Chapter Text
SHIN TSUKIMI (ALIAS: SOU HIYORI)
A nationwide government statement was issued all across Japan. Whether is was a flagged email, or a lengthy letter, every Japanese resident received this message. It boldly claimed that an experiment titled 外れ値 Hazure-chi: The ASUNARO Death Game Experiment had been verified and given permission to proceed by the officials of Japan. It also stated that the scientists involved with the experiment would be accepting volunteer applications this following winter. Near the very end of the email, it read all information of the experiment. Including why it was issued, information of submitting applications, and what exactly the experiment was for.
Shin Tsukimi was numb, stuck in his seat in a cold sweat. His right hand that was holding the mouse exceedingly tightened.
How..? How could Japan allow an experiment like THIS to proceed without it's peoples feedback? "We're obsessed with the human mind and it's trauma. We'd like to observe this kind of behavior first hand." That quote alone sounds psychotic. How can this be allowed to happen?!
He released his grip on the mouse and held his face in his hands. Beads of sweat trickled down the side of his head and were soaked in the collar of his shirt. He didn't understand why he was so stressed about this message. Clearly stated in the email, it said that the scientists involved were accepting volunteer applications this winter. Which meant he'd be just fine, as long as he didn't sign up. That was it. Idiots..who in their right mind would sign up for a twisted experiment like this? Would they make it digital? In person? For such a long and tedious email..it's infuriatingly vague. I barely understand how it got verified in the first place. It's just bunched up words written in long paragraphs. It's obviously rigged in some way. But why..? Why is this kind of experiment NOW necessary? Is there something specific they're searching for?
Rising off of his desk chair, he stretched and made his way to the bathroom. Oily teal hair, eyebags and all..Shin Tsukimi wasn't looking the greatest. Nor was he feeling the greatest, either. He slowly stripped and tugged at the shower faucet. The cold water that drenched his body relieved him of all the stress that came before. He'd hoped he could stay like this for a while.
And surely, he did.
It wasn't too long before Shin slowly succumbed to his surroundings. His eyes were dreary and exhausted, the dark circles beneath them were increasingly becoming darker. Quickly massaging his face, he found himself in a clean office room. He arose his head from the surface he had been laying on, which seemed to be a large conference table. Glancing around the room, he saw a total of ten other people at the same table. To which all of them were still asleep.
What the hell am I doing here?
The closest person next to him was a thinly built man with long black hair. He was dressed in a long-sleeved black changshan and a reddish-orange apron. His skin was pale, and alike Shin, he also had eyebags. He was peacefully sleeping, resting his head on the tables surface. Shin tapped his shoulder rapidly, trying his best not to be too forceful. Suddenly, the other mans eyes shot open and did a look-over of the room. His breathing was ragged and his arms were twitching as he kept visually searching the small area. Oddly enough, he didn't pay any mind to Shin until he tapped his shoulder again.
"Hey, hey!" Shin gradually whispered. "It's okay. It's just some office room. Nothing weird in here for the most part."
The other man seemed to mentally get a hold of himself and calmed down. He softly huffed. "I seemed to have been too scared to notice you..my apologies."
So formal. "It's no big deal. I'm.." Shin paused. He had no idea who this man was, nor did he know where he was to begin with. He wasn't going to trust anyone here until he had some answers. "I'm Sou. Sou Hiyori. What's your name?"
"I-I'm Kai Satou. It's nice to meet you, Sou."
It's always handy to carry Sou's identity card on my person. The guy hasn't been seen in years, wouldn't hurt to throw around his name once or twice whenever I need some cover. I can't even lie to myself, I kinda like having this false persona. 'Makes me feel like I'm a spy and what not.
Kai shuffled in his seat a little before looking around at everyone else. Shin also noticed something a little strange in the assortment of people. All of their ages varied. It made them both shiver at the fact that there were children in this group. Whoever kidnapped them are some sick human beings, that's for sure.
Slowly, one by one, everyone began to wake up. Starting with the other person to Shin's side, which was a gruff looking man in a prison uniform. He also had unusually brightly died hair. One half of his head was shaved, also died with neon yellow and pink strips. The other side was short, straight blue hair. There was a clear reason why Shin decided to wake Kai up first, instead of whoever this guy was. Next to wake up, was a small boy in..a dog hoodie and a mask? Surprisingly, he was quick to talk to Shin, along with the two other men that were awake. Although, he chose to defend the fact that he wasn't just a simple kid, rather he was a tough boy who could take care of himself.
"Who are you, prison man? Woof." The little boy, now known as Gin, perked up.
"I ain't in prison, kid!" He barked.
"Meow, yes you are!"
"I was just about to go on parole! I was practically scott-free a moment ago."
"..Well, you still look scary..woof. Even if you were about to leave." Gin's expression saddened, as he pulled a cat plush (which he somehow had had this entire time) closer to his chest. He nuzzled his face into the soft fur.
Alice's face also sulked. Was he..pouting? "Augh..I'm Alice Yabusame. Hopefully me introducing myself to you makes me less dangerous in your eyes. Really. I mean no harm."
"..Okay, woof. I can trust you a little. But don't cross me, meow!"
"I won't." Alice chuckled lightly.
"Ugh..what's this talk about prisoners and parole?" Another largely built man raised his head, tiredly. He rubbed a certain part of his neck and surveyed the people around him. Shin discovered another fact about the people gathered in this room. Most of their get-ups had been the strangest he'd seen. To haircuts, outfits, and personnel. But this man was an exception. He was casually dressed in a black vest and dark grey undershirt, along with brown pants. Weird color-combination, but it suited him pretty well. To add on to his look, he had bleached blonde hair. And to add a third person to this ongoing party, he also had heavy eyebags.
"Who're you?" Shin pointed to the man in question.
"I could ask you the same thing. I just woke up..so I'm not sure who any of you four are, exactly. Or anybody here, to be honest." He squinted, peculiarly at Alice.
"I'm Gin, woof." Gin shyly waved at the blonde man, who merely smiled his way and waved in return.
"I'm Sou."
"My name is Kai."
"It's Alice. And..you are..?"
"Keiji Shinogi. I'm a policeman," He scoffed. "How ironic. A prisoner and a policeman are here."
"Yeah, I thought the same thing." Alice's face became expressionless. "You have any idea on what might be goin' on here?"
"Being completely honest, I've got no clue on why I'm here. But looking at this card..I guess we're in that whole traumatic death experiment." Keiji pulled out a light orange slip that was hidden in his pocket and presented it to the four. Shin quickly searched his pants, to find the same card. Alongside him, Kai, Alice and Gin did the same. Reading the message, his heart sank into a puddle. At this point onward, Shin was abruptly horrified.
The one email that had kept him up at night, turned into his terrifying reality. He was stuck in a experiment which toyed with the thought of death. And there was no getting out, for him.
Unless he came up with a solution, that is.