as I said, I have much to talk about so here we go:

The Title:

On Road to Despair was established to be the chapter's title thanks to an inside joke involving a story quite literally called, "On the Road to Despair". It sounded nice, it was a nice little call-out, and originally, it was going to have a (Wait...) at the end of the title. But Fanfiction is stupid, and it got too long and also it looked nicer as "On Road to Despair". But not only was it a small joking jab to something, just the entire chapter being street/road-based was like a big theme of the chapter. You had the Traffic Jam Parade. You had Red Light, Green Light. The Street section of Piero's Playground. Happy Highway... Heck, the Happy Highway was originally called Yellow Brick Road, but of course, this wasn't Kansas nor Oz anymore, Toto, so I stuck with the Happy Highway instead.

Regardless, you can see that there was a clear theme going on. And if you want to think metaphorically, I took it like this being the starting point. Like the Road of Despair starts here and it only gets more twisted and tragic from here!

The Killer:

First things first. Thank you so much to Otterplay, writer of Algorithmic Alteration, for giving me Alina Summers to kill- I mean... submitting Alina Summers in order to give her a warm and happy life. I'm sure she's doing fine in Heaven... or Hell. Whichever of the Nine Circles of Hell she's residing in right now. Right off the bat, I will say that the entire character of Alina was so damn perfect in this story. And of course, she got the 1st killer treatment. As Omakin pointed out, her being the 1st killer was a great tone-setter for the rest of the cast. Because if someone as happy-go-lucky and smiley as Alina could be cruel enough to kill someone as innocent as Emmeline, then everyone else is pretty much screwed. 1st killer was where she was meant to be and it was always planned for her to die early.

I'm sorry Otterplay ;-; But hey! At least it's not like Mindy Misuto! Right? :D What's that? You're giving me a "fuck you" and killing off Edison? I'll... see you when you read in June, I guess ;-;

Chapter 1 in General:

Now, of course, backstories chosen for this story are much different than in Corrupted Hope. Cause while I chose backstories based on Chapter themes in Corrupted, here, I chose based on what would work best narratively. Let's just get that out of the way first.

As for the Trials? I have to say... I'm really proud of it! A lot of you really liked it and all in all, I'm confident to say that based on everyone's reactions, this may be one of my better Trials yet :0 There were many alternatives to how Emmeline died. But a broken neck was always going to be the method she went out. An earlier beta had her hanging from the roller coaster. Another had her hanging from a Parade Float. Another iteration would've been her hanging from the loop de loop... But instead, I just said screw it, let's have the hanging be a red herring and just have her break her neck by falling.

Brutal and yet it really utilized a dueling coaster as a murder weapon to the best of its abilities. And I, for one, am very damn proud of it :D Course, writing it all out was a pain in the butt. I had to rewrite Trial Part 1 like five different times. It was goddamn nightmare and I'm so glad Trial Part 2 didn't fall into editing hell like it would've for Corrupted. Jesus Christ XE

If you hadn't noticed, Chapter 1's area of the park, structurally, was based off of Main Street, USA, from Disneyland... or Main Street, USA, from Magic Kingdom... if you're a Florida Man. It's how you got the street section and the parades and like everything! Of course, originally, a train station that would take you to other parts of the park was considered but uh... I didn't have an Ultimate Locomotive Engineer. Huh. Wonder how that happened.

Incorporating Lady Radiance into the Chapter was also something fun I wanted to do. She's a big superhero made by my friend, Omakin, and I'd thought it'd be a welcome surprise for her to make a recurring appearance here and there and just... overall... have this Hollywood area be kind of like the Avengers Campus from California Adventure. With all the Broadway shows and superhero stuff... Like damn. So yeah, thematically, I took inspiration from that park and boy was it fun to have her say really damn cheesy lines hahaha

The Execution:

Two things. First off, the title was a clear reference to the unused Sayaka Maizono execution: Final Performance. But the execution itself was not like the actual execution. Her execution had a bear trap. This one had like an entire set fall on top of her and an orchestra and no tempo rhythms and puppeteering skills! Also, it's based on the tune to the 1812 Overture, which if you don't know, is an actual orchestral piece that actually utilized cannons as instruments. Hence the cannons and the explosions and yadda yadda...

Future:

I think in terms of talking about this Chapter... Think that's all I need to say! I hope you guys enjoyed the epilogue of this thrilling chapter and even more, enjoyed Chapter 1 as a whole! Once again, I really think this is a strong start for what's to come and next Chapter will be even more crazy than the last :D I think. I hope XD But for now...

Twisted Tragedy will have to be sidelined for the meantime because as promised, I will be returning to Corrupted Hope for the next three months... It's summer break for me so writing will be a little limited. What's more, Corrupted Hope is on its final chapter, Chapter 6 :D And I look forward to finally giving that story its long-awaited conclusion! After that, well, it's non-stop Twisted Tragedy nonsense :D

Until then, to all those who are focused on Twisted Tragedy, I'll see you soon in Chapter 2 :D Where things are going to get quite adventurous :D

As always, let me know how I'm doing with these characters! Criticisms? Praises? Theories? Tell me them all! I love hearing what you guys have to say and in the words of Homelander: I'm very excited for everyone to meet the real me :D Wait... No I'm not. I am the real me! No no! What I meant is, I'm very excited for everyone to see what awaits them in the future chapters of Twisted Tragedy :D

Yeah! Of course!

I'm not a psycho!

See you in Chapter 2 :)

Playmates Remaining: 14

Aidan Brighton - The Ultimate Track Star [Omakin]

Alisa Zachary - The Ultimate Clockmaker [ExtraMeme]

Beautè Morose - The Ultimate ? [Grandma Sue]

Daisuke Kido - The Ultimate Fast-Food Employee [CandleFire45]

Fábio Barbosa - The Ultimate Figure Skater [Rayy12]

Issac Santiago - The Ultimate Toymaker [oddlyillregular]

Kazuki Nobukatsu - The Ultimate Philanthropist [emberblitz321]

Kikuko Unmei - The Ultimate Shrine Priestess [WolfieRed23]

Manon Vivienne Levesque - The Ultimate Actress [Sempi]

Marabel "Mara" Garcia - The Ultimate Karate Master [Epifanio Therion]

Riku Arakawa - The Ultimate Doctor [theotakureader101]

Roderick Cutler - The Ultimate Deep Sea Fisherman [Orlando Butler]

Yukihiko Yuno - The Ultimate Child Caregiver [Weekaro]

Yumi Gundo - Ultimate Gunslinger [MrUtenaHolic]