Chapter Text
‘Hugh…’ I groaned out, with my arms over my head like a long cat’s stretch.
‘Wow!’ I exclaimed suddenly to the person who’d just entered the room.
It was a man, and he had a scar on his right eye, and slicked back hair as he stood in a clad suit.
I checked around, several cyan-like ivy-coloured glowing tubes, with similar waking people in them were next to the tube I was in.
‘Who woulda thought I would wake up after dying! It must be my lucky day.’ I grinned as I tried too hastily to stand up. I tumbled over myself, buckled knees collapsed onto the ground.
Though I thought I had my cool and fine act down, my body didn’t agree with that little act. ‘Wow, I’m feeling great!’ A lie, as a smile bloomed on my lips.
The man with a scar locked eyes with me, his eyes narrowing as if I were something other than human.
‘Get them to the medical wing!’ another man also wearing a suit, that was more like a general’s uniform efficiently directed as he ran in and swung his arm to the side of the room with my classmates, who were still in their little tubes. Some were sluggishly waking up, and wobbling around in their tubes.
A girl, who looked like a nurse came rushing up to me. ‘Are you okay?!’ she asked, she was panicked and distressed. She coulda been calmer, especially for a nurse, someone who’s meant to take care of others should be calm and collected so their patient won’t panic as well.
‘Totally A-okay!’ I chuckled out as I smiled wide and threw my arm up like I was taking attendance.
‘There’s no way you’re okay!’ she shouted out, as she checked my heart beat with her stethoscope.
‘Aww~ you got me! That was a lie!’ I began to feel myself wobble, and lose control over my body. Before I completely fell into drowsy darkness, I saw my clothing was different, and I was in a robe of sorts. Did I win, I wonder… I supposed in my head, before I hunched forward and blacked out.
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Upon waking up, the apparent students of the 53rd killing school semester, all found that they were hooked into a simulation, and were put in what they at border (the organization that saved them) called a massive training room built for the sole purpose of testing human rational. They called it the 53rd killing game, but no really knew if that was true, more likely it was probably the first, and it simply occurred to the ones behind it, that making it seem like they were so many before them, was even more despairing for the trapped teens.
‘Umm… What are these things you keep calling neighbours?’ The detective, Shuichi was the first to speak, and was one of the few who could still speak, others were still getting use to using their real vocal cords again.
‘They're beings from another dimension of sorts called the Neighbourhood, that is connected to ours. They appear as normal human beings but they are fundamentally different from us,’ Director Rindo enlightened them as he lit a cigarette. And as he put it in his mouth, he uttered more impossible words. ‘And we’ve been fighting a sort of war, with them ever since the first largescale invasion four years ago.’
Shuichi went silent, and so did everyone else that was there.
Kokichi’s head leaned into his chest as he thought over the Director’s words.
The fact it happened four years ago, must mean we were taken before that invasion, as none of us remember such beings existing, Kokichi thought, but quickly threw it out like a paper ball.
Knowing that they didn’t remember anything about their past memories aside from the ones given to them in the killing game, must mean they might have known before about these Neighbours, but simply forgot. That alone was comforting, at least that means they haven’t been missing for four long years. At most perhaps, from the changes in his body from the around fifteen-year-old body he used in the killing game, it’s been around two years since they were kidnapped, which would make him seventeen.
But two years sounded like a lot of time to pass for one killing game to take place, and occur. Perhaps maybe instead, they merely made it so they were in their sixteen to fifteen-year-old bodies in the killing game, when in fact they were actually older. Perhaps even, it’s only been a month since they entered the killing game and were saved by Border.
.
.
.
That was hopeful thinking, he knew.
Kokichi scanned his classmates faces, some were still recuperating and weren’t able to join this meeting and thus missing. The ones that died early ones were the ones still needing extra care. Their bodies were unstable and unaccustomed to walking feet to ground. Rantaro and Kaede had it the worst being bedridden, while Kirumi and Ryoma were getting muscle training now and had started practice walking again.
It must’ve been hell for Kirumi, the dutiful maid, the one that never stops working even into the long hours of the night. So that meant, four of them were missing from this meeting.
Kokichi and the faces he saw, were ridden with widened doubt, fear and blooming anxiety. Miu twiddled with her hair her white teeth gritted and crashing into each other, a grating noise coming from her. And Keebo, that was now a normal human being poked at his flesh, turning it lightly red in the process. Deep inside, he wondered how he would adjust to his new body. Kokichi turned back to the people who saved them from the simulation slash training room thingy. The man talking just before was Takumi Rindo, he was the branch director of Tamakoma branch, which was separate from HQ. They believe that there're are good people on the neighbours’ side and wish to be able to call a truce, that was the explanation they gave when they talked about the several branches in border.
Next was Masafumi Shinoda, a HQ director, also the director of the side of border that just wants to defend the city and protect those they hold dear.
Then there was Motokichi Kinuta, who led the research and development side of border, and Eizō Netsuki their spokesperson, and Katsumi Karasawa, the external affairs guy who deals with money problems and other things that may arise.
Then finally the head-macho of headquarters, commander Kido. Whose critical gaze was fixed on Kokichi, he purposely ignored the man’s iron hard glare and pretended to not notice. Right now, they were all gathered in a meeting room as the students all sat to the wall with foldable chairs and faced the stoic faces of the directors. Kokichi overlocked his arms behind his head, still feeling numb and perhaps weak from waking up and finding out none of it was real. He thought about Rindo’s words. “Beings from another world”, crazy. But if anything sounded truly crazy it’s the fact all their memories inside the killing game, their talents, families, friends, all fake. None of it real.
He puzzled his worries into thought, as his arms crossed. Was there anyone in the memories he didn’t remember, the ones before the killing game, the ones before he was acknowledged as the fake him; Ultimate leader, known as Kokichi Ouma. Was there anyone? for him outside of his false memories... He was sure everyone was thinking those exact thoughts. Families, friends, classmates… did they have those things? And were they as good and loving or as real as the ones in their scripted memories?
Their gazes deader than themselves in the killing game, well excluding Maki, Himiko and Shuichi who apparently survived. They weren’t worried, because… why should they? they hadn’t experienced death like the rest. They had hope, as did Kaede… Somehow, holding onto Hope even while bedridden, she had hope they would remember their past memories.
‘Man! You losers really don’t know how to celebrate!’ He suddenly spoke loudly as he leaned back in his chair carelessly. ‘You’re alive for god’s sake! Yet all of you are soo~ pent up on your past. It’s so boring! I’m not, and that is why I’m the ultimate supreme leader!’ Kokichi playfully smiled as he checked his nails. ‘I expected more. Especially from that slut over there who was so desperate to escape she planned to kill me!’ He taunted as he deviously smiled. ‘And Keebo your finally not a totally useless robot! Good for you! Maybe now I’ll treat you like a person~ oh wait, never mind you still have the brain of a robot! Oh, wait robots don’t have brains since they’re machines Nishishi~’ Kokichi got up and as he did, he tucked his arms behind his back.
Everyone scowled at him, but couldn’t deny the truth in his words.
They really were so pent up on their memories, lives before, and even still thinking of themselves as Ultimates, and how everything they knew was fake.
‘I mean even the piano idiot has more hope in her eyes than you buffoons, and she’s bedridden.’ His face ran still as water from a cold lake, then perked right up as if nothing happened. And he, just like a lake, had many secrets laid hidden beneath the water’s darkened bellows. ‘That’s a lie though! She looks like a total corpse!’ He brightly smiled. He could see the veins on Kaito’s and Shuichi’s face grow red after he said that. And he felt his provoking was finally working. ‘Shumai! What happened to all that hope for the future crap you had going on. Don’t tell me... You’re so~~~ heartbroken everyone’s actually alive…!' He le-gasped, as a horrified expression wheezed itself onto his face. 'You must be feeling your efforts were for nothing, Huh!' He punked up as he accused with his fists on his hips. 'D-did you perhaps want us d-dead?! Your so cruel’ Kokichi acted spuriously scared and rattled as he showcased his trained crocodile tears.
He took his hand over his mouth and spoke again. ‘Just kidding!’ He laughed it off, as usual.
Everyone glared at him, and Miu who was still boiling with anger at his insult at her spoke first, she was trembling at him calling her a “slut” before but regained her normal brash and lewd self as she began to talk. ‘You just love the sound of your own voice don’t ’cha you lying little abortion!’ Kokichi’s face went blank as his arms fell to his side.
'Also, take back those robophobic remarks from ealier!' Keebo stood for a moment before falling back into his chair.
‘Wow! You actually spoke! And even worst that someone as insignificant and slutty as you think you have the right to speak to me….’ the sides of his smile grew as he leisurely pulled his finger to his lip. ‘You can’t even come up with a new insult to call me. I’m not even hurt, it’s so pathetic! You’re just like a broken record!’ he laughed, as he pretended to block his mouth as if he couldn’t hold it back.
‘Ehhh…!’ she squirmed as she backtracked back into her trembling state. ‘Insignificant, slutty… Pathetic,’ She lowly repeated with her mouth oozing with saliva, and just as he said, she was a broken record. But he was sure the Ultimate Inventor had some repairs up her belt.
‘You aren’t even worth the effort to play with anymore, you’re so boring now.’ His gaze went dark and bored as he spoke and then grinned.
‘No~ play…’ Miu cried out, this little cat-and-mouse they had going on in the killing game, wasn’t stopping anytime soon.
Rindo looked surprised at his sudden outburst, but he soon saw the methods in his way as did Katsumi, though understanding his methods still didn’t make them any less ruthless. Kido’s gaze sharpened as he drew his interlocked hands to his mouth. Bringing light… to people who’d lost it wasn’t an easy task. Yet, he did it, somehow. Even in the most diluted way possible. Fight against a common enemy, perhaps that was the logic behind his methods…
Shinoda did not know how to settle him, and opted to observing with a strained face. He’d known of how Kokichi could be from the logs (of the happening in the killing game) given to them by the research department, but to think he was to this extent…
Kokichi looked in Tsumugi's direction, who’d been outcasted by everyone after finding out she was the mastermind. Not like that mattered since she was implanted with fake memories too, and the whole mastermind farce thing was false. In the end she was just a vessel the ones who created the killing game used to seed more distrust and reactions to study from them. ‘Oi, plainy Janie, what do you think! Isn’t it pathetic how they seem so depressed at the fact they’re alive! I mean isn’t it even more pathetic how the mastermind failed and let three people escape~’ He paused for a moment. ‘Isn’t it Tsu-mastermindy~’ He provoked her, in hopes she would finally say a word even if it was an insult directed at him. It wasn’t like he didn’t hate her, more like he couldn’t bother to hate someone who was forced like them into a boring killing game, and even more boringly forced to be the mastermind.
She shuddered, and everyone looked at her. Wary eyes, filled with a little loathing and distrust, sharpened gazes that couldn’t forgive, yet spoke so much like they did.
Shuichi finally had enough of him it seemed as he sat up. ‘Kokichi, you haven’t changed at all. And… I thought from what Kaito said about you, before you enacted your final lie… just maybe you were different than you appeared!’ he shouted with his hand over his chest.
Finally. He said in his head, finally, the protagonist has decided to fight back against this villain, that’s what this purple happiness-eating-goblin wanted. ‘Oh~ you thought me, the supreme leader of evil would ever change… of course that was a lie! I have absolutely no memory of saying something to Kaito that might change your view on me, but~ whatever it was must’ve been such a boring lie I forgot!’ Kokichi smiled like a little kid, as his faces changed from the next to the next, micro-managing them was his strong point after all.
Yes. His boring lie… On how he hated this killing game… Such… a boring lie.
Kido raised an eyebrow at Kokichi’s expert skill of faking his emotions and swapping them on a dim. ‘Kokichi…!’ Kaito gritted his teeth. Readying to knock some sense into the malice he once helped with his final lie. ‘I knew you were twisted. But to lie about that in your last moments. You’re sick, and of course we’re glad we’re alive!’ Kaito stood up, surprising Shuichi who was next to him. He wobbled a bit, but was ultimately fine. ‘We’ve just gotta believe that our past memories will come back!’ Kaito proudly declared as he pumped his fist, and threw on his usual idiot grin. ‘Then we’re see our real families again!’
Everyone else seemed to brighten alongside Kaito's light, as it always has been. An Idiot leader, that inspires, compared to a leader that works in the shadows, it's clear which is the more loved.
‘And also take back what you said about Kaede!’ He added as he pointed his finger at Kokichi.
Kokichi smiled underneath his hand as he looked down and hid his face. Then stared back when he sorted his face with a blank pokerfaced expression. ‘What~? Why should I~ you’ve gotta admit she and Rantaro are by far the most dead looking. Even compared to you guys.’ Kokichi stuck his nose to the roof. Silence, for a moment, interrupted again by the only one making any noise, with his toe-tipping clicks sounding out through the emptiness.
‘Kidding~ anyways, is this meeting over?’ He turned from his seething classmates (powerless puppies in his eyes), to the real big dogs in this room.
Kido’s eyes darkened into his interlocked hands. ‘I think we’ve covered mostly everything. Aside from how you all will be living from now on.’
‘Huh.’ Kokichi sat back in his seat as he hummed.
‘Ah, yes. Now that I think about it, we forgot to mention that. Ahem. From now on, you shall be sheltered under border’s protection, until you can remember and we are able to locate your families.’ Shinoda cleared his throat. Everyone’s eyebrow rose, as they shifted in their seats.
‘We never know when the Neighbours that captured you might try to reclaim you, we don’t want that. That’s basically what we’re tryna say,’ Rindo expressed as his glasses flashed and he hovered his cigarette from his mouth.
‘Ahem, yes. So, we wish to cooperate and hope you can recuperate, take time to rest, and sort out your memories.’ Shinoda cleared his throat again as he spoke and gestured his hand to us.
There’s a pretty big drawback to what their suggesting, that I’m sure they know. Kokichi’s gaze sharpened as he crossed his arms. That… if we don’t remember, we stay here forever.
Everyone silently agreed, perhaps too weathered down from Kokichi’s provoking earlier to muster much of a response. But then again, it's not like they had much of choice, it's either go with Border, or find yourself on the streets.
‘Okie dokie~ if that’s it, I’ll be going back to my room,’ Kokichi happily expressed as the only one to answer, as he fled out the door with a hop. He heard the muffled cries of his classmates that called him out for his callous behaviour and not staying to finish what he’d started. Most of them were coming from Kaito and Shuichi, who were still mad at his comments earlier and wanted to interrogate him more. ‘So boring…’ he muttered, not to them, to this whole situation. He made his way around the almost identical looking hallways, and he found himself getting a little lost.
‘Whoa, this place is more of a maze than that school,’ He expressed out loud, not expecting anyone to hear him. But someone did, and they were just around the corner, and he bumped heads with them when he carelessly turned the corner. The boy he toppled into and fallen with onto the ground, had raven bangs that draped in the middle and sides of his forehead, red and sharp eyes, and a traditional Japanese boy’s uniform and on top he bore a red scarf (his outfit resembled a certain green-haired rat-tailed job-hopper and top-notch villain, rise up Yttd fans!).
Kokichi looked up as he rubbed his skull, and saw another boy who was standing and looking down at the purple-haired and red-eyed boy who were both seated on their bums. The other boy, the one Kokichi didn’t bump into, had spiked black hair that was bruised from his face with a yellow headband, his eyes much friendlier than Kokichi’s red-eyed friend who was staring rather glaringly at him. He bore the same uniform as the red-eyed one, except his was messily unbuttoned at the top and revealed a light-yellow top underneath. Kokichi’s face stayed flat as he wondered what expression he should display.
‘Yo, you two gonna get up? I kind of need a hand holding this girl, I’m getting kind of tired.’ That’s when Kokichi realized that the spikey-haired one was hoisting Kaede on his shoulder. Kokichi sped up, and reached his hand for the red-eyed boy.
‘Here, sorry bout bumping into you, but you should know I was really hurt as well!’ he opted to a playful expression as he complained about being injured as if a little fall like that could affect him.
‘It’s fine.’ He took Kokichi’s hand and lifted himself up, then helped the spikey-haired one hold Kaede up. Kokichi’s gaze turned to Kaede’s strained sleeping face, he pondered why she was out and about. ‘So~ what you two doing?’ He asked as he pointed toward Kaede, his face blank and devoid of any concern.
‘Welp, we found her wandering around, saying something like… “I’ve got to go to that meeting…” seems it was really important to her, we asked her why she had to be there, and she said she couldn’t just sit still while everyone else was fighting for their futures,’ the spikey haired one explained, as he rubbed the back of his head as he sighed. ‘I didn’t know a thing about what she was taking about though, apparently Miwa here knew.’ He bobbed his head to the red-eyed boy next to him. The boy, known as Miwa nodded.
‘We should take her back to her room,’ Miwa expressed as he stared down Kokichi. Kokichi’s gaze sharpened as he hooped his arms behind his head.
‘Oh! I see. Kaede’s really an idiot, it’s like she has a death wish!’ The spikey haired boy’s eyes widened as he watched Kokichi’s carefree smile with words… one normally wouldn’t say so brashly?
‘So, you know her. Great.’ The spikey haired boy chuckled, a small drop of sweat falling off his cheek.
‘Well anyways, can you take me to my room as well.’ Kokichi stared with a sharp glint in his eyes at Miwa. Miwa’s stare loosened, as he nodded.
‘I see, so you were one of them, I thought you were.’ The spiky haired one looked at the two, a dumbfounded expression showing as he switched his gaze from the two of them.
‘Am I missing something? Or was it a special mission from commander Kido to only you?’ He addressed Miwa, ‘if so… that’s so unfair man!’ The spiky haired male, who’s carefreeness reminded Kokichi of Kaito, though the one in front of him was definitely smarter than the dumb brick known as Kaito. Kokichi giggled as he gestured for Miwa to show the way.
‘So, what’s your name mister spiky head?’ Kokichi asked as he walked beside him. ‘Oh right, totally forgot to mention that. Well, I’m Yosuke Yoneya, and the mean-looking guy over here you already know as Miwa is Shuji Miwa!’ Yoneya said with a smile boomed on his lips as he looked to Kokichi, he was struggling to keep Kaede still on his shoulder and Miwa’s, and he looked to be getting tired as he loosely panted.
‘Okie~ Yoneya-kun and Shuji-chan~’ he said with a teasing tone as be bent forward with his hands behind his back as he looked directly at Miwa.
‘Urk.’ He clearly saw Miwa’s peeved reaction from Kokichi’s slight provocation. It was too priceless, he almost burst out laughing.
They’d made it to the dorms- no, rooms that were assigned to Kokichi and the others. ‘So, which one is hers?’ Yoneya asked as he examined each door head to toe, above his head formed a question mark. The doors only had numbers and not the names.
‘This one~’ Kokichi pointed to the door labelled with the number “2” he realized early on the numbering of the rooms was related to their death’s order. That’s when he saw two ladies in white shape-forming dresses, both in a frenzy near her door, looking panicked with wide eyes and nervous gasps as they muttered to each other, and when they spotted the three and passed out Kaede, they both sighed with relief as they came up to them.
‘Ah, thank you sir Yoneya and Miwa! Here we’ll take care of her now.’ The brunette called as she gestured to take Kaede off their shoulders.
‘Nah all good, we’ll take her to her room.’ Yoneya shrugged as he smiled toward them.
The two nodded and waited by Kaede’s door, ‘Then please, just put her in her bed and we’ll take care of her from there,’ the blonde one stated as she gestured to Kaede’s door and kept it open for them. Yoneya and Miwa nodded in union as Yoneya looked at Kokichi.
‘Seems this will be our parting… wait I didn’t get your name!’ Yoneya finally realized even though the two had chatted the entire way here.
‘Nishsisi~ I’m Kokichi Ouma! The ultima-‘ He bit his tongue, no he wouldn’t use that title ever again. ‘The ultimate liar! so to tell you the truth my real name’s not actually Kokichi or Ouma! Nishsisi!’ He pretended to make it seem more like he was playing around, not that he actually had a slip of the tongue. ‘Or is it… After all I’m a liar…’ he took his finger to his lip, as he sneered. But it was true… he really didn’t know… if his name was truly Kokichi Ouma… not anymore at least.
Yoneya was unimpressed, being tricked several times before when they were making their way here had certainly made him prone to not take his words at face value. ‘Yeah-yeah, sure-sure, if that’s what you say,’ He exasperatedly exclaimed as he took Kaede to her room, Miwa unlooped her from his shoulder and let Yoneya finish the job. He crossed his arms as he waited for Yoneya to come back, his eyes closed the entire time.
Kokichi crossed his arms over his head as he thought. He wondered which side of border these two were on. Perhaps they were part of the many squads that Border told them about, or maybe they were on the technical side. Then he wondered which branch they belonged to? Perhaps the side wanting peace with Neighbours, or the side only wanting to protect the city, or the side that deems all neighbours as the enemy. Kokichi could easily picture Miwa being part of the ladder, Kokichi could see the bloodthirst or maybe vengeance in his eyes.
They looked like a battered soldier kind of like Makiroll’s. Except hers were from killing countless fictional lives.
But Yoneya, nah, he seemed to the type to think neighbours are pretty cool, or he’d fall in the protection side of things. But thinking again, the two were only in high school. How funny, Border’s sending children into battle.
He almost felt sick at the idea, but who really cares; if their children or not, that makes it all the better. Child soldiers, have been a thing in history for centuries, why would it cease now? Well anyways, Kokichi left to his room before Yoneya came back, he felt Miwa’s gaze on him as he silently retreated back to his door labelled with a big, bold in white number on a dark grey sci-fi door, “10”.
The door opened when he slid the name card he hid under his clothes on the reader. It felt really official, like he was a secret agent.
And it was almost surreal, entering a room, cleaned of all his ripped papers on the floor, no white bored with pictures of classmates in the corner, the cardboard boxes he discarded in the one of the corners not there, and certainly no Rantaro wax effigy hanging upside down from the roof, yes it was a cleaned slate. But he didn't think he'd be changing much unlike his drastic living courters changes.