A Guide in the Darkness - Daily Life 1
We all sat down together at the longest table in the center of the Dining Hall. Button Mash plopped himself down in the center with a deep sigh, chewing on his lip while Sunset grabbed me a couple of wet and dry paper towels to clean my cheek. Thankfully it was only a shallow cut.
"Here, let me see that," Mountain spoke softly as she dug out a small first aid kit from one of her vest's pockets. "Don't want it to get infected."
"Oh... thanks," I replied, taken aback by the huntress' kindness.
Calm down, Starlight... you're in human form, not a pony... she's not going to gut you and skin your hide...
"Alright... spill it," Sugarcoat demanded. "What the fuck is Danganronpa?"
We listened intently as Button began describing the game to us. Creeping dread prickled down my spine and chilled my blood as he talked about how the game worked: every so often, Monokuma would give us a cruel and unignorable motive in an attempt to force any of us into trying to escape... via murdering someone else. If one of us were to murder another, there would first be an investigation where we would search the body and our surroundings for clues. Then we would all be whisked away to a trial room, where it would be up to us to debate on the identity of the murderer. If we managed to find the killer, Monokuma would gruesomely execute them right in front of us, and we would all continue on with our captive lives. If we didn't, however... if we accused the wrong person, then not only would the killer be set free, but Monokuma would gruesomely execute the rest of us for our failure.
"That's not all, either," Button sighed in resignation. "There's always some kind of memory wipe involved... for all we know, we could've been here for literal years already, and have no idea."
"Is that why none of us remember how we got here?" asked Soarin'.
"God damn..." Flash wheezed. "That's just messed up!"
"I mean, I haven't had to so far, but I really don't wanna embalm somebody I once knew," Memento whined. "So please, guys, don't kill anyone, alright?"
"Seriously, though? He makes us lose our memories?" Ocean quivered. "That sort of thing doesn't exist... right?"
"It can..." Sunset frowned as she glanced at me. I could easily predict what she was thinking, and wondered how wise it would be to suggest that magic might've been involved. The expression on my face must have convinced her to drop the thought, however, as Sunset never finished her sentence.
"Well... I don't think I've forgotten anything," Sonata scrunched her face in thought while patting herself all over her body. "I don't feel any different... don't think I'm missing or gained anything..."
"Nah, it's more subtle than that," said Button. "We wouldn't even realize anything's missing. Our memories would've been reverted back to a little bit before we came here in the first place... willingly."
"You think we came here willingly?" Dr. Hooves asked, surprised.
"Why?" Silver narrowed her eyes. "Last I remember, I was in Abu Dhabi for a race... I never would've abandoned it to come here."
"I ALSO ADHERE TO A STRICT TRAINING REGIMEN," added Kotenage. "THERE IS SIMPLY NO WAY I WOULD HAVE LEFT MY STABLE TO GO CAMPING."
"...You don't think us and our friends decided to go camping at the end of my vacation, huh...?" I asked Sunset.
"No... definitely wasn't thinking about anything like that," she shook her head. "Besides, if we did, wouldn't they be here, too?"
"True..."
"Your guesses are as good as mine," Button shrugged. "But in every game, the kids were originally there by their own accord, then the mastermind came along and fucked everything up."
"Well... that might explain us being here," Ocean pointed to himself and his sister, "...but the rest of you don't really strike me as outdoorsy."
"Speaking of which, I'm sure you've all noticed the sixteen cottages at the other end of the campgrounds?" Sunburst chimed in. "It would seem that there's one for each of us."
"Yea... like I said, we're gonna be here a while if this is really gonna go down like the game," said Button. "The rooms were always pretty nice, though."
"Right... because being kidnapped is okay as long as our accommodations are comfortable," grumbled Sugarcoat.
"That is part of the whole deal... Monokuma will make sure we're comfortable and have places to keep us entertained for a while," Button continued. "He'll even give us more things to do and places to go if and when someone dies and the rest of us survive a trial."
"Hmm... seems to me that this 'Monokuma' uses such luxuries to keep his captives from becoming entirely despondent and unwilling to participate," mused Dr. Hooves.
"Like he's keeping us from totally going insane..." Sugarcoat hissed, clutching her elbows. "That asshole..."
"...I wonder what else there is to do around here?" Sonata hummed, blinking when everyone scowled at her in response. "...What? I'm just wondering!"
"The most important thing, though, is that we do not play Monokuma's game. No matter how much you might not trust each other or whatever," Button warned. "Ignore his motives, their entire purpose is to make you consider murder in order to leave. Talk shit out with each other like normal people if you've got beef or there was a misunderstanding... because I can guarantee you, if one of us decides to kill someone else, it will destroy our trust in each other, it will spiral out of control, and all you'll be doing is fucking yourself and each other up for life, whether we live or we die."
"Ooh, yea... and the mental trauma a death like that causes is definitely not fun," Memento inhaled through her teeth. "I deal with it a lot at work... the bereaved are always a total wreck for a long time."
"Yea..." Sugarcoat frowned. "The both of us are trained counselors, huh? But that doesn't mean we want any new patients right now."
"...Did I hear that right...?" I heard Sunset mutter under her breath.
Memento nodded. "...Well, you probably have a license for that. I don't... it just comes with the job."
"Hey... there were rules, right?" asked Juniper. "Maybe we should read them."
"Good idea," said Soarin'. "Wouldn't want to do something and wind up riddled with holes." Everyone mumbled in agreement as we fished out our Monopads from our pockets and booted them up. Sunset helped me turn mine on and navigate to the tab that read "Rules".
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
1. Campers may reside only within the valley.
2. "Nighttime" hours are from 10pm to 8am. Some areas are off-limits at night, so please exercise caution.
3. With minimal restrictions, you are free to explore the valley at your discretion.
4. Violence against Monokuma and/or the Monokubs is strictly prohibited, as is destruction of security cameras.
5. Anyone who kills a fellow camper will become "blackened" and be allowed to leave, unless they are discovered.
6. Additional rules may be added as necessary.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Huh... that's all?" Flash asked. "Kinda thought there'd be way more."
"There's also a Camper Roster, and a map of our immediate surroundings," Mountain remarked. "...Nothing that would help us escape, unfortunately." With Sunset's guidance I tapped on the roster of campers. Here it listed the sixteen of us in alphabetical order, along with our Ultimate titles and our ages. Some of the titles were stranger than others...
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Button Mash - Ultimate Pro Gamer - Age 19
Dr. Time Turner-Hooves - Ultimate Investigator - Age 42
Flash Sentry - Ultimate Guitarist - Age 25
Indigo Zap - Ultimate Street Artist - Age 24
Juniper Montage - Ultimate Actress - Age 27
Kotenage - Ultimate Rikishi - Age 21
Memento Mori - Ultimate Mortician - Age 30
Mountain Lucky - Ultimate Hunter - Age 29
Ocean Lucky - Ultimate Angler - Age 29
Silver Arrow - Ultimate Racing Driver - Age 20
Soarin' - Ultimate Soccer Star - Age 26
Sonata Dusk - Ultimate Singing Sensation - Age 1234
Starlight Glimmer - Ultimate Leader - Age 24
Sugarcoat - Ultimate Arts & Crafts - Age 25
Sunburst - Ultimate Scholar - Age 26
Sunset Shimmer - Ultimate ??? - Age 24
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I frowned as I reread my title... Ultimate Leader? The thought of it didn't exactly evoke good memories. But even more concerning was...
Huh...? Sunset doesn't have an Ultimate...?
"What the hell?" Sugarcoat squinted. "How old are you, Sonata?"
"Uh... 23, why?"
"Well, this says you're at least a thousand years old!" she continued.
"Huh? ...Oh, yea! That's weird," she raised an eyebrow.
"Someone must've fat-fingered the keyboard when they entered that in," Button suggested. "I've seen plenty of women in games who've claimed to be thousand-year old dragons and whatever in the body of a little girl, but women like that don't actually exist." Beside me, I heard Sunset make a noise halfway between a chuckle and a grunt.
"Alright, we've gone over the rules and our titles," said Mountain. "...Now what?"
"I have an idea," suggested Sunburst. "I understand it's kind of lame... but if we get to know each other a little better, it'll go a long way to build trust and camaraderie."
"I... guess so," Sugarcoat sighed as she glared pointedly at Button. "Alright... how 'bout we just go down the list in order? Tell us all a little bit about yourself."
"Uh... 'kay," Button coughed. "Well... I'm Button Mash... if you're into games, you might know me as BM420NoScope."
"Oh, for crying out loud..." Sugarcoat muttered under her breath, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"I stream games for a living, mostly PvP shooters... some WoW, some ARPGs, sometimes other games just for fun... Won lots of tournaments... yea," he shrugged. The table was silent for a few awkward moments.
"...Alright, well. As you may know, my name is Time Turner-Hooves, EngD... The doctorate is in Engineering, though I also study Criminal Psychology and Forensics as a hobby. I, uh... actually find myself in the position to solve crimes and other strange incidents and mysteries more often than you or I would think... so I suppose that's why my title is as such."
"Oh... that's a talent that'll actually come in pretty handy," Button sat up. "Hopefully we won't need to investigate any murders at all, though."
"Indeed," Dr. Hooves nodded.
"I'm Flash Sentry... I play lead guitar in the band Flash Drive... I wouldn't say I'm the best, but I guess I'm pretty good. I can play basically anything on the guitar as long as I've heard it at least once-"
"Ooh! Play 'Moscau'!" shouted Indigo. Sugarcoat rolled her eyes.
"Uh... like, right now?" Flash asked as Indigo nodded frantically. He looked around to the others, shrugged and pulled out his guitar from its case. It was rather plain: yellow and brown, the only adornment being a sticker of his band's logo on the body on the bottom left corner of the body. After fiddling with the tuning pegs for a moment, he tapped his foot and began to play.
...And wouldn't you know it, it sounded like he was an entire band all by himself! The drum beats, the bass line, even the trumpets somehow, all of it was clearly audible. He even sang! Indigo sang along with him and danced the Kozachok until the song ended, garnering polite applause from everyone.
"Well... that was neat," Sonata smiled. "Maybe I should have you on one of my videos sometime when we get out!"
"Yea, yea... next?" grumbled Sugarcoat.
"Ooh! Ooh! I'm Indigo Zap! I tag shit all over town and paint awesome murals! Sometimes I get paid to design something rad for the side of a building, too! Nowhere is safe from me and my paints; I'll climb any scaffolding or overpass in my way! ...And the cops have never caught me, either," she smirked. "And- oh, Silver! Maybe you've heard of my sis, Lightning? She's also a racing driver, but for Nascar!"
"Hmm... yea, actually," Silver nodded, grimacing. "Lightning Dust, wasn't it? I remember she was in Formula 3 with me, but, uh... got too many penalty points on her license and got banned."
"Yea... that's her, alright," Indigo chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head.
"Ugh, enough interruptions!" Sugarcoat snapped. "Let's keep going and get this over with."
"Okay, well... you may have seen me in a couple commercials... I'm Juniper Montage," she grinned. I don't know if I'd call myself the Ultimate Actress yet, but I did recently sign on to be the lead character in a movie in Applewood. It'll be my true debut, it's expected to be a blockbuster, the greatest of the year! Ooh... I can't wait for the limelight!"
"I AM KOTENAGE, BUT MOST PEOPLE KNOW ME BY MY RING NAME, KINRYU. I AM A RIKISHI, OR SUMO WRESTLER IN YOUR LANGUAGE. I STARTED SUMO IN MIDDLE SCHOOL AND WAS UNDEFEATED ALL THROUGHOUT HIGH SCHOOL. THEN THE YOKOZUNA HAKURYU PERSONALLY SCOUTED ME, SO I JOINED HIS STABLE AND HAVE BEEN PRACTICING MY OWN BRAND OF SUMO EVER SINCE. SO FAR I'M UNDEFEATED, AND MY NEXT TOURNAMENT WILL BE MY MAKUNOUCHI DEBUT! I HOPE TO BE A YOKOZUNA MYSELF ONE DAY."
"Well, I'm Memento Mori... and I'm a mortician at Paper Crane and Dying Breed Funeral Home. It's primarily embalming and restorative work... I can make even the gnarliest corpse look like nothing ever happened to them in the first place. I'm also a licensed funeral director."
"I'm Mountain Lucky... everyone calls me Emmy, you guys can, too. And, uh, I hunt stuff. I'm sometimes called to national parks to help thin out an overpopulation, or I'm hired to take out a problem predator... never missed a shot, I don't let any part of the animal go to waste... try to do everything as humanely as possible. PETA, don't even at me... oh, and me and Ocean are fraternal twins."
"Yup. Oh, I'm Ocean Lucky, and I fish rather than hunt. Won all kinds of tournaments, I write articles for fishing magazines... and I love eating fish almost as much as catching them! I think the best thing I ever made was this salmon I marinated in Mountain Dew and cooked over a campfire... mmm!" He let out a chef's kiss as over half of us made faces or even gagged.
"I'm Silver Arrow... yea, I'm a racing driver. Been racing ever since I was three. Just about to make my Formula One debut, actually... I'm driving for Alpha Minotauri. I was finishing up the season in Formula 2, though..." Her face scrunched up as she thought about something for a few moments. "...Actually, even if I'm here until the season is over, I'll still win the driver's championship, so I guess it's kind of okay..."
"So, I'm Soarin'... I play forward for the Canterlot Royals FC. We won the national championships last year... I scored the winning goal." He was silent for a little while as we waited for him to add anything else. "...That's basically all there is to me. I'm not that interesting otherwise... uh... I like baking and pastries, I guess."
"Cuuute! Well, I'm Sonata Dusk... kinda ironic that I'm a singing sensation, as I can't really sing all that well... at least not as well as I used to. Buuuuut as long as you're cute and have autotune, nobody cares!" she giggled. "Me and my sisters make all kinds of music videos and put them on the Internet... we'll have our big break soon, I just know it!" And with a final giggle from her, it was now my turn to talk.
Oh, dear... what am I gonna say...? I can't exactly talk about the other Equestria and the fact I'm a Unicorn and have magic and stuff...
"I'm Starlight... Starlight Glimmer," I sucked on the insides of my mouth as I thought carefully about what to say. "Uh... I dunno if I'd call it 'leading', but I am the headmistress of a prestigious school in... another city... Yea."
"Aren't you a bit young to be the headmistress of a school?" Sugarcoat narrowed her eyes at me. "What school is this?"
"Uh... The School of Friendship...? I mean, it's for, um... gifted children," I slowly and awkwardly fibbed.
"...The 'School of Friendship'...?" Sugarcoat slowly and acridly replied. I feared she wasn't buying it at all, let alone the others.
"Aw, man, is it like alternative school?" asked Indigo. "'Member when I had to go to one for a couple months junior year, Sugarcoat? That place sucked."
"Yea... it's an alternative school," I nodded quickly. "Er... sorry you didn't have a good experience, I only recently got the job..." Sugarcoat glared at me for what felt like an hour, studying me as if my pony features were clearly visible for all to see... but before I really started to sweat profusely she snorted and shrugged.
"Hmph... fine, whatever. I'm Sugarcoat. I'm a licensed therapist-"
"Pfft, fuckin' what...?" Sunset chuckled in disbelief under her breath again.
"...But my real passion is arts and crafts hobbies. Anything involving drawing, painting, sewing, knitting, macrame, needlepoint, jewelry making, pottery, glass fusing, scrapbooking, decorating, etching... well, I could go on and on, I suppose. Point is, I make way more things than I could ever use, so I sell them all online... I actually make just as much money doing so as my job, if not more."
"I'm Sunburst. I'm a professor at Crystal University... while my specialty is quantum physics, I'm quite knowledgeable in all of the sciences, and usually teach at least one class in each subject every quarter... um, I realize I may seem a bit young to be a professor... I did skip quite a few grades and started college courses when I was only twelve... I guess you could say that's why I've been labeled the Ultimate Scholar, ehehe," he grinned bashfully. It reminded me of the Sunburst I knew back home more than I cared to admit.
Now it was Sunset's turn, however. I tore my eyes away from Sunburst and pursed my lips - I wasn't sure how she was going to explain her life and talents... or lack of a named talent.
"I'm Sunset Shimmer... uh... apparently, I don't have an Ultimate...? Or they don't know what it is."
"Yea, I saw that," Silver frowned. "I wonder what's up with that?"
"Hmm... the unknown Ultimate," Button hummed. "They all had some kind of tie to the Killing Game."
"I... do?" Sunset hesitated as everyone began staring at her... some with curiosity, some with unease, and even some with utter disdain.
"In what way?" Sugarcoat sneered, her eyes narrowing into viperous slits.
"Well... in the games, the unknown Ultimate turned out to be either the Ultimate Detective, Ultimate Basically Everything, or the Ultimate Survivor," shrugged Button. "The first two pretty much solved everything and got the survivors out to safety... the third one, though... he got murdered first."
"Oh, so Sunset's the one who might find a way to escape?" Dr. Hooves asked, a hint of hope in his voice.
"I... uh..."
"Or she might bite it... that'd be too bad," Juniper frowned. "...Er, I mean, it's not like I want her to die or get hurt... I really don't!"
"Gee, thanks a lot," Sunset grumbled as I grabbed her hand. "Well... I don't want anyone to get hurt either, but I don't think I fit any of those talents."
"What do you think it is?" asked Sonata.
"Hmm... I have a Masters degree in Math and Physics, working on a Chemistry one, I taught myself computer programming..." Sunset counted on her fingers. "Uh... I'm a waitress..."
"A waitress? How much student debt are you in?!" Sugarcoat recoiled.
"Eh? None, actually..."
"Bullshit," she insisted, pointing a finger at her. "There's no way you can afford three Masters degrees on a waitress paycheck."
"Really, I'm not..." Sunset held up her hands as she glanced my way. "I have... rich parents."
That's... one way to put it...
Sugarcoat glared at Sunset for a while longer before sighing. "...Fine. Anyway, that's that. Now what?"
"Uh... we've already looked around most of the buildings," said Flash. "I guess we could see if the rest of them have opened up?"
"What time is it?" Ocean grumbled. "I'm hungry."
"Judging by the shadows outside, and the clock... it's around 4:30pm," Mountain closed her eyes for a moment. "We must've been out for a while, I'm kind of hungry, too."
"HOW ABOUT WE MAKE OURSELVES SOME DINNER, THEN?" suggested Kotenage. "A FULL STOMACH WILL SETTLE OUR NERVES."
"Yea, there's plenty in the kitchen," said Soarin'.
"Woo! I'm gonna make ALL the tacos!" yelled Indigo.
"Ooh!" Sonata gasped happily. It seemed as though dinner was on everyone's mind at the moment, so Sunset and I got up to join the others as we headed towards the kitchen.
"...Oh! Shit! One more thing," Button suddenly shouted.
"What is it?" asked Mountain, whipping her head around.
"It's important! In every game, Monokuma tells the kids that one of them is a traitor - they're the one responsible for all of them being stuck in the Killing Game."
Everyone froze in their tracks and turned to face Button. My heart skipped a beat.
A traitor... they're the reason we're here...?
"...What," Sugarcoat snarled icily.
"Uh... traitor?" Silver's voice trembled.
"Yea, and he'll probably tell us the same thing here, too. But in the games, the traitor wasn't actually a traitor... like, they never actually did anything bad to the others, always helped out the best they could and even sacrificed themselves when all hope was lost... I'd like to think that's the case here, too."
"So... should we worry about it, or not?" asked Ocean.
"Probably!" Juniper snorted, narrowing her shifting eyes. "This isn't a game... this is real! Maybe one of us did lure the rest of us here... some of us definitely have the resources or know-how to do it."
"Whoa... we gotta trust each other, remember?" said Flash.
"A bit hard, now that we know a traitor is part of the game," Sugarcoat glared.
"Yes, but the important thing is that they never actually did anything traitorous," Button emphasized. "If Monokuma ever does bring it up, it's most likely gonna be the same thing... we just gotta ignore it."
But now that the thought of a possible traitor was in our heads, the mood darkened considerably. Most of us made or gathered enough food for only ourselves to eat, although Kotenage made a giant pot of soup and rice and encouraged the others to share with him. Being the largest and strongest of us all, he declared that he would only allow a murder to happen over his dead body... not exactly good words to use in a situation like this.
~
After eating I decided to walk around a little, checking out my new home away from home away from home and hoping to find a possible escape route. Walking along the tree line, I didn't see any paths, trails or clearings other than the ones gated off to us... not even the thin worn lines of animal trails in the mossy ground. On occasion, I'd catch a glimpse of one of the Monokubs in the forest - sitting on a tree branch, chatting to one another via what I could only assume was a walkie-talkie function built directly into their heads, or stalking around the bushes. The bandage on my cheek was a grim reminder that their violent display of gunfire was all too real... so I gave them a wide berth.
The two larger sections of the three-part cabin were now open to us. Inside the middle section was a small gym, the kind with wooden floors covered in various lines and markings for different games, and basketball hoops set up on either end. There was also a raised stage to the right, empty save for the musty red curtains pushed over to the sides. A large cloth cart in one corner held a number of different balls: basketballs, soccer balls, baseballs, kickballs, etc.
The larger section on the end contained an indoor pool, about 30 by 20 feet if I had to guess. The depth ranged from three feet to eight. There was a diving board on the deep end, and there were the usual white plastic lounge chairs and tables set up around the sides on the concrete floor. Ironically, there was a lifeguard chair complete with a red and white life preserver, but also a sign that said "No Lifeguard on Duty, Swim At Your Own Risk". A couple of empty changing rooms were set up on the right wall, the curtains drawn back, as well as a showerhead over some tiles and a drain at the end. The whole room felt oddly warm and reeked of chlorine and a touch of sulfur; I walked over to the pool's edge and dipped my fingers into the water, discovering that the pool was heated.
Well, that's pretty nice! ...But I doubt any of us have swimsuits... unless you can buy them from that store...
My pockets rattled with coins - Monocoins, as they had been printed with Monokuma's face on the front and the Monokubs on the back. They seemed to be hidden in every little nook and cranny, almost begging to be found and spent.
Finally, I decided to see where I would be sleeping. I found my cottage between Silver's and Juniper's and behind Button's, finding that the key to the door was now left inside the lock. I put it in my pocket as I opened the door.
The cottage was set up much like a tiny house. To my right was a dresser and a loft bed set up along the wall, with small windows above both pieces of furniture. Beneath the bed was a TV; I turned it on in the hopes the programming might give me a clue as to where I was or what was happening, but there was no signal. There was a DVD player and some older game consoles set up in front of it, however, so it wasn't totally useless. On the back wall was a larger window, and along the left wall was a couch and a lamp, as well as a coffee table. A door near the entrance led to the cottage's bathroom, which appeared to be pretty standard: a counter with a sink, a toilet, a bath mat, and a bathtub with a shower. It was already stocked with towels and some generic toiletries.
I had to hoof it to Monokuma - despite holding us all captive and trying to force us into a killing game, he had an eye for comfort. The cottage was well-insulated from the bitter cold outside, and the bedsheets were warm flannel with a down comforter. I opened the drawers to find a couple of spare blankets and pillows, a fluffy, lavender colored bathrobe with matching slippers and pajamas, a pair of heating pads and a hot water bottle, along with multiple packages of bras and underwear in various sizes.
Ah... it would be kinda creepy if they somehow knew what size we all wore...
There was little else to do now. I had about an hour until Nighttime started, so I went to the camp store and spent my Monocoins on the MonoMono Machine. I was surprised to find that the palm-sized plastic capsules could contain anything from fresh food and drinks, books, jewelry and clothes to small live animals, video games, dolls, random objects and tchotchkes, full-sized furniture items and even weapons! But my heart relaxed as I saw that each of the weapons were mere replicas and not suitable for causing harm.
Geez, for something like this to exist requires a number of high-level magic spells... who made this? And why...?
*ding dong, bing bong*
The monitor inside the store buzzed to life as the last note of the chime faded away. A jolt traveled down my spine as I saw what was on the screen: it was the Monokubs - each holding a take-out cup of soda, sitting on a couch with Monokuma in the center - who held a half-empty wine glass, surrounded by what appeared to be tiny dolls in our likenesses hanging from the ceiling.
"Ahem... This is an announcement from the Head Camp Counselor of the Ultimate Campgrounds!" said Monokuma.
"It is now 10pm. Nighttime officially starts now!" said Monosuke.
"Hey! Since when did I say you could steal my lines?!" Monokuma shouted, leaning over past Monophanie so he could assault Monosuke.
"Whether you've been good or naughty, it's time to go tinkle and go to beddy-bye!" Monokid yelled over the din of Monokuma and Monosuke fighting.
"The dining hall is locked during Nighttime, so be careful," Monophanie advised between being occasionally shoved by her brother and father's actions.
"Sweet dreams!" Monotaro called out over the noise, sipping from his cup as the monitor shut off.
Oh, dear... with any luck, maybe they'll kill each other first and then we can escape...
I left the store, glancing to my left - the Dining Hall was indeed closed up for the night. The double doors were shut and covered in chains. With a sigh of resignation I made my way back to my cottage, took a hot shower (the water smelled somewhat sulfuric), put on the pajamas provided to me and climbed into bed. Just as I was getting comfortable, I heard my doorbell ring.
"Ugh... who is it?"
"It's me," I heard Sunset yell through the door. "Can I come in?"
"Yea, hang on," I hopped down and put on the bathrobe before unlocking the door so Sunset could come inside. "'Sup?"
"A lot of things," Sunset sighed as she walked in, also wearing a bathrobe and pajamas, although hers were a golden yellow rather than lavender. She kicked off her boots and slumped down on the couch. "I still can't believe this is what we're dealing with."
"You and me both," I agreed, sitting down beside her. "Have you seen that MonoMono Machine? There had to have been at least fifty high-level spells used to create that thing!"
"Yea, physics alone wouldn't allow for it to work at all," Sunset nodded. "And the sheer amount of infrastructure and detail that went into everything... Monokuma, the Kubs, the nice cottages, heated pool, plenty of food... who on earth could be behind this?"
"No idea, huh?" I murmured. "Well... I don't have much of my magic available to me, but what about you? I'm surprised you don't remember how we or the others got here."
"About that..." she stared at the floor. "...We must be too far away from Equestria, because I can't sense what the others are thinking... at all. Whenever I manage to touch someone and try to focus on their memories, or thoughts and feelings... I don't feel anything."
"...What?" I gasped. "But... that's like, your magic! Your own innate magical ability!"
"I know..." Sunset frowned. My heart sank into my stomach.
"...But... you can't do any magic?! You should've said something earlier! Wait... what about your geode?!"
"It must still be back in my apartment," she sighed, grasping at her chest where the pendant should've been hanging. "I didn't want to say anything during the meeting... I know you, Flash, Sonata, Juniper, Indigo and Sugarcoat would back me up on it, but the rest probably wouldn't believe me... and I don't think it'd be a good idea to start any unnecessary arguments in a situation like this."
"I... well, aren't there reports of other humans in this world suddenly gaining magic powers?" I asked. "I'm sure they're more willing to believe you than you think."
"Except I can't do said magic powers to prove it... not to mention they involve reading minds and memories. Going off of what Button's told us, telling people I can read their mind probably won't go over very well," she replied, pausing to think for a moment. "...And on the slim chance there's a traitor among us that brought us all here? It'd only make sense for them or the mastermind to remove my magic somehow so I couldn't tell them what happened."
"You think whoever's done this knew that about you? Maybe they have magic of their own?" I asked.
"Maybe... though I wouldn't be surprised if some government found a way to sap the magic from those humans, and whoever's doing this to us did that to me."
"Eugh..." My mind retched as I tried to imagine having my own magic taken from me. In an effort to calm myself I held out my hand to the TV remote on the coffee table, and focused on moving it closer while slowly clenching my fist. The remote shuddered a little before hovering into the air until it was within arm's reach; I sighed in relief and opened my fist, letting it fall into my lap.
"You still have your magic, huh?" Sunset noted.
"Just the little bit. The leading theory is that the ambient mana from our Equestria is slowly leaking into this world through the portals, so I don't have access to my full abilities."
"Hmm... then that would mean they may have singled me and my magic out," she put a hand to her chin.
"I guess I can see why you didn't tell the others about your magic, though. I'm not sure how I'd tell them all I'm actually a pony... especially that hunter girl."
"True... wait, Emmy? You think she'd hunt you if she knew you were a pony?"
"I, er... hope not...?"
"Nah... ponies here are seen as harmless farm animals for little girls... I can't think of any reason why she'd hunt one."
"Ah... that's a relief," I sighed.
Sunset giggled. We talked for a while longer, keeping each other company. If it had just been me, I'm not sure how I would've been feeling, but as long as Sunset was here I felt safe. We were going to get to the bottom of this and get everyone out alive... nobody was going to die on our watch!
In time, we became sleepy. I got out some of the spare blankets and pillows so Sunset could sleep on the couch while I crawled back into bed. I stared out the window, gazing at the star-filled night sky until I drifted off to sleep.
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Interesting decision to bring in Monocoins and the MonoMono machine
SO SHE'S THE ULTIMATE ??? IS SHE? Hmmm...
If you and I pick the same actual talent for her for our stories I will be shocked.
It's not surprising they'd single out Sunset's magic. Interesting that you're letting Starlight keep hers. I'm sure that'll play into things at some point.
I'm willing to bet Memento is going to get accused of murder several times but if she does it, it won't be till Chapter Three or Four. She has the feeling of a late-game blackened, who proves useful in the early cases then uses the lessons learned to good effect.
I highly doubt that was a fat fingering on Sonata's age. That's probably her real age.
Dr. Hooves is starting to feel more like an early victim. He's much older than the rest of the cast (apart from Sonata) and thus will have a harder time getting along, plus his talent is threatening. He's a danger to keep around. Yes, the detective tends to survive, but that's a tendency in the canon games only--Fangans have done horrible, horrible things to detectives.
Sugarcoat is starting to feel like the Togami of the group. If she's a licensed therapist, she's going to be able to manipulate people.
I expect the first murder to involve the indoor pool or the cafeteria in some way. Drowning is a possibility, but I also wonder if the pool chemicals will be involved. Oooh, there's a thought: someone seals up someone's cabin and uses the chlorine chemicals plus some ammonia cleaner from the kitchen to gas someone. That's a likely first death scenario. I could see Sunburst doing that.
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Ohhh. It wouldn't even occur to me to use the American voices but I bet we don't want to start some kind of dubs vs. subs war here so fair enough!
It does seem weird they wouldn't try to recreate the joke for the English release, though, as an aside.
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I believe there was an intense focus in the English release of reusing voice actors who voiced characters in the prior releases, such as how Grant George voiced Leon and then went on to voice Shuichi. The same one was also used for Sayaka and Tsumugi, making for an amusing turnaround scenario. I also know that Kokichi was voiced by Fuyuhiko's, and Korekiyo by Teruteru's. I don't remember any of the others off hand.
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I remember hifumi and keebo were the same person
As well as maki and someone from UDG
I also requested starlight to spend time with sonata when you ask about it the first time.
Sense I feel like those two can get along well together
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Ah, okay!
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Kyle Hebert voiced Kazuichi and then Kaito
Chris Tergliafera voiced both Gundham and Ryoma
Johnny Yong Bosch went from voicing Hajime to Rantaro
Kaiji Tang voiced Yasuhiro and Gonta
Hiyoko and Kirumi share the same VA
Kyoko and Kaede were both voiced by Erika Harlacher
Chiaki and Himiko share the same VA
Julie Ann Taylor went from Ibuki to Tenko
Cassandra Lee Morris went from Aoi Asahina to Angie Yonaga
And Wendee Lee went from Akane to Miu
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It's really cool to see the directors playing around with this kind of meta commentary with the casting. Given V3's themes, it makes total sense to have the same people from previous games involved. (I just was glancing through and saw they did cast several actors from the stage production as voices in V3. Kaede was Junko, which makes sense since she's the big red herring mastermind, and Miu's voice actor played Chihiro in the stage play, and imagining Chihiro in the voice booth saying Miu's lines is a damn riot).
The Japanese voice acting jokes seem to mostly be referencing other famous roles. Peko (the whole serial killer magical girl thing was just to get that actor to do the Sailor Moon voice), Hajime (might as well just have Detective Conan as the protagonist), Keebo (mecha pilot playing an actual robot now), and Ryoma (Solid Snake's voice coming out of that character is hilarious) are the ones I know about, but I'm sure there's others, I'm not up on my anime.
So if I was in Button’s shoes, and didn’t believe I would make it to the end, I’d probably off the Ultimate Detective. If you break down each individual murder from 1 and 3, then sure, there’s no reason the detective would’ve been targeted, but, if you want to get away with it, why would you leave alive the person most likely to figure it out?. Anyways, that’s my guess for Chapter 1.