#and some fucker at the top had a drone making a noise like the arrival of Beelzebub

[pyropsychiccollector]

Goodbye Despair, Chapter 0: On the way to the School Trip (Part 2)

            A deathly pale girl stood atop a fractured building as she looked out at the widespread, horrific destruction of Towa City. Her elegant black dress fluttered in the breeze. The red sky was now gone, and the gray sky of dawn was blossoming over the city, the sun brilliantly shining its golden rays.

            “It truly is such a shame that it had to come to this… A full-out war between Towa City and the Future Foundation would have been much more dramatic…” The black-haired girl mused as she sipped from a teacup. Near her, a very portly teen stood tall and with his hands on his hips in slight exasperation.

            “Yeah, well… Blame it on the kids for not being more careful! Even if it was just a few lapdogs from Future Foundation, they were still Ultimates!” The boy puffed out in annoyance.

            The girl cradled her teacup on a plate. Her face was melancholic.

            “… I blame your influence.” The girl quipped, resulting in the boy reeling back in shock.

            “M-M-Meee?!”

            “If you had not been so mischievous in making that ‘Successor’ remark, Towa would not have toyed around with that girl. Instead, she made a big theatrical failure of a game, and now Future Foundation has infested this place like rodents.” The goth smiled with false cheer.

            “I don’t recall you objecting to it, Miss Ludenberg!” The boy huffed again. He clenched his fist in aggravation. “At any point, you could have made Miss Towa stop!”

            Celestia Ludenberg rolled her eyes dully.

            “It was an amusing distraction for a while, but then it got boring the more she tempted fate. Monaca was truly an annoying pest.” The goth then gave a little curtsy. “Besides which, you were in charge of the children, not I. I had the adults wrapped around my finger, and nudged them in the proper direction. The fault for this travesty lies at your feet, Yamada. You needed to be the adult, if we were to maintain our hold here. Now Kirigiri-san will be most displeased that we have lost another stronghold…”

            The otaku made several angry grunting noises as he tried to think hard about a good comeback. The war between adults and kids had been going rather smoothly, while he and Ludenberg pulled the strings behind the scenes. But still, did she have to take such a chiding tone with him?! Enoshima had entrusted the Warriors of Hope into both their care!

            “Attempting to fill Nanami with despair was bound to end in failure… You both should have seen that coming.” A voice droned behind them, causing Yamada to whirl around and Celes to slightly crane her head to look back at the lanky, long-haired figure.

            “My, my, look who’s arrived fashionably late.” Celes drawled dryly. “The Monokuma children detected your entry into the city. What were you so busy doing?”

            “We could have used your help in expelling the Foundation, Mister Kamakura…!” Yamada growled as he pointed accusingly at the pale, slightly older boy.

            Kamakura regarded the otaku like he would an ant.

            “You know my policy. This world is boring… But witnessing the conflict between hope and despair, that is truly a fascinating match to behold. A myriad of comical faux pas were made on both sides… But it appears the victor was decided for this round.”

            The Ultimate Gambler tsk’ed and looked away. Yamada was still seething in rage.

            “I will… never understand why Mister Togami and Miss Kirigiri put up with you…!”

            Kamakura arched an eyebrow curiously.

            “Oh…? You haven’t heard? The Foundation captured Kirigiri and Fujisaki a week ago. Togami is fortifying his castle for the inevitable final conflict to come.”

            Yamada released a surprised gasp of shock while even Ludenberg’s eyes widened marginally. Togami didn’t actually have a castle, of course – Celes never would have allowed it. But to hear two more of their peers had been taken down… And two key players at that. It was devastating news indeed. Togami could boss them around all he liked, but he lacked the precision and coordination that Kirigiri possessed as a strategist. Without her, the others were going to get sloppy… just like what happened here in Towa City.

            It was… getting to be the end of an era.

            “Nnrgh… But that leaves… only a handful of us left!” Yamada grumbled in frustration. “Mister Oowada is holding out… as is Miss Oogami and Miss Asahina…! But if this keeps up, Ultimate Despair will face annihilation!”

            Celes rolled her eyes in annoyance. They weren’t the only ones left, of course. But Genocider was a loose cannon, and it was only a matter of time before Ishimaru was captured. But the otaku had a point. They were experiencing too many losses. It was as if Enoshima’s death had actually marked a turning point in the war…

            … And Celes was still very pissed she hadn’t gotten to kill Enoshima herself.

            “… Wait just a second.” A thought occurred to Celes. And it wasn’t a pleasant one as she craned her neck to face Kamukura once more. “If you’re still here… That can only mean…”

            Kamukura observed the back of his right hand dully.

            “You are correct. It is that time.” The boy spoke with finality.

            Celes cursed under her breath as she went for the blade hidden in her dress.

            “I should have realized when you brought up Kirigiri…!” She hissed as she whirled her body around to face her attacker, knife drawn to defend herself. But it was much too late.

            “Yes, you should have.” Kamukura said without missing a beat. He caught her swinging arm, spun around until he was behind her, and casually disarmed her while still holding onto her arm. In the next moment, he injected some needle into her neck, and she went out like a light. Kamakura allowed her to drop to the floor, and didn’t face to turn Yamada, who had brought out his own weapon, but was caught up in what happened to Celes.

            “Miss Ludenberg…!” The otaku howled. He tried to get a shot off on Kamakura, but the boy disarmed him in a similar fashion, and the otaku collapsed as well once his own neck was injected with some kind of drug.

            The ‘Ultimate Hope’ stood over the two Despairs nonchalantly as he looked out at the ruined Towa City and the wide open sea beyond it.

            “It’s nearly time… a final battle between Hope and Despair that shall surpass all others.” The white-haired boy murmured softly.

            Normally, he would have allowed Future Foundation to capture these two on their own… But at this point, after such a resounding victory, it would have made little sense to allow these two to escape. A blade breaks more easily once it has been shattered already, and the same applies to the gambler and otaku here. They wouldn’t be able to make a comeback worthy of a rematch against the Future Foundation. Ultimate Despair was crumbling, and it was soon going to be time for their ace-in-the-hole to be played. A card that could only be played when they’re on the verge of losing…

            Kamakura fingered a photograph in his pocket without pulling it out to look at. It was a plan born from desperation, but it was not a flawless plan. Slim as it was, Hope could win against the stacked odds. Enoshima had demonstrated that all too well.

            It was still possible… for Class 78 to retrieve their lost selves.

            It was even possible… for Nagito Komaeda to return.

            Wouldn’t that that just be the Devil’s Luck?

            ~*~

            “Jeez… I forgot how annoying it was gonna be, staying on a boat with these guys.” Fuyuhiko huffed as he crossed his arms and leaned on a wall in aggravation.

            Across from him, sitting in a chair at a meeting table was his little sister, her hands gripping her skirt in her lap and her eyes glaring acidly at the tabletop.

            “I don’t get what the big deal is. Using that Hagakure bastard as an anchor was an amazing idea. We don’t need his punk ass waste of space clogging up the holding cells…” The young woman bitterly griped.

            The Ultimate Yakuza barked out a laugh.

            “Yeeeah… Too bad you forgot about the security cameras. Now Yukizome’s gonna be watching you like a hawk.”

            “You could always throw him overboard for me! Or your hitman!” Natsumi pointed out.

            “Except Yukizome said the three of us specifically aren’t allowed in that cellblock anymore. Otherwise I’d totally be onboard with that plan!” Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes. “But hey, maybe if we get enough people in on it, Yukizome will ban everyone, and the fucker will starve!”

            “… I knew you were my favorite brother for a reason.”

            “I’m you only brother.”

            “Exactly!”

            Hajime sweatdropped from his seat at a different end of the meeting table. He looked up at Peko quizzically.

            “They’re not serious, right?” Hajime hoped he didn’t sound too pleading.

            Peko merely closed her eyes and released a sigh before smiling in slight amusement.

            “Hagakure tried to extort the Kuzuryu Clan in the past. It’s not a surprise they want to hang him dry.”

            “Peko, you were supposed to say ‘no!’” Hajime whined, which earned a soft chuckle from the swordswoman as the siblings continued to bicker.

            Souda was off in his own corner of the room, pulling his hat down his face and ignoring all them. Between Fujisaki really picking on him about his ‘shoddy’ work with programming the cameras, cells, and other machines on the ship, as well as being in the same cellblock when Oogami woke up and started trying to bust out, Souda was a nervous wreck with very low self-esteem at the moment. Hajime and Munakata assured the mechanic his work was top-notch as always, but it still really hurt his pride to be insulted by someone in a similar field, even if they were in Despair and probably didn’t mean every critique they said… probably…

            Nothing could be done about the scare with Oogami, though. The Ultimate Fighter really was an Ogre.

            When the door to the room opened, all eyes but Souda’s curiously turned to see who the next ones in would be. It was Mikan, accompanied by… Byakuya Togami. Or, well, someone dressed like him, even with his fat figure. The nurse was sobbing, sadly as usual…

            “I-I-I’m sorry… She wasn’t eating her meals, and we already have Asahina-san and Yamada-kun on IV drips in the infirmary!” The purple-headed woman clutched the top of her head in a panic.

            “I told you, it’s fine,” the man disguised as Togami insisted, ushering the nurse to a chair near Hajime. “Munakata had taken Togami for an interrogation anyway, so it was easy enough to order Fukawa to eat. We knew this would happen based off the information we had on her, so I came prepared. It wasn’t a big deal, really.”

            The Imposter was having little success in stifling the nurse’s wails, but everyone had a better idea of what set her off this time. Episodes like these were certainly bound to happen, since specific members of Ultimate Despair had vowed to starve themselves for the Despair that would bring. Even if Fukawa wasn’t quite like the rest of her classmates – possessing the same glowing red eyes and obsession with Despair – she still listened to whatever Togami ordered her to do. And because she trailed after him like a mutt, Togami had cruelly taken advantage of her lapdog nature. Her other personality, Genocider, was a full-fledged Remnant of Despair like the rest of her class, but she only became a problem when Fukawa… sneezed, triggering the change in personality. Reasoning with Genocider was impossible, so they were thankful for an easy way to deal with her, even if it was weird as hell.

            Not that the other Remnants were any easier to convince to let go of their debilitating habits.

            “It’ll be fine, Mikan!” Hajime promised as he laid a hand on her shoulder consolingly. “We only have to put up with this for a little longer. Once we reach Jabberwock, we just have to put them in the Neo World Program. Hopefully then, they’ll revert to their former selves, and we’ll be able to help them after that.”

            It was a bit like chanting a prayer at this point, but everyone in the room was used to saying or hearing that by now. They simply needed that constant reminder to make the journey at sea bearable.

            “I’m not so sure about that…” Everyone turned to the door once again as Kyosuke Munakata strode in with a grim expression. “Gekkogahara reported in just a few minutes ago, and said they might not have the program ready by the time we reach our destination. They’re doing everything in their power, but it’s just not looking realistic at this point that they’ll be able to make it run smoothly in time.”

            “S-So what are you saying?” Souda stuttered out nervously. He seemed to have an idea of the situation, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it.

            “He’s saying we may need to look after the Remnants for a little longer…” The Imposter muttered quietly, but factually. “Or, worst case scenario, we’ll have to rehabilitate them without the program.”

            “Are you kidding meee?!” Kazuichi howled, making a frightened expression. Fuyuhiko gritted his teeth and stared down at the floor.

            “Tch. I wish he was…”

            Munakata closed his eyes solemnly.

            “I called Tengan, and he’ll be sending reinforcements in a few days. This will include Nidai and Owari, as well as Koizumi and Mioda.” They would need their exceptional eyes and ears in the event an incident broke out on the island. Thankfully, security cameras and lodgings were in place, but it wasn’t going to be easy to keep an eye on the Remnants in such an unsecure place. Anything could go wrong, especially with exceptionally talented prisoners as the Remnants of Despair. Why, Aoi Asahina on her own was going to need to be isolated from the ocean as much as possible.

            Especially around the boats… She had been an absolute menace at sea, sinking vessels indiscriminately.

            “So what’s the deal with Togami?” Natsumi brought up all of a sudden, causing everyone to tune in again. “You’ve been giving him the third degree a lot.”

            “I am hoping to secure a tentative truce with him.” Munakata uneasily replied. “I do not trust him, but if we can get even one of their leaders to keep the rest in line, our stay on Jabberwock will hopefully be less of a burden.”

            The answer they received resulted in many widening their eyes in shock, and a few skeptical cries from the Kuzuryu siblings.

            “What exactly are you negotiating?!” Fuyuhiko exclaimed after a few minutes of people talking in a panic.

            “Nothing outrageous.” Munakata replied with a stony face, looking Kuzuryu in the eye and reminding the yakuza that he was in charge. “We already planned to let the Remnants stay in the lodgings for however long it takes to get the program up and running, but Togami has… demanded that they be allowed access to certain possessions and things. They will not be allowed weapons, but to a degree it will be as if they are ‘guests’ while staying with us on the island.”

            Natsumi scoffed loudly.

            “So, we’re gonna let ‘em live comfy while we bust our asses to get them rehabilitated?” The young girl accused.

            “It’s better than restricting them completely,” Munakata countered. “If we allow them no comforts, they will eventually try to stage a mutiny, as Oogami has demonstrated by trying to break out of her cell. But if they feel less like prisoners, then they will feel less inclined to escape the island, no matter how slightly. Again, they will not be given materials that they can harm us, themselves, or the outside world – Fujisaki will not be given a laptop that has Wi-Fi capabilities, nor will Oowada be given a motorcycle. We will listen to what they want, within reason, and be generous hosts. In return, Togami will assert his authority and keep everyone relatively in line.”

            Silence permeated the room after that. Some of them didn’t like this turn of events, but it was sounding like this was their only safe option. The alternative would be to run themselves ragged in restricting everything the Remnants did, and all the Remnants would have to do is wait them out, bide their time. They couldn’t afford to do that; the world would be in danger yet again if this turned into a battle of attrition.

            “Why approach Togami?” Hajime said after a while, earning a look from Munakata. “Kirigiri seems like she’d be more reasonable to negotiate with… Heck, Kamakura could physically overpower any of them – even Oogami.”

            Fuyuhiko hissed as he raked a hand through his short hair.

            “Kirigiri might be more ‘reasonable,’ but she’s helluva lot harder to read.” The yakuza groused. “Any ‘harmless’ thing she asks for could be deadly, or it could be a red herring to throw us off. I trust her way less than Togami.”

            For more reasons than one.

            “And as for Kamakura, we don’t know his objectives.” Munakata explained with a thoughtful frown. “He is the only Remnant to have turned himself in, but this could all be a ploy to release everyone and deal a crippling blow to the Foundation. It is much harder to put faith in a man who has the power to do anything, but did nothing to stem the war and bloodshed.”

            Hajime was forced to admit, they had more than a few good points. Togami was narcissistic, arrogant, and greedy, but at least they could read him, somewhat.

            “What do we do now?” The Imposter asked the question that was on all their minds as he crossed his arms. Munakata mirrored him.

            “Teruteru, Tanaka, and Yukizome are feeding the last of the Remnants, so lunch is about over. We’re two days out from the island, so not much longer to go. Just keep monitoring them, and report anything suspicious. I will go over the procedures to disembark, once we reach Jabberwock. Just stay vigilant – we will make it through this.”

            With all of that explained, Munakata strode out of the room, leaving the contemplative members of Class 77 to their thoughts.