Our two stats look off to me. Was the above added?
Ikusaba Quest [Danganronpa/SMAC] - an Exodus story
- Thread starter Karnewarrior
- Start date
- Crossover
Our two stats look off to me. Was the above added?
Karnewarrior
Leastmost of the Hanged Man Arcana
Gah, I even double checked! Consider it fixed.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hmm... not too much to say about this update yet. I may reread it later and think up stuff.
Spector29
It Only Gets Worse From Here
Ah, a fellow LuciDreamer quester. At this rate, I might have to try my hand at making quests again.
As a Danganronpa fan, I don't trust Makoto here. He's got an agenda that seems...slightly less benign than canon. Considering he seems to be the bridge between DN and our crossover, that makes sense, but I don't trust ???.
That said, Junko is the worst, especially with how aggro she treats her sister. Put me in the camp of lowering JDEP, especially since that's what will keep us alive in the long run. Don't forget that Junko murdered her sister not personally, but by deciding on a whim she didn't fit with the Plan anymore.
As a Danganronpa fan, I don't trust Makoto here. He's got an agenda that seems...slightly less benign than canon. Considering he seems to be the bridge between DN and our crossover, that makes sense, but I don't trust ???.
That said, Junko is the worst, especially with how aggro she treats her sister. Put me in the camp of lowering JDEP, especially since that's what will keep us alive in the long run. Don't forget that Junko murdered her sister not personally, but by deciding on a whim she didn't fit with the Plan anymore.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Like this is the main reason I want to try to take more of a Kyouko-route with anti-Junko Dependency. Here they are in total:
1. Kyouko has a clearly defined SHSL/Ultimate. I have seen no reason to believe Makoto's is still Luck, and reason to believe the opposite.
2. Kyouko has a well-defined agenda (or lack there of), as far as we know. Makoto clearly has something else going on. Something super weird.
3. Investigating and interrogating Makoto is exactly the kind of thing Junko wants us to do, points or no. Kirigiri isn't.
4. Kyouko, despite her issues, has a genuinely personable side to her. Makoto feels super fake.
5. I feel like Kyouko-Mukuro have a lot more potential for an effective dynamic and chemistry (not necessarily romantic) than this Makoto and Mukuro.
6. wtf is ???
7. I don't trust the super easy anti-Junko points hanging with Makoto gets us. That Kirigiri seems like a harder direction to take the narrative actually makes me less suspicious of it.
8. If we choose to go against Junko in the distant future, I honestly think it'd be easier to initially keep it on the downlow from Junko with Kirigiri than Makoto.
9. Integrating with Makoto seems to be throwing us into this whole world beyond our comprehension, when we're already having to deal with adapting to new surroundings. Kirigiri potentially allows us to remain in an environment growing more familiar.
10. GIven the last update, Makoto seems to be able to FUCK WITH OUR MIND.
10a. Given this, I'm ESPECIALLY worried about what ??? is.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
Squee! Best Sempai! If I weren't smitten with your rugged handsomeness, I would probably wonder what you are doing up so early in the morning. Very few people can handle less than 8 hours of sleep consistently and without issue, and an Ultimate Soldier and/or Martial Artist you are not.
Begone, foul xenomorph! What dark corner of the world have you crawled out of that you don't know the pleasures of a BigMac? Are you from the terrible future that has seen the world succumb to Despair?
Because sometimes it feels only nuclear bombardment can do away with this stuff.
He probably meant 'an indu-'? Hmm, 'induce', 'induct', 'indulge', 'industry'... Nope, can't think of any derivative word he could have wanted to say here instead. Must be something setting-specific?
Excellent! Now we only need to induct Togamin~ and Oni-giri in our little band of sisters (and sempais), and we won't be sad at all when the world goes up in flames.
I mean, good morning, friends☆!
I would have you know that the name I took for myself is an integral part of my identity, and I will not part with it for the world!
Yes, sempai, it's absolutely the best! totally cute! I will treasure it always! ఠ‿ఠ
I don't hold any illusions about what Makoto is doing. He seems to be aware of what is happening to some degree, and his introduction was basically hand-made to rile Junko up somewhat fierce. He can't be ignorant of how he is wrapping Mukuro around his finger, so the question becomes, why he behaves in such a way and what exactly does he know?
Is he deliberately depriving Junko of her allies and tools? Or is it accidental to the role he plays?
I thought this was a class for Public Speaking, not Chinese Torture.
Watching Ishimaru trying and failing to stay silent was entertaining, though.
And the lizardman reveals himself! Seize the xeno!
Don't have much to say about the Psychology class. Miaya is... a curious case. I find myself less interested in her as a character, and more in what she could possibly see in us, or what her perspective could allow us to see about others.
The hints about Makoto's origins are getting more transparent, but I am not sure I am familiar with the setting or the franchise. Omega symbol with a cross? Red and Blue? A necklace with a green gem? A foreign anti-psychic? It sounds like it should be possible to guess at this point, but nothing springs to mind.
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Spector29
It Only Gets Worse From Here
3. I don't want to stop investigating Makoto, partially because I want pump him for more JDEP loss before we switch to Kyouko and also because being that defiant to Junko this early probably won't end well.
4. He's got A-rank lying, so 'fakeness' comes with the territory. Honestly, 'fakeness' has been IRL the most annoying thing to hear about coming from other people, so I generally disregard it as a character flaw.
6/10a. Same.
I actually wondered if this was a Time Travelling Makoto, considering he wanted to say an Induction Burner (not confirmed, but he definitely was about to say induction-something) was the go-to for cooking food.
(Embed isn't working)
File:Ankh (SVG) 01.svg - Wikimedia Commons
File:Ankh (SVG) 01.svg - Wikimedia Commons
- Pronouns
- She/Her
3. I can see the latter but not really the former; we clearly can get Dependency Loss through other things and pumping him for JDEP feels like it'll end up having the exact same effect as going against Junko heavily early then action. I can maybe see going to Makoto for informational gathering of our purposes though.
4. It's not a character flaw, it's a reason to not trust him; like, I'm sorry if you get called "fake" or something along those lines, I doubt you deserve it, but like in fiction it's better to not hang around people that seem to not at all be sincere and be able to screw with your head, you know?
Spector29
It Only Gets Worse From Here
3. I agree that we can get -JDEP though other things, but we can do those things and also hang out with Makoto (at least for a while longer) for maximum losses.
4. I've played enough Persona to know that masks aren't strictly a bad thing. I don't trust him and want to ween off hanging out when our JDEP is at like 60 or so, but unless he's planning on capping us because he knows we're half of Ultimate Despair I think we're okay for now.
Exodus VI
Karnewarrior
Leastmost of the Hanged Man Arcana
Back with the second half of the update, and a vivid hatred of Spined Orb-weaver spiders. I knocked all them down yesterday and they're already back up building webs in the way when I'm trying to mow the lawn. Stay in the fucking tree, you disgusting pests, before I take a lighter to your web and burn both our houses down!
But anyway, the firing range! And...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talent Honing. A phrase which means different things for every individual that has ever been through it.
For the Ultimate Basketballer, it meant a hoop and good sneakers, and a set of Reserve Course flunkies to destroy on the court. For the Ultimate Industrialist, it meant a factory floor with modular machines and hired workers, a workshop to create and invent. For the Ultimate Pop Sensation, it meant a recording studio with a supercomputer full of every possible combination of beats and synths, an orchestra at her fingertips and the best editing software to really make her voice pop. For the Ultimate Princess, a simulated court with different intrigue situations every day to maneuver and cast her weight against.
But you're not them. You're the Ultimate Soldier. You kill people.
You arrive at the hangar, previously designed for the Ultimate Air Parade Star, but retrofitted for your use now that he's long since graduated. There's a very brief, nerve-wracking moment outside of the door, your heart full of anticipation of your training, but you don't let yourself hesitate.
You creak the old metal door open, the familiar utilitarian texture of the thing sending a wave of nostalgia up your arm that helps to sooth your nerves. You step through, shutting the door behind you, and peer around.
The hangar has been divided into three areas, as far as you can tell. Where once a plane must have been kept, now is a building, cheaply constructed but sturdy. It's three stories tall, although third floor is smaller than the second. Around the footprint of the building is a small layer of half-filled sandbags, potentially to catch you from a fall if you ever did fall or jump from above. The inside seems quite fleshed out, with simple furniture and even some small decorations, and you can see the cardboard cutouts of targets inside. They actually make you snicker slightly; you recognize the uniform of Togami PMC mercenaries on the drawn targets, who vary in expression between "constipated caveman" and "Yasuhiro being paradropped into Kuzuryu Headquarters".
The second section of floor has been left mostly empty, boxes and bags stacked up against the walls, making both a small parade ground and a staging area. There are small measures of tape on the floor, delineating a section for a fireteam to be examined by their commanding non-commissioned officer. Several of the boxes are marked for MREs or ammunition, and you can see an empty gun rack also pushed up against the wall. You use a crooked finger to open one box and confirm the presence of CBRN gear, nodding at the smell of semi-fresh chlorine oozing from the thick cloth and rubber.
The third and final "section" is actually part of the hangar: a small office space equipped with some simple computers and an assortment of manuals, sectioned off from the rest of the hangar by a solid iron door and reinforced glass windows set into corrugated steel, all painted white. You open the door and peek inside, but nobody is there... Or so you think. But as you move to shut the door, you hear the computer conspicuously shut down.
Blinking, you move back inside the office to look at it. It's not the supercomputers you know are elsewhere in the facility, but it's of reasonable quality, from a brand-name manufacturer. As you watch, the screen moves from the blue "shutting down..." screen to a shiny black slab, and the fans stop whirring.
You move to turn it back on, curious, but just then the door to the hangar opens. Glancing outside shows you Jin Kirigiri, of all people, followed by the grey-haired girl from graduation and someone you don't recognize, a taller boy with brown hair and a strangely antenna-like ahoge directly on top of his head. Besides that, everything about him is painfully generic; he's even wearing a reserve course uniform.
"Miss Ikusaba?" Principal Kirigiri says as you open the door. You march to him quickly before snapping to attention with a salute.
"Sergeant Major Ikusaba, reporting as ordered sir." You say.
Principal Kirigiri snaps off a salute crisp enough to prove he was never an officer. By which you mean it was actually decent. "At ease. How do you like your Talent Honing facilities?"
"They look good." You say honestly, really smiling for the first time in a while. "Whoever did the targets deserves a raise."
The principal chuckles a bit, and you notice both the grey-haired girl and the generic boy lean back to look at the targets in the training building. "They're a potential Ultimate from next year we're scouting, so I'll make sure your recommendation goes on the official file."
"Who're they?" You ask.
"This is Peko Pekoyama, Ultimate Swordswoman and your senpai by a year." Pekoyama bows elegantly, taking what seems to be a kendo sword from her back.
"I assume I won't be using this?"
"You can use whatever you like." You say, shrugging. "I think the targets are equipped with guns of some sort."
"Paintball guns, yes." Principal Kirigiri confirms. Pekoyama nods and looks critically at her sword for a moment before throwing the strap back over her shoulder. You turn to the generic boy.
"You're reserve course?"
He nods, swallowing. "Hajime Hinata." He says.
You nod, and look at Principal Kirigiri.
"Normally, reserve course students aren't permitted to join Ultimates in their electives here." The black-haired man explains. "But we wanted you to have a fireteam of some sort here, and the only applicant was Miss Pekoyama."
Hinata scratches the back of his head, looking away.
"I understand." You say, eyeing him critically. He's not entirely unfit. "Hinata, do you think you can do it?"
Hinata thinks for a moment. "No." He says finally, blushing slightly. "But I'm not going to let an opportunity like this slip by without a fight."
You nod. "He'll do. Thank you, sir." You tell Principal Kirigiri, who nods.
"Rather than try to make you a better combatant, which I suspect is useless, I want you to hone your leadership abilities. So your mission while you're here will be to get Miss Pekoyama and Mr. Hinata to work as fluidly underneath yourself as possible. Your final test will be to complete a course not unlike the one in here in as short a time as possible, while working as a team and dealing with unexpected situations. Understand?"
"Yessir!" You snap, standing to attention. Then you glance at Pekoyama and Hinata. "We'll cover drilling first, I think."
Principal Kirigiri grins, and you salute each other one more time before he exits, leaving you to drill Pekoyama and Hinata for a period before being left to yourself again.
Thankfully, the firing range is in the gymnasium, and without a teacher present you allow yourself out of your Talent Honing a few minutes early, allowing you to shower away the sweat of military drills. They're not fun, nor particularly useful in combat, but they provide a communication foundation and a common starting block for you to work off of when the time finally comes to start running through the dummy building.
Still, with water shimmering in your black, mussed hair and a pleasantly steamed feeling in your muscles, retiring to the firing range sounds delightful. The scent of gunpowder, your scent, hangs thickly around the range - obviously, it's in use. That idea is confirmed by the sound of riflefire from inside. Curious, you hurry and enter, taking the towel off your shoulders and folding it as you turn the door handle with an elbow and push it open with a shoulder.
You can't clearly make out who's firing, as they're halfway into a divot further down the range. Every few seconds, the rifle cracks out a round, which whizzes downrange in an instant to slam into the paper target and its foam backing, punching a hole clean through the target and finally sparking against the angled far wall. Your keen eyes immediately determine that whoever it is is a crack shot - not nearly as good as you, but quite impressive, with very few missed shots and a tight spread you would have seen men brag about in Fenris.
You toss the neatly folded towel onto one of the benches in the back, next to a box of 5.56 rounds. You make your way to the other end of the range, peering at the small piles of brass casings currently being gathered up by small black-and-white robots with "TOUWA INDUSTRIES" printed on top.
The first thing you notice about the mysterious person is that it's another female. With her form outlined in hazy fog of war, she looks almost like a metal album cover or advertisement, with full hips and the rifle pressed to her cheek. But as you grow closer the haze lifts, revealing blond hair and her identity in a single stroke.
You quirk an eyebrow. You didn't realize Sonia Nevermind visited the firing range. You would have pegged her for being out in the woods, singing at birds and deer and eating mysteriously gifted fruit baskets. Certainly you never smelt a whiff of the pervasive scent of expended ammunition on her, although her perfume is often somewhat cloying, in your opinion.
She glances at you with one big blue eye, then flicks the rifle to burst and empties her magazine in a quick series of shots before lowering and clearing the rifle. She sets the weapon down and presses the return button for the target with her hip as she removes her earmuffs. "Ah, hello! I remember you, you're Mukuro Ikusaba, the freshman?"
You blink and nod. "I wasn't expecting to find a princess in here." You say bluntly.
Nevermind giggles. "Every person in my country receives an education in military affairs in elementary school."
"That would explain the Novoselic skill at fighting." You say honestly. You were already aware of the education policy for the small country, but you're surprised that it applies even to royalty.
"Oh, no." Nevermind says brightly. "That came with the last three civil wars."
You have to bite back a snort. Did she just?
Nevermind continues, jauntily popping the tacks out of the target and letting the paper flop. "But yes, many people do not expect a princess to be interested in these things. But I am! It is fascinating, to pull a trigger and watch a hole appear in a target."
"Just a target?" You ask darkly, before catching yourself and wincing.
Nevermind pauses, but only for a moment. "It is less fascinating when the one with the hole is a man. That, I dislike. There is too much killing, in the Novoselic, already, for the princess to enjoy causing harm." She turns and presents the target to you. "As the Ultimate Soldier, what do you think? I am one of the best in my family!"
You examine the target. Nevermind's spread is actually even tighter than you expected, with most bullets landing directly on a line from the head of the little black figure to the chest. The bullets fired on burst are obviously less accurate, but still mostly strike their target, punching holes where the ear or gut would have been on a human. And this is a small target, for two hundred meters.
"You're quite good." You admit, handing the paper back to a beaming princess. "I would guess your only competition here would be myself."
"That is wonderful! From the Ultimate Soldier of Hope's Peak Academy, this is high praise indeed!" Nevermind says.
You rub the back of your head. "It's not like I'm the Ultimate Marksman..." You admit. "My focus is mostly on making sure the shots hit the target, rather than are neat and orderly."
"Yes," Nevermind allows, "but you must still be able to hit a moving target at great distances. For this, you must be highly skilled." She smiles. "I would like to be friends with you!"
"Huh?"
Nevermind lances forward and grabs your arm, neatly dodging your reflexive strike and pretending like it didn't happen. You blink. "I would like to be friends with you!" She says again. "We are 'Senpai' and 'Kouhai' here, but I sense in many ways that we are kindred spirits, and I think much would be wasted on deference to my title or seniority. I think we should become friends, yes?"
You blink again, the sensation of a growing blush on your cheeks far too familiar for only being out of Russia for a few days. "Um..."
"I want to see you shoot! Kerpow!"
"O-okay?! Ah!"
Nevermind pushes you down the range, leaving her own gun steaming on its block. "Is this your towel? It's super cute!"
"Huh?!"
Sonia snatches up your folded towel, which is decorated with small Fenris logos. It's one of your sparse personal effects, besides your uniforms, knife collection, and Spartan Survival Manual. Her eyes sparkle as she looks at it.
"These are cute puppies!"
"They are not puppies!"
"You may seem cold and surly on the exterior, Mukuro Ikusaba, but you are truly a cute girl internally!"
"P-please do not say things like that, and give me my t-towel back!" You say, hovering awkwardly, instincts roaring for you to rip the cloth free from the taller girls grip, Japanese social conventions abhoring contact with another human.
Nevermind giggles, and passes the towel back to you. "This is truly cute." She says solemnly as she hands it over. "This makes me certain; we must become friends!"
"Princess-"
"Sonia! And I shall call you Mukuro, henceforth!" Sonia insists, smiling.
"...Sonia..."
You look at the towel in your hands, rubbing a thumb over one of the tiny logos.
"It is Fenris, yes? Mercenary corporation, based in Saint Petersburg?"
You blink and look at Sonia, who's looking at you seriously. "You recognize it."
"Yes. I understand Fenris has undergone many operations in my kingdom, often for the Republicans. However, I do not hold a grudge. It would be most heinous to hold a grudge against a friend." Sonia smiles, and you can't help but smile back.
"...Alright. Friends."
"Now show me your moves! I wish to see the culmination of glorious Japanese warfare with my own eyes!"
You laugh and grab a gun. Sonia's presence is... Not relaxing, but familiar somehow.
"Woah!"
"Sick!"
"Astounding!"
"Kerplow indeed!"
And maybe a little childish.
IT IS THE END OF THE FIRST WEEK.
[ ] WEEKEND PLANS:
-[ ] Go out with someone (they must consider you a friend, or be interested in pursuing a romantic relationship with you. At rank -E, this action may fail)
-[ ] Hang out with Junko (possible event, -10% Despair, +5% JUNKO DEPENDENCY)
-[ ] Visit a classmate
--[ ] Who?
-[ ] Read the Spartan Survival Manual (???)
[ ]Dream:
-[ ] Orange
-[ ] Green
-[ ] Red
[ ] At class, make an effort to:
-[ ] Concentrate on schoolwork
-[ ] Observe your classmates
-[ ] Interact with your classmates
-----------------------------------------------------------
Thus ends the litany of introductions to each new class. From now on, classes will only be mentioned if an event happens. At least one event will happen most weeks, and usually two or three will occur. For the weeks where events to not happen, there will be a small update to notify you right above the vote, and probably an extra few chances to "dream".
Updates will continue at this pace for a little bit, but then school starts again and they'll have to slow. By that time though, hopefully someone will have guessed the crossover.
But anyway, the firing range! And...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Talent Honing. A phrase which means different things for every individual that has ever been through it.
For the Ultimate Basketballer, it meant a hoop and good sneakers, and a set of Reserve Course flunkies to destroy on the court. For the Ultimate Industrialist, it meant a factory floor with modular machines and hired workers, a workshop to create and invent. For the Ultimate Pop Sensation, it meant a recording studio with a supercomputer full of every possible combination of beats and synths, an orchestra at her fingertips and the best editing software to really make her voice pop. For the Ultimate Princess, a simulated court with different intrigue situations every day to maneuver and cast her weight against.
But you're not them. You're the Ultimate Soldier. You kill people.
You arrive at the hangar, previously designed for the Ultimate Air Parade Star, but retrofitted for your use now that he's long since graduated. There's a very brief, nerve-wracking moment outside of the door, your heart full of anticipation of your training, but you don't let yourself hesitate.
You creak the old metal door open, the familiar utilitarian texture of the thing sending a wave of nostalgia up your arm that helps to sooth your nerves. You step through, shutting the door behind you, and peer around.
The hangar has been divided into three areas, as far as you can tell. Where once a plane must have been kept, now is a building, cheaply constructed but sturdy. It's three stories tall, although third floor is smaller than the second. Around the footprint of the building is a small layer of half-filled sandbags, potentially to catch you from a fall if you ever did fall or jump from above. The inside seems quite fleshed out, with simple furniture and even some small decorations, and you can see the cardboard cutouts of targets inside. They actually make you snicker slightly; you recognize the uniform of Togami PMC mercenaries on the drawn targets, who vary in expression between "constipated caveman" and "Yasuhiro being paradropped into Kuzuryu Headquarters".
The second section of floor has been left mostly empty, boxes and bags stacked up against the walls, making both a small parade ground and a staging area. There are small measures of tape on the floor, delineating a section for a fireteam to be examined by their commanding non-commissioned officer. Several of the boxes are marked for MREs or ammunition, and you can see an empty gun rack also pushed up against the wall. You use a crooked finger to open one box and confirm the presence of CBRN gear, nodding at the smell of semi-fresh chlorine oozing from the thick cloth and rubber.
The third and final "section" is actually part of the hangar: a small office space equipped with some simple computers and an assortment of manuals, sectioned off from the rest of the hangar by a solid iron door and reinforced glass windows set into corrugated steel, all painted white. You open the door and peek inside, but nobody is there... Or so you think. But as you move to shut the door, you hear the computer conspicuously shut down.
Blinking, you move back inside the office to look at it. It's not the supercomputers you know are elsewhere in the facility, but it's of reasonable quality, from a brand-name manufacturer. As you watch, the screen moves from the blue "shutting down..." screen to a shiny black slab, and the fans stop whirring.
You move to turn it back on, curious, but just then the door to the hangar opens. Glancing outside shows you Jin Kirigiri, of all people, followed by the grey-haired girl from graduation and someone you don't recognize, a taller boy with brown hair and a strangely antenna-like ahoge directly on top of his head. Besides that, everything about him is painfully generic; he's even wearing a reserve course uniform.
"Miss Ikusaba?" Principal Kirigiri says as you open the door. You march to him quickly before snapping to attention with a salute.
"Sergeant Major Ikusaba, reporting as ordered sir." You say.
Principal Kirigiri snaps off a salute crisp enough to prove he was never an officer. By which you mean it was actually decent. "At ease. How do you like your Talent Honing facilities?"
"They look good." You say honestly, really smiling for the first time in a while. "Whoever did the targets deserves a raise."
The principal chuckles a bit, and you notice both the grey-haired girl and the generic boy lean back to look at the targets in the training building. "They're a potential Ultimate from next year we're scouting, so I'll make sure your recommendation goes on the official file."
"Who're they?" You ask.
"This is Peko Pekoyama, Ultimate Swordswoman and your senpai by a year." Pekoyama bows elegantly, taking what seems to be a kendo sword from her back.
"I assume I won't be using this?"
"You can use whatever you like." You say, shrugging. "I think the targets are equipped with guns of some sort."
"Paintball guns, yes." Principal Kirigiri confirms. Pekoyama nods and looks critically at her sword for a moment before throwing the strap back over her shoulder. You turn to the generic boy.
"You're reserve course?"
He nods, swallowing. "Hajime Hinata." He says.
You nod, and look at Principal Kirigiri.
"Normally, reserve course students aren't permitted to join Ultimates in their electives here." The black-haired man explains. "But we wanted you to have a fireteam of some sort here, and the only applicant was Miss Pekoyama."
Hinata scratches the back of his head, looking away.
"I understand." You say, eyeing him critically. He's not entirely unfit. "Hinata, do you think you can do it?"
Hinata thinks for a moment. "No." He says finally, blushing slightly. "But I'm not going to let an opportunity like this slip by without a fight."
You nod. "He'll do. Thank you, sir." You tell Principal Kirigiri, who nods.
"Rather than try to make you a better combatant, which I suspect is useless, I want you to hone your leadership abilities. So your mission while you're here will be to get Miss Pekoyama and Mr. Hinata to work as fluidly underneath yourself as possible. Your final test will be to complete a course not unlike the one in here in as short a time as possible, while working as a team and dealing with unexpected situations. Understand?"
"Yessir!" You snap, standing to attention. Then you glance at Pekoyama and Hinata. "We'll cover drilling first, I think."
Principal Kirigiri grins, and you salute each other one more time before he exits, leaving you to drill Pekoyama and Hinata for a period before being left to yourself again.
Thankfully, the firing range is in the gymnasium, and without a teacher present you allow yourself out of your Talent Honing a few minutes early, allowing you to shower away the sweat of military drills. They're not fun, nor particularly useful in combat, but they provide a communication foundation and a common starting block for you to work off of when the time finally comes to start running through the dummy building.
Still, with water shimmering in your black, mussed hair and a pleasantly steamed feeling in your muscles, retiring to the firing range sounds delightful. The scent of gunpowder, your scent, hangs thickly around the range - obviously, it's in use. That idea is confirmed by the sound of riflefire from inside. Curious, you hurry and enter, taking the towel off your shoulders and folding it as you turn the door handle with an elbow and push it open with a shoulder.
You can't clearly make out who's firing, as they're halfway into a divot further down the range. Every few seconds, the rifle cracks out a round, which whizzes downrange in an instant to slam into the paper target and its foam backing, punching a hole clean through the target and finally sparking against the angled far wall. Your keen eyes immediately determine that whoever it is is a crack shot - not nearly as good as you, but quite impressive, with very few missed shots and a tight spread you would have seen men brag about in Fenris.
You toss the neatly folded towel onto one of the benches in the back, next to a box of 5.56 rounds. You make your way to the other end of the range, peering at the small piles of brass casings currently being gathered up by small black-and-white robots with "TOUWA INDUSTRIES" printed on top.
The first thing you notice about the mysterious person is that it's another female. With her form outlined in hazy fog of war, she looks almost like a metal album cover or advertisement, with full hips and the rifle pressed to her cheek. But as you grow closer the haze lifts, revealing blond hair and her identity in a single stroke.
You quirk an eyebrow. You didn't realize Sonia Nevermind visited the firing range. You would have pegged her for being out in the woods, singing at birds and deer and eating mysteriously gifted fruit baskets. Certainly you never smelt a whiff of the pervasive scent of expended ammunition on her, although her perfume is often somewhat cloying, in your opinion.
She glances at you with one big blue eye, then flicks the rifle to burst and empties her magazine in a quick series of shots before lowering and clearing the rifle. She sets the weapon down and presses the return button for the target with her hip as she removes her earmuffs. "Ah, hello! I remember you, you're Mukuro Ikusaba, the freshman?"
You blink and nod. "I wasn't expecting to find a princess in here." You say bluntly.
Nevermind giggles. "Every person in my country receives an education in military affairs in elementary school."
"That would explain the Novoselic skill at fighting." You say honestly. You were already aware of the education policy for the small country, but you're surprised that it applies even to royalty.
"Oh, no." Nevermind says brightly. "That came with the last three civil wars."
You have to bite back a snort. Did she just?
Nevermind continues, jauntily popping the tacks out of the target and letting the paper flop. "But yes, many people do not expect a princess to be interested in these things. But I am! It is fascinating, to pull a trigger and watch a hole appear in a target."
"Just a target?" You ask darkly, before catching yourself and wincing.
Nevermind pauses, but only for a moment. "It is less fascinating when the one with the hole is a man. That, I dislike. There is too much killing, in the Novoselic, already, for the princess to enjoy causing harm." She turns and presents the target to you. "As the Ultimate Soldier, what do you think? I am one of the best in my family!"
You examine the target. Nevermind's spread is actually even tighter than you expected, with most bullets landing directly on a line from the head of the little black figure to the chest. The bullets fired on burst are obviously less accurate, but still mostly strike their target, punching holes where the ear or gut would have been on a human. And this is a small target, for two hundred meters.
"You're quite good." You admit, handing the paper back to a beaming princess. "I would guess your only competition here would be myself."
"That is wonderful! From the Ultimate Soldier of Hope's Peak Academy, this is high praise indeed!" Nevermind says.
You rub the back of your head. "It's not like I'm the Ultimate Marksman..." You admit. "My focus is mostly on making sure the shots hit the target, rather than are neat and orderly."
"Yes," Nevermind allows, "but you must still be able to hit a moving target at great distances. For this, you must be highly skilled." She smiles. "I would like to be friends with you!"
"Huh?"
Nevermind lances forward and grabs your arm, neatly dodging your reflexive strike and pretending like it didn't happen. You blink. "I would like to be friends with you!" She says again. "We are 'Senpai' and 'Kouhai' here, but I sense in many ways that we are kindred spirits, and I think much would be wasted on deference to my title or seniority. I think we should become friends, yes?"
You blink again, the sensation of a growing blush on your cheeks far too familiar for only being out of Russia for a few days. "Um..."
"I want to see you shoot! Kerpow!"
"O-okay?! Ah!"
Nevermind pushes you down the range, leaving her own gun steaming on its block. "Is this your towel? It's super cute!"
"Huh?!"
Sonia snatches up your folded towel, which is decorated with small Fenris logos. It's one of your sparse personal effects, besides your uniforms, knife collection, and Spartan Survival Manual. Her eyes sparkle as she looks at it.
"These are cute puppies!"
"They are not puppies!"
"You may seem cold and surly on the exterior, Mukuro Ikusaba, but you are truly a cute girl internally!"
"P-please do not say things like that, and give me my t-towel back!" You say, hovering awkwardly, instincts roaring for you to rip the cloth free from the taller girls grip, Japanese social conventions abhoring contact with another human.
Nevermind giggles, and passes the towel back to you. "This is truly cute." She says solemnly as she hands it over. "This makes me certain; we must become friends!"
"Princess-"
"Sonia! And I shall call you Mukuro, henceforth!" Sonia insists, smiling.
"...Sonia..."
You look at the towel in your hands, rubbing a thumb over one of the tiny logos.
"It is Fenris, yes? Mercenary corporation, based in Saint Petersburg?"
You blink and look at Sonia, who's looking at you seriously. "You recognize it."
"Yes. I understand Fenris has undergone many operations in my kingdom, often for the Republicans. However, I do not hold a grudge. It would be most heinous to hold a grudge against a friend." Sonia smiles, and you can't help but smile back.
"...Alright. Friends."
"Now show me your moves! I wish to see the culmination of glorious Japanese warfare with my own eyes!"
You laugh and grab a gun. Sonia's presence is... Not relaxing, but familiar somehow.
"Woah!"
"Sick!"
"Astounding!"
"Kerplow indeed!"
And maybe a little childish.
IT IS THE END OF THE FIRST WEEK.
MAKOTO
- Makoto Naegi is a supremely skilled liar.
- Makoto Naegi has a personal attachment to the symbol on his arm.
- Makoto Naegi is in contact with a pair of individuals named "Seiko" and "Yeshua".
- Makoto Naegi is hiding something.
- Makoto Naegi is devout.
- DESPAIR: Junko Enoshima plans on casting the world into Despair in one year, and is currently attempting to gather information on how to do so.
- ???: Makoto Naegi is plotting something.
- ???: ??? remains unaware and is not yet a player.
- Lately, your dreams have been troubled and foreign.
JUNKO: Your relationship with Junko is growing more distant, as you discover more social aspects. You are still strongly attached.
MAKOTO: Makoto likes to flirt with you! You are very suspicious of him for this reason.
KYOKO: Kyoko thinks you are more clever than you look, and has encouraged you to forgive yourself for past misdeeds she believes you blame yourself for.
SAYAKA: Sayaka Maizono has confided in you that she thinks she might be slightly psychic. She has confided in you that she is suspicious of Makoto Naegi, because he is not as she remembers.
MIAYA: Miaya considers you a reasonably clever and good-natured Kouhai.
PEKO: Peko Pekoyama is your subordinate for Combatics, your Talent Honing class.
HAJIME: Hajime Hinata is your subordinate for Combatics, your Talent Honing class.
SONIA: Sonia considers herself your friend, and has forgiven you for fighting as a Republican in previous Novoselic Civil Wars.
HINA: Asahina Aoi thinks you are scary and adorable in equal measure.
SAKURA: Sakura has begun to consider you a friend.
TERUTERU: Teruteru thinks you have a fine ass, and has gone (0) days without apprehension by authorities. You have not noticed him.
MAKOTO: Makoto likes to flirt with you! You are very suspicious of him for this reason.
KYOKO: Kyoko thinks you are more clever than you look, and has encouraged you to forgive yourself for past misdeeds she believes you blame yourself for.
SAYAKA: Sayaka Maizono has confided in you that she thinks she might be slightly psychic. She has confided in you that she is suspicious of Makoto Naegi, because he is not as she remembers.
MIAYA: Miaya considers you a reasonably clever and good-natured Kouhai.
PEKO: Peko Pekoyama is your subordinate for Combatics, your Talent Honing class.
HAJIME: Hajime Hinata is your subordinate for Combatics, your Talent Honing class.
SONIA: Sonia considers herself your friend, and has forgiven you for fighting as a Republican in previous Novoselic Civil Wars.
HINA: Asahina Aoi thinks you are scary and adorable in equal measure.
SAKURA: Sakura has begun to consider you a friend.
TERUTERU: Teruteru thinks you have a fine ass, and has gone (0) days without apprehension by authorities. You have not noticed him.
No other notes at this time.
[ ] WEEKEND PLANS:
-[ ] Go out with someone (they must consider you a friend, or be interested in pursuing a romantic relationship with you. At rank -E, this action may fail)
-[ ] Hang out with Junko (possible event, -10% Despair, +5% JUNKO DEPENDENCY)
-[ ] Visit a classmate
--[ ] Who?
-[ ] Read the Spartan Survival Manual (???)
[ ]Dream:
-[ ] Orange
-[ ] Green
-[ ] Red
[ ] At class, make an effort to:
-[ ] Concentrate on schoolwork
-[ ] Observe your classmates
-[ ] Interact with your classmates
-----------------------------------------------------------
Thus ends the litany of introductions to each new class. From now on, classes will only be mentioned if an event happens. At least one event will happen most weeks, and usually two or three will occur. For the weeks where events to not happen, there will be a small update to notify you right above the vote, and probably an extra few chances to "dream".
Updates will continue at this pace for a little bit, but then school starts again and they'll have to slow. By that time though, hopefully someone will have guessed the crossover.
Karyis
procrastinating as we speak
- Location
- Texas
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Should the "omega with cross" truly be an ankh as Spector29 suggests, really the only crossover I can think of is YuGiOh. But from what I know of YuGiOh, literally everything else about this Makoto does not fit. I know amulets are a thing, but not what Makoto has, and I don't recall ever seeing a character described as he is in what little art/screenshots/clips I've seen of the show.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I think at heart we're just going to have to kinda agree to disagree on 3 and 4, and that's cool. It's worth noting that it was more me trying to present my point of view and not a 10 point plan to convince everyone, I hope that was at least a little clear; especially given how much of it relied on personal characterization perceptions. So disagreeing with points is fine, and voting for Makoto is like.. totally chill with me. It's a quest, may be best option ideally win, etc. Ya dig? Just toss some kind of closing thoughts here to hopefully kind of... finalize my positions though.
3. I mean... on the one hand, I see where you're coming from. On the other hand, I worry a bit about sunk cost fallacies. That the more we learn the more it'll seem interesting and the more we'll want to sink more and more options into Makoto. Which, like, may very well be a great idea! But that ??? concerns me, again, Makoto seeming to be able to screw with our head concerns me, and well... see a couple of the other reasons I tend to lean Kyouko.
4. I've played P3 and P4. Who is your favorite character? (Kinda legit question, I'm curious about that kind of stuff. Naoto for life IMO.) I see your argument I guess I just don't find it compelling because of sunk cost fallacy concern above, I don't know what his motivations are and what his goals are, how he would slot us into his overall agenda, and so on. Kyouko feels a lot less like a black box, and I'm honestly more wary of block boxes when they're presented as the super easy road, and not less. If that makes sense.
So, we're making a few assumptions here. But let's run with them.
So, in theory, what we're talking about here is the Millennium Key. The Millenium Key basically fits the ankh description. It also can look into a person's soul and undo things like brainwashing. (So, you know, yeah). Their thoughts can also be altered, and personalities can be altered samely. If the Necklace is similar, it would be the Millenium, well, Necklace, which can allow brief glimpses into the past and future, though it can be countered by other items. This is based off a boatload of assumptions, keep in mind (even with those the Necklace thing is a slight stretch I think), and I don't want to further speculate without more information.
This honestly doesn't make me feel better about "Makoto", if true? Like if true it does explain some things, but I don't feel like that makes it okay to fuck around in our head and reorient our thoughts without our consent, ya know?
Anyway, more comments later rushed selection now
For visiting I'm avoiding the stats and trying to give a compromise- we know stuff is up with Makoto, and Kyouko has the smarts and resources to help us investigate. Win-win for everyone? I like Orange and MUKURO MUST BE A SOCIAL ANIMAL GOSHDARNIT.
--[X] Kyouko
-[X] Orange
-[X] Interact with your classmates
Spector29
It Only Gets Worse From Here
-[X] Visit a classmate
--[X] Kyouko
-[X] Orange
-[X] Interact with your classmates
Oh, for sure, and for what it's worth I don't think you're wrong for being careful, I'm just feeling safer with taking risks since we're early on.
3. I'll peel off Makoto at 60 JDEP or if he shows threat, promise.
4. Aegis or Chihiro for P3, Naoto for P4.
--[X] Kyouko
-[X] Orange
-[X] Interact with your classmates
Oh, for sure, and for what it's worth I don't think you're wrong for being careful, I'm just feeling safer with taking risks since we're early on.
3. I'll peel off Makoto at 60 JDEP or if he shows threat, promise.
4. Aegis or Chihiro for P3, Naoto for P4.
Karnewarrior
Leastmost of the Hanged Man Arcana
I'm really liking all this discussion. It's interesting seeing what hints people focus on, and which people gloss right over! Some of them, it's like people didn't even realize they were hints at all!
I think I ought to say, though, and hopefully this won't give anything away, but Makoto wouldn't have shown up in his Source Material, at least not recognizably. Perhaps a second examination of the clues is in order?
Spector29
It Only Gets Worse From Here
Here's every single Makoto related thing across the work so far:
At a brief skim, the symbol on his arm might just literally be an Alpha-Omega Cross, which are a title of Christ and God in the Book of Revelation. As far as the invisitext goes:
He doesn't know she remembers him - Clearly refers to Sayaka knowing the previous Makoto, and considering the snippets from the fight apparently Crossoto knows where the original is and is keeping him safe?
Junko cannot analyze what she cannot know - Junko v Crossoto, probably referring to the fact he's not from Danganronpa? Or in a general sense, that she cannot understand religion/Hope?
Additionally, this is who Crossoto's Ultimate Pharmacist friend is.
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Spector29
It Only Gets Worse From Here
Not to double post, but this picture makes me very suspicious. It's not entirely accurate, but I doubt Crossoto is a specific character judging from the QM's comments.
So, I think my official guess is some form of Fate/Stay Night. Not knowing anything about that series, I have no idea if a spinoff is more appropriate.
So, I think my official guess is some form of Fate/Stay Night. Not knowing anything about that series, I have no idea if a spinoff is more appropriate.
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- Location
- St. Petersburg
God, I feel dumb.
(and terrible for the pun)
But frankly, who would even imagine this crossed with Danganronpa, of all things!?
I mean, I totally wasn't distracted by all the cute schoolgirls, no sir!
And his familial necklace.
He must have had one hot fiery mom. Maybe that's why he can't handle cold temperatures.
"Man's unfailing capacity to believe what he prefers to be true rather than what the evidence shows to be likely and possible has always astounded me. We long for a caring Universe which will save us from our childish mistakes, and in the face of mountains of evidence to the contrary we will pin all our hopes on the slimmest of doubts. God has not been proven not to exist, therefore he must exist."
Sound like Hope alright!
Edit:
FFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUU~
I just realised what the implications could be for Mukuro's identity.
(and terrible for the pun)
But frankly, who would even imagine this crossed with Danganronpa, of all things!?
I mean, I totally wasn't distracted by all the cute schoolgirls, no sir!
I think I found Makoto's symbol.
And his familial necklace.
"Man's unfailing capacity to believe what he prefers to be true rather than what the evidence shows to be likely and possible has always astounded me. We long for a caring Universe which will save us from our childish mistakes, and in the face of mountains of evidence to the contrary we will pin all our hopes on the slimmest of doubts. God has not been proven not to exist, therefore he must exist."
Sound like Hope alright!
Edit:
FFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUU~
I just realised what the implications could be for Mukuro's identity.
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Starmine Starbow
Do you want a wish?
- Location
- Milky Way Galaxy
- Pronouns
- Femhon/Boymoder
God, I feel dumb.
But frankly, who would even imagine this crossed with Danganronpa, of all things!?
I mean, I totally wasn't distracted by all the cute schoolgirls, no sir!
I think I found Makoto's symbol.
And his familial necklace.
He must have had onehotfiery mom. Maybe that's why he can't handle cold temperatures.
"Man's unfailing capacity to believe what he prefers to be true rather than what the evidence shows to be likely and possible has always astounded me. We long for a caring Universe which will save us from our childish mistakes, and in the face of mountains of evidence to the contrary we will pin all our hopes on the slimmest of doubts. God has not been proven not to exist, therefore he must exist."
Edit:
FFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUU~
I just realised what the implications could be for Mukuro's identity.
So, um; what franchise is it?
- Location
- St. Petersburg
I have carefully edited the images so that they aren't instantly google-able.
But if you want to spoil yoursefl...
Anyway, back to the update at hand.
Do we know any classmates named Roze? Just wondering.
But apparently Sonia is the Ultimate Disney Princess, so it's all genuine.
Also, why did you go with Fenris as the outfit's name when the canonical DGR translation is Fenrir? Or so I think, at least.
Except about the special, I guess.
[x] WEEKEND PLANS:
-[x] Hang out with Junko (possible event, -10% Despair, +5% JUNKO DEPENDENCY)
[x]Dream:
-[x] Red
Orange is fine (more of Best Sempai!), but I don't think I can quite place this one. The Cult, mayhap? But what would its origins be in the DGR timeline?
[x] At class, make an effort to:
-[x] Observe your classmates
But if you want to spoil yoursefl...
A Sid Meier's one.
Anyway, back to the update at hand.
With or without the parachute? It's an important detail!
What's that thing doing here, and why did it stop the moment we came in?
Do we know any classmates named Roze? Just wondering.
...In what ways, I am afraid to ask?
This would be the point where I'd have backed out slowly, hearing words like that from a stranger. No matter how you look at it, that much friendliness to someone who is paid to fuck up your country is weird.
But apparently Sonia is the Ultimate Disney Princess, so it's all genuine.
Also, why did you go with Fenris as the outfit's name when the canonical DGR translation is Fenrir? Or so I think, at least.
Now you are just trolling us.
I don't think we actually established that? I mean, we suspect there are no visual tells when he does lie, but from the limited interactions we've had so far we can't confirm he did not mean the things he was saying?
Except about the special, I guess.
[x] WEEKEND PLANS:
-[x] Hang out with Junko (possible event, -10% Despair, +5% JUNKO DEPENDENCY)
[x]Dream:
-[x] Red
Orange is fine (more of Best Sempai!), but I don't think I can quite place this one. The Cult, mayhap? But what would its origins be in the DGR timeline?
[x] At class, make an effort to:
-[x] Observe your classmates
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- Pronouns
- She/Her
I didn't know either until Nevill helpfully edited but it's Alpha Centauri.
... What?
Starmine Starbow
Do you want a wish?
- Location
- Milky Way Galaxy
- Pronouns
- Femhon/Boymoder
-[X] Visit a classmate
--[X] Kyouko
-[X] Orange
-[X] Interact with your classmates
--[X] Kyouko
-[X] Orange
-[X] Interact with your classmates
- Location
- St. Petersburg
I am not sure why Sonia is supposed to be important, though.
A very valuable resource... how exactly?
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