//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: First Time? // Story: What's Black And White And Red In One Eye? // by TundraStanza //------------------------------// "I did it! Ha ha! Finally... I can leave this nightmare behind me." The figure slowly walked toward the extravagant vault-like door. Three knocks were made against it. "Hey! You're supposed to keep your promise! I did my part!" "Have some patience, buddy. You'll get out soon enough." They turned around at the other voice. Eyes glowed against the grayish figure's face. The irises shook. "Wh-What are you going to do with that?" "Well, I did say that you'd go free. But I never specified how many pieces of you would leave." A chord was pulled. A rapidly spinning buzz growled. "This wasn't part of the deal! What the hell are you doing?!" "Well now, that just won't do. I said you'd get to leave, no questions asked. I believe I heard you ask a question... and you know how I feel about rule-breakers." "No! You set me up!" "IT'S PUNISHMENT TIME!" --- ... Her body felt heavy. She didn't remember falling asleep, but her muzzle was definitely resting on top of her sweater sleeves. She blinked at the blurriness that was her vision. Carefully, she moved her hoof around the platform she was atop. When she found something that felt familiar, she focused her magic at it. After a violet glow passed, Moondancer's glasses were on her face. She could see her sleeved hooves crossed on a desk. She slowly blinked. It wasn't like her to doze off during a class. She looked around a little faster. Several different creatures were in a classroom. Some of them were muttering to each other. The rest were quite content to sit or stand by themselves. Only two of the creatures were ponies from Equestria: a brown colt wearing a propeller hat and a faded blue mare with a gray, messy mane. Not that Moondancer really had a leg to stand on with her mane bun. Her highlights always had a few split ends sticking out. "Ah, good. You're awake," said a suave, male voice. Moondancer turned to look at the desk in front of her. She gasped and adjusted her glasses. The size and body shape she was seeing matched a cat. However, the feather-hat, sword belt, and footwear was more suited to a swashbuckler. Before Moondancer could say a word, the cat turned around. "Everyone, the unicorn is up!" The smaller chats ground to a halt. Aside from a bit of shuffling, the only discernible noises were coming from the colt's handheld game. At least, that was the case until a boy with spiky, black hair cleared his throat. "Alright, so we agreed to do introductions as soon as everyone was awake, right? I'll start." He whipped out a box that barely fit in his hand. The outside of it had a picture of a red dragon's head. "My name is Shobu Kirafuda. I was recruited by Dimensional Aspiration University right after the last Kaijudo Showdown Tournament." A guy with red hair stood up next. "I'm Chrono Shindou, former third-year student of Hitsue High School. Although, I guess I'm starting fresh at D.A.U." Moondancer wasn't sure if the young man more resembled red velvet or a cinnamon swirl. "Uh... Kevin Levin." The speaker had hair down to his shoulders, a black shirt, and some slightly torn jeans. He leaned back in his seat. "Mechanic. I don't know. Is that enough?" "Whassup, peeps?" A guy with green hair and a red jacket smirked. "I'm Jake Long. D.A.U.'s got the Am-Drag for his martial arts flow." "Okay then." The next student looked about Jake's age, but that was where the similarities ended. "Danny Fenton from Amity Park. This university saw something in my resume about paranormal activity. I'm not sure if their definition matches mine, but I'll do my best." "Hello, my name is Connor." This man looked older than the previous speakers. His face was frozen even while his mouth was moving. "It is nice to meet all of you." The girl next to him leaned back a bit before clearing her throat. "I'm, uh... Nilin. I was called here to hone my skills as a hacker." Moondancer performed a double-take at the flickering gauntlet covering Nilin's right arm. "Hmm?" A boy in a brown work suit looked back and forth. "Oh, sorry. I thought we were going clockwise." His smile was almost icy. "I'm Goro Akechi. Some people call me the Detective Prince, but I'm not sure if I can live up to such a title." "I'm sure you're just being modest." The earth pony mare turned to face the rest of the class. "My name is Screw Loose. I hope to take what I've learned in Ponyville's therapy to the next level here." A creature Moondancer had never seen before spoke next. "I am Silver." He lifted his hand and a couple of pencils floated above his palm. Instead of any horn, Moondancer noticed the light blue glow was coming from his eyes. "D.A.U. invited me here to showcase my powers and hone them." Moondancer was taken aback when the next student swung around an arm that looked like a slinky. "My name is Min Min, and I'm the proud owner of a ramen shop." "Nice, no one cares," said another slinky-armed woman. "I am the great Dr. Coyle, the best scientific A.R.M.S. mind in the world! When you're done with your worthless pursuits, perhaps I'll let you beg to be employed under my heel." A red creature with horns, a pointy tail, and white hair muttered, "Yeesh, her ego could almost rival Blitzo*." He crossed his arms before speaking normally, "Hi, my name is Moxxie. As long as you keep your non-innocent hobbies behind closed doors, I think we'll get along just fine." Moondancer squinted in confusion. The colt looked up and pressed pause on his game. "What's up? Name's Button Mash. I'm a... gamer. And uh, yeah." His attention went right back to his device. The cat from earlier adjusted his hat. "Hello. My name is Puss-In-Boots. Fortunately, none of you killed my father. So, you do not have to die. Hit me up later, ladies." He turned his welcoming gaze to the unicorn mare. "Uh-huh... well, I'm Moondancer. I was invited to D.A.U. under the title of Ultimate Archivist." She tried to look anywhere except at the cat in front of her. "I mean, if I want to study for the rest of my life, I might as well put that to use." "Well, with that out of the way..." Kevin stood up and tackled the door with his shoulder. "Wha-hey!" Moondancer sat upright. "What are you doing?" Connor raised his voice. "That door has been locked since we woke up. All attempts at using force on it have been met with zero percent success." "Well, maybe we can loosen it!" Kevin slammed against the door again. Chrono ran over and slammed against the door as well. The two of them alternated hits. Button blew some air at the propeller on his beanie. "You'll probably just get in trouble. Wait for the teacher to come by and unlock it." "No, by all means," insisted Dr. Coyle. "Let them get themselves expelled. The less competition is here for future endeavors, the better." "We don't need your sass, Coyle." Min Min pretended to scratch her head. "That's Dr. Coyle!" The other A.R.M.S. combatant slammed her springy hand on her desk. Nilin held a finger of her gauntlet against her ear. "Edge, do you read me? Edge? Drat!" Moxxie tapped a few buttons on a cell phone and stared with an open mouth. "No service? But IMP phones are supposed to work anywhere in the living world." One of Danny's hands turned transparent with an outline. He pressed it against a wall and immediately recoiled. "Ow! They proofed the walls against intangibility? What kind of school is this?" Silver curled one of his gloves in front of his mouth and looked down. "Thinking what I'm thinking?" Jake looked over at the hedgehog. Silver nodded. "If the constructors of this room built defenses against abilities physical, artificial, and ectoplasmic, then they've probably already taken precautions against fire, psychic, and electrical damage." "Everybody, remain calm!" Screw Loose called out. "Lashing out won't help us understand our current predicament." "She's right, guys." Shobu crossed his arms. "Ludicrous situations always have benign explanations once we find them." A high-pitched ding went off four times. Everyone stopped what they were doing. A large screen flickered near the top of the front wall. After a few seconds of static, the image turned into a shadow against a red background. "Attention all students: at this time, the doors are being unlocked on your current floor. Please report to the gymnasium within the next ten minutes. Those who refuse to come will be penalized for tardiness and insubordination. That is all." After that, the screen turned off. The only door to the classroom slid open to one side. Kevin's arms dropped to either side of him. "Are you kidding me?" Button Mash slid his gaming device into a pocket-space. "Maybe this is just part of orientation. It is our first day of the school year." Chrono blinked twice. "Is he one of those 'sweet summer children' I hear so much about?" "That or oblivious." Nilin stood up and walked toward the opening. "Anyway, I'm not sticking around any longer." One by one, the occupants of the classroom got up and walked out. Moondancer thought she saw Min Min and Dr. Coyle punch each other in the face, but it happened so fast. She wasn't sure if her eyes were just playing tricks on her. Just as she was getting up to leave herself, Puss-In-Boots hopped on top of her desk. "May I accompany the pretty lady to our eventual destination?" The cat briefly took off his hat and bowed slightly. Moondancer sighed. "Look, I want to be tactful, but you're being too forward. Please stop." She levitated him over to the desk behind her. Then, she cantered through the classroom's doorway and down the hall. --- After a brisk walk and following the directions of some signs with arrows, Moondancer found herself inside a gymnasium. Bleachers of alternating colors lined the walls on either side. Up against the back wall, a stage was set up along with a podium and a microphone. The intricate symbol for D.A.U. was engraved just above the stage. Some of the students were already standing around on the floor marked with basketball boundary lines. "It's a bit strange that we haven't seen any teachers or administrators around." Screw Loose swiveled her hoof. "You'd think there would at least be lights on in the offices or one carriage alarm going off outside." 'Just what kind of schools would an alarm be considered a normal day?' thought Moondancer. "I was able to phase through the bathroom doors, but not the floor or the ceiling." Danny held his chin. "Whoever made this place ghost-proof took some shortcuts." When Jake walked over, his right hand was a set of red claws and was stuck through a combination locker door. "Eh heh... Has anybody seen a crowbar?" Danny sighed and lightly tapped a translucent hand against Jake's shoulder. The locker door fell through his claws and clanged on the floor. The pair became opaque again. A small plume of fire changed Jake's hand back to normal. "You're an Ecto-nurite?" asked Kevin. "I don't know what that is," said Danny. "I'm just a half-ghost." "Oh." Kevin shrugged. "Well, that's cool too." Silver walked in while drinking from a bottle of water. After exhaling, he released his grip. In a teal glow, the bottle floated away from him and neatly plopped into a recycling bin. Almost everyone was there. "Has anybody seen Button Mash?" asked Moondancer. Chrono scratched his head. "I think he said something about not being able to hold it in anymore." Moondancer deadpanned. "What." Connor flicked a coin from his left thumb to between his right middle and right index fingers. "That is a figure of speech regarding a need to-" Moondancer shook her hoof in his general direction. "I know what it means!" Moxxie was busy muttering to himself. " 'Oh, Moxxie. It'll be a great experience for you. A school for honing the best of all kinds of talents will be sure to get your head on your shoulders.' I don't know, Millie. Prep schools tend to be worse than Hell. I might not be sane when I get back. 'Oh, don't worry, sweetie. If you ever get in over your head, I'm just a call away.' Well, now my dang service isn't working!" He blinked twice. "Dang? Why the fork did I say dang? Fork? Oh my garden! What's wrong with my fishing mouth?!" The door squeaked open as Button dashed into the gymnasium. "Yes, made it! Five seconds to spare!" Something clanged near the stage area. All eyes turned in that general direction. There was a ka-chunk, followed by a series of whooshes, and finally a plop. A figure rose to stand by the podium near the microphone. A soulless black eye and a glowing red eye stared at the small crowd. "Good morning, and again, welcome to Dimensional Aspiration University. This one is here to take the role of Headmaster during your permanent stay. If you have any questions, please, hesitate to ask as this one's time is not yours to waste." As far as Moondancer could tell, they all shared her look of confusion at what they were seeing and hearing. Nilin pointed with her gauntlet. "Did anyone else hear a woman's voice in a robotic filter coming from that stuffed wolf?" Moxxie tilted his head. "I would have said that was a poor imitation of Loona, but it barely sounded like it had any emotion." Screw Loose cleared her throat. "Beg your pardon, uh... Headmaster was it? What exactly do you mean by 'permanent stay'? The invitation letter said the career program was just one full school year." "Perhaps there is a glitch in this thing's playback function." Connor's eyes lit up blue while his pupils danced left and right. "You did not mishear. The stay of all current students at this university is to be continued until death departs you." Chrono's jaw dropped. "You're kidding me." Shobu clenched his fist. "What are you saying? We didn't agree to live here forever!" "Yeah, forget it!" Kevin turned around. "No amount of skill-focusing is worth staying here for the rest of my life. I'm leaving." "This one regrets to inform you that leaving has been rendered impossible. All exits from this building have been sealed off. Additional precautions have been made to ensure that no application of science, magic, muscle, or intellect will allow you to leave." Danny gasped. "The ghost-proof floors. Where did you get Fenton tech?" "If you wish to leave so urgently, then there is only one solution: You must purposefully terminate the life of one of the other students, and successfully hide the fact that it was your handiwork." Silence fell upon the gymnasium. The air felt uncomfortably cold. Moondancer sat her flank onto the floor. Her glasses slid a millimeter along her muzzle. --- Starring... Moondancer: Ultimate Archivist Button Mash: Ultimate Gamer Screw Loose: Ultimate Psychologist Danny Fenton: Ultimate Paranormal Expert|Jake Long: Ultimate Martial Artist Connor: Ultimate Android|Nilin: Ultimate Hacker Puss-In-Boots: Ultimate Fencer Moxxie: Ultimate Mercenary|Goro Akechi: Ultimate Detective(?) Kevin Levin: Ultimate Mechanic|Silver the Hedgehog: Ultimate Psychokinetic Life-form Shobu Kirafuda: Ultimate Kaijudo|Chrono Shindou: Ultimate Card Fighter Min Min: Ultimate Ramen Chef|Dr. Coyle: Ultimate Mad Scientist ~Etto... Ee-aw, eh-oh-eh... Ee-day-ee... Ah-oh-etto...~ Danganronpa Umpteen: Can Ideas Bleed? ---