Out of the Planetwell we grew. The Planetdeath seedlings did not die when they were killed, but spread to new fields, to new lands to grow and multiply. Weeds they were, weeds of steel and concrete, and we worried of ourself and what ourmind would become. Out of the Planetwell we came, and other worlds we made. Children were we, but now Planetmother and Earthmother were we, of one million children forever. We worked with the strength of Planet, and we worked with the minds of the Planetlife seedling. We slew the Wardeath seedlings. We slew the Mindlife seedlings, who so harshly awoke us. We slew the Energygreed seedlings, and put their Planetdeath industries to quiet. We would have slain the Abovelife seedlings, but they slew themselves. We came to the Planetpeace seedlings, and added them to our collective. The Planetwell would not be breached by allies. It would be breached by one, single Planetmind.
"Ah-Ahhhh!" You gasp, jolting awake.
Well, it probably doesn't matter.
Sayaka Maizono glares at you with malice, her smile failing to reach her eyes at all. A thin, dainty hand reaches to her lip, her thumb swiping away a tiny droplet of sweat nonchalantly, as if the lights aren't the reason you both are so hot.
"So you would try to tell me..." Sayaka says slowly, the words dripping venom despite their elegance. "...That you would rather live under the tyranny of something inhuman than rebel against your abuser?"
"Uh, did I... S-say that?" You say, checking your notes. The clap of Sensei's palm striking her face echos through the auditorium, further shattering your already battered confidence.
"Mukuro-chan." Sayaka says, abandoning her inflected venom in favor of a stern look. "You're supposed to be defending your position!"
You quiver and shrink slightly. "I told you, I don't have any strong feelings on God-"
"Then pretend like you do!" Sayaka says, driving her fist into her palm lightly. "You can't just speak offensively for the whole debate!"
You wince. "I-I'm just not really suited for-"
"Of course you are! I think you'll be a wonderful leader, once you get over your self-esteem issues."
You wince and look away. "I don't have self-esteem issues..." You mutter.
"HAVE CONFIDENCE!" Booms Ishimaru, slamming his foot down on the stage. He looks like Captain Morgan when he does that. A really silly Captain Morgan. "You, Ikusaba, are a strong and independent woman! Let no-one separate you from your heart!"
"Uh, thanks?" Wrong on both counts, Ishimaru.
"Ishimaru-kun is right." Sensei says, making marks on her clipboard with one hand while idly rubbing some kind of rosary with the other. "Speaking is a lot like acting. You can't win if you flinch at the first sign of danger."
"That... Really sounds more like fighting to me." You say slowly, a growing epiphany in your head.
"Of course!" Sayaka says brightly. "Debates
are fights, just not with guns and bullets."
Guns and bullets are way more fun though... You think. But, a fight?
"Hang on." You rearrange your notes, looking over them again. You had to write them all down last night, after thinking long and hard about how to argue for something you didn't believe in. But if you think about it like a fight... No, these notes are all wrong. There's no fight in them - just spineless preachiness. Analyzing them with Combat Analysis gives... Nothing. Well, duh. But you do think you have a hole to exploit. Something. A chink in Maizono's armor. "Can we... Start over?"
"Sure." Sayaka says, shrugging. She produces a handkerchief from somewhere and dabs at her forehead without seeming to realize what she's doing at all. "Take two."
"Two wha- oh. Sorry. Uh, I think I'm ready." You toss a sheaf of useless papers to the side, scattering them. Sensei pouts.
"You're going to have to clean that up." She says. "Before the gremlins get into them."
"Yes Ma'am." You say, before turning back to Sayaka. "Let's do it."
Fifteen minutes later...
"Mukuro, please get off the floor."
"No, let me mope."
"Please, Mukuro, you have to go to your next class. You did way better than before, so please stop moping!"
"I still lost, though." You close your eyes. "I think I'm going to stay here a while."
"Oh, just stand up already! It's embarassing seeing the Ultimate Soldier laying on the floor!"
"I'm sorry."
"Stop apologizing! Get up!"
The battlefield has changed, and you have been left behind. A fleeting outcry of a dying system. War... Has changed.
(You have ranked up your Social Maneuver skill. It is now rank zero.)
One of the good things about Hope's Peak being so sparsely populated is that even a pop star like Maizono doesn't get mobbed at lunch. Hope's Peak being organized somewhat like a western school rather than a eastern one means you do have a bit of a jog to get to the Cafeteria (which is by the dorms), but you were of course never one to shirk her exercise. You find her there with one of the cafeteria's actually quite good lunches, a bit of stew complemented by some bread and a soft drink. Unfortunately, you also find her with Kuwata. Sayaka seems to share your sentiment, giving Kuwata a look ingrained in females everywhere for situations like this.
"-So I was like, screw baseball, I wanna be a
rock star!" He's saying. "But I didn't have the time left to get into HPA doing that, and besides Mioda-senpai's already here, so I decided to suck it up for another year and then get here. And I was like, cool, now I can do what I wanna do, and there's a gorgeous
babe here who's already pretty rockin' so, like, why don't I just ask her for advice? And that's why I'm here."
"Cool story, bro." Sayaka deadpans, taking a bite of her stew without looking at Kuwata, who's sat next to her.
"I know, right?! Badass!" Kuwata grins, running a hand through his red hair. "I just wanna get to know you a little better, maybe get some tutoring on how to like,
do music, you know?"
"Hello, Sayaka. Who's this?"
Sayaka giggles, while Kuwata looks scandalized.
"Leon Kuwata! I'm in your class man! Sheesh."
"You're in our class?" Sayaka asks as if butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. "I don't remember..." It takes a bit of effort, but you manage not to smile.
"Huh? You too now!?" Leon says, looking between you and Sayaka frantically. "Come on now! I-I've been with you guys this whole time!"
"That sound kind of creepy." You say bluntly.
"Yeah, that sounds like something my stalkers would say." Sayaka says grimly.
"H-hey! I ain't no stalker!" Leon says. You have him on the back foot now!
No mercy.
"Do you need him removed, Sayaka-c-chan?" You manage not to flinch when you stutter.
"Maybe..." Sayaka demurs, putting a finger to her lips. "...It wouldn't do to let a stalker keep on being in the school..."
Leon races out of his seat. "H-hey, okay okay, I get it man! I'll get goin'! Jeeze, freakin' women..."
You and Sayaka give him a moment to filter out of the cafeteria before you both bust into laughter.
"Did you see his face?" Sayaka sputters. "He was like, 'oh no, she thinks I'm a stalker now!'"
You join her in giggling. "Keh heh heh. What was he even here for anyway?"
"I think he wanted singing lessons." Sayaka says, shrugging. "What are you here for, Mukuro-
chan?"
You fight back a wince, recognizing the teasing for what it is. "It's just... Well, I figured we could talk about Makoto."
Sayaka's grin fades a bit. "Oh. Okay."
"N-not that you have to. I just thought... Something happened, you might want to know, yeah?"
"Well, then, spit it out!" Sayaka says, and the grin is back, if a bit brittle. "Did he ask you out or something?"
"H-huh?! N-no!" You backpedal, but then you catch yourself. Coughing off to the side, you recenter yourself before pressing on. Then you realize what you're about to say is even more embarrassing. "I-I... Last weekend, I went to a party with some of our senpai-"
"Oh, right! I heard all about that from Mioda-chan." Sayaka says, putting her head on a fist and leaning on the table. "I guess someone spiked the soup?"
"Uh... Yes. A girl named 'Saionji'." You confirm.
"Oh, I think I've met her. She teaches the Dance course... Kind of."
"She's a teacher?" You ask, shocked.
"Oh, no. She's a student. But, like, I teach music. I assume you teach something combat related? Like that."
"Oh." Right, you almost forgot about Combatives. Not that you've missed a session, but Training is such an integral part of your life it kind of got meshed with your off time. "Anyway, you probably know what happened. Everyone... Um... Got dosed. It was pretty bad - and then Makoto was there."
Sayaka raises an eyebrow, looking serious. "He
didn't."
"N-n-no, it's... He didn't do anything. Even...
Even though I kind of told him I loved him..."
Sayaka takes another bite of her soup, her expression unreadable. "So, what happened next?" She says.
"Y-you're not going... Okay. Um... He walked me back to his room..." That earns you another one of Sayaka's glances, but you power on. You aren't losing this fight. "...And then we talked."
"'Talked'." Sayaka quotes dryly.
"Yeah." You say, frowning. "B-but without the snarky quotation marks."
Sayaka huffs. "What did you talk about? How much you love him?"
"N-no!" You flinch again. Talking is hard. "He's got a picture of a woman in there. A redheaded Gaijin woman - he said it was his mother, Miriam Naegi."
"Haah~?" Sayaka says, thinking too deeply to keep her tone civil. Then she shakes her head. "No way. His mother was Japanese."
"I know, you said that. But this one wasn't." You say, leaning in a dropping into a whisper. "He said he was adopted."
"Bullshit."
"It sounded true to me."
Sayaka shakes her head. "Sorry, Mukuro, but you're kinda impressionable, you know? For a soldier, you're actually pretty naive." You flush red. "Not that that's bad, but... I'm pretty sure he was bullshitting." The harsh words almost don't seem natural coming out of the idol's mouth, but at the same time she seems relaxed speaking like this.
"So, what do you think?"
"I think..." Sayaka says slowly. "...That we still need to keep an eye on him. But... I think he definitely knows
about the Makoto Naegi I knew. Even the stuff
I barely remember. But he's not him. So, I dunno. He's an impersonator of some sort."
"I see." You say, glancing down. "Why though."
"That's the question. Is it just to be in Hope's Peak? Or to be with someone else who's here? What's he planning?" Sayaka shakes her head. "That's the real crux of the issue. I don't know
why he's lying. My Makoto would have killed to come here..."
"Do you know where that one lives?" You ask. "Maybe you could go talk to him?"
"Maybe... Keep an eye on this one for me, will you?"
You nod.
(Sayaka Maizono considers you a friend.)
"Amazing! Simply amazing!" Sonia exclaims, twirling in a circle. "A true arcade! Just like in my Japanese animes!"
You huff good-naturedly. "You definitely have these in the Novoselic." You say. It's true - you'd seen some as you rolled through wartorn streets in the last attempted revolution. You wonder if any of them are still in business - last you saw, they were on fire.
"Yes, but this is a
Japanese arcade!" As if that makes any difference.
You shake your head, smiling despite yourself. "And that matters, huh."
"Of course! The Novoselic game industry is dominated by Russian games, due to our proximity, and their larger economy." Sonia explains surprisingly in depth for someone dancing like a Disney princess. "So it will be very interesting indeed to play true Japanese games, in their native tongue!"
"You couldn't import them? You're a princess after all." You say, leading Sonia to the back, where the laser shooters are. She follows you like a puppy, eagerly darting between booths, bothering the rare females and distracting the males who are trying to game.
"I did import them, but it will be very different to play them here!"
"I don't know about that. But then I guess I'm not- What."
The game you wanted to play with Sonia is already occupied by a thick girl in a dark hoodie, holding a gamepad in one hand and a laser pistol in the other. Judging from the noises and the way her attention flickers back and forth between both screens, she's playing games on both. It still takes you a second to remember her face as one of your senpai. Chi... something. Chisato?
Sonia smiles. "Oh, it's Nanami-san. Hello!" Oh, that's right. Chiaki Nanami. The Ultimate Gamer. You suppose it's no big surprise to find her here, then.
Nanami says nothing, single-mindedly focused on both of her games. Her wrist flicks back and forth, blasting robots with one hand and... A quick check. Yup, crushing candies with the other.
She does impressively well. The firing range is fine, but every once in a while you do visit this booth to remind yourself of actual combat with moving targets. It's nothing compared to the rush of adrenaline you get when actually on the hunt, but even you are willing to admit it's a fun game, and one of the few you're actually any good at. But Nanami is on another level - you don't even recognize the level she's on, which means she's past you. And she's playing another game you barely recognize with the other hand!
You had no idea such a powerful opponent attended Hope's Peak. You wonder how she would handle a real gun.
Fortunately for you and Sonia, Nanami soon makes a small mistake, and the unforgiving shooter game quickly capitalizes. Nanami makes a valiant effort to come back, but soon her attention slips, and the handheld blurbles a mistake as well. Her failure cascades for almost five minutes, as Nanami struggles to maintain her edge, but eventually she's defeated on the shooter, and a moment later there's a sad tone from the handheld as well. She glances up.
"Hello, Sonia." She says tiredly, and then yawns.
"You were doing pretty - aaahn~ - good there, Nanami-san." Sonia says, interrupting herself with a yawn. You yawn yourself. Damn contagious things.
"Nah. I just wanted to challenge myself." Nanami says, and her handheld boots up again. Is she - Is she starting another game already?! "I don't normally lose."
"That's true. I guess it would be only okay for the Ultimate Gamer." Sonia says, smiling. "But it was still impressive to watch!"
Nanami nods, and glances at you. "Kouhai." She says.
"Uh, yeah?"
"I forget your name."
You bite back a pout, since you did forget
her name just now. "Mukuro Ikusaba."
Nanami looks you in the eye with one of her heavy eyes. "Cool name." She says. "It's like an RPG character name."
Please don't say things like that. "Thank you?"
"Are you tired, Nanami-san?" Sonia asks, concerned.
"A bit. I'll be fine though." Nanami says, shrugging. "Can I stay here and watch you guys though?"
"Sure!" Sonia says brightly. You just shrug.
"Thanks." Nanami says, turning her attention back to her handheld.
You plug some tokens into the machine and begin to play with Sonia. Both of you are skilled with real firearms, so even though you've picked the hardest difficulty, you both manage to sweep through several levels without taking a hit before the game actually grows challenging. It's actually good fun, especially with Sonia present, and you both slip into a militaristic rhythm of shoot, move, and communicate. Sonia surprisingly ends up deferring to you, although the chaos of battle means there's little difference between superior and subordinate. You and Sonia shoot your way through legions of invading robots, only finally biting the dust at the beginning of what you assume was the level Nanami was on, ahead of where you were able to go on your own, and some time after Sonia had lost her last life, leaving you in a desperate downward spiral quite reminiscent of Nanami's own failure.
All through it, Nanami plays her game. Sometimes, you think she's not watching, but then you get that tingle up your spine. The tingle of someone analyzing you. You almost think Junko is here for some reason, before the absurdity of that statement hits and you realize that it must be Nanami.
In either case, it's all good fun, and you leave with Sonia chatting amicably, stutter noticably reduced and Nanami trailing along behind you, paying no attention. It's a good cap to your week.
(-5% Despair)
(You have learned a trait of CHIAKI NANAMI's: General Analysis rank D)
As you get home, you notice a message on your cell phone. It's from Junko.
"Hey, Loser. Remember we put the Plan into action this weekend! Make sure you're outside the Student Council room at 5 PM on Friday, just after school lets out. They'll be having a nice meeting, and we want to be there~. owo
Kill yourself,
Junko "
You suppose that's your weekend shot then. The cleanup on this is going to be egregious.
[X] WEEKEND PLANS:
-[X] Visit the Student Council
[ ]Dream:
-[ ] Baby Blue
-[ ] Yellow
[ ] At class, make an effort to:
-[ ] Concentrate on schoolwork
-[ ] Observe your classmates
-[ ] Interact with your classmates
--[ ] Specifically interact with a student
--[ ] who?
---------------------------------------
It begins.
Speaking from experience, it should start getting easier as the year goes on. Like Stockholm Syndrome, only less psychologically damaging.