Akira lay on the hospital bed, his head wrapped in bandages as he drifted in and out of consciousness. Keisuke and Akua stood by his side, their hearts heavy with worry and concern (mainly Keisuke). They had come to the nurse's office hoping for good news, and they were relieved to hear that Akira would be alright.
"He'll be fine," the nurse said with a reassuring smile. "Just give him a few days of rest and he'll be back to his usual self. You don't have to worry anymore."
Keisuke breathed a sigh of relief at the news, grateful that Akira had survived his injuries. He knew that he couldn't leave someone to die, no matter how much they might have wronged him in the past. Akua nodded in agreement, her kind and gentle nature leading her to offer comfort and support to those in need.
"I'm delighted to hear that," Akua said, her voice soft and gentle. "Don't you agree?" Keisuke nodded in agreement, his heart filled with gratitude towards the nurse for saving Akira life. Despite the difficult circumstances, he knew that he could always count on Akua to be by his side, offering her wisdom and support whenever he needed it, but whenever he would, he would always end up talking about something unrelated to the topic.
"I just wanted to thank you again. I didn't know what to do and I'm really grateful that you helped him."
'Of course." Said the nurse.
As Keisuke heard the kind and compassionate words of the doctor (I'm counting her as a doctor not a nurse), he couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude wash over him. He had been so worried about Akira, and now it seemed that his friend would be okay. The doctor's warm smile reminded Keisuke of his mother, and he couldn't help but feel a tear welling up in his eye.
"Thank you, doctor," Keisuke said yet again, bowing deeply to show his appreciation.
"There's no need to thank me, dear. It's my duty as a doctor to save lives. I couldn't possibly call myself a doctor if I didn't do everything in my power to help those in need." The doctor's smile was worm and nice, a smile Keisuke haven't seen in years. The smile reminded him of his old mother, to the point he almost cried.
"Now, hurry along and get to class. You don't want to make your teacher angry, do you?" The doctor chuckled softly, and Keisuke nodded before turning to leave the nurse's office with Akua by his side.
As they walked down the hallway, Keisuke couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he felt as though he was being watched. He turned around to see if anyone was there, but the hallway was empty. Shaking his head, he pushed the strange feeling to the back of his mind and continued on his way.
In Akira's dream, he found himself being chased by an unseen assailant. He could hear the laughter of a thousand voices echoing around him, but he couldn't see anyone. It was as if the darkness itself was chasing him, and he knew that he was outmatched.
/huff, huff, huff/
"What the hell is this?!" Akira shouted, feeling as though he was running through water. "It feels like I'm running in slow motion!"
Despite his struggles, the darkness crept closer and closer, until it finally snapped at him, breaking his bones in the process. But then, something miraculous happened - his bones healed almost instantly.
The darkness lifted Akira up into the air, and he could feel its power swirling around him. He knew that this was it - he was going to die. But he refused to go down without a fight. He kicked and thrashed, screaming at the top of his lungs, "I'm going to kill you!" over and over again.
And then, suddenly, the darkness had enough. It released Akira, and he tumbled to the ground, panting heavily. He looked around, but there was no sign of his assailant. He was alone in the darkness, unsure of what had just happened.
Just then, a anilistical being appeared from the shadow. It had the body of a giant reptile, with scales that glinted in the dark as a pair of stairs in the vast space. Its eyes were glowing orbs of pure malice, and its mouth was filled with razor-sharp teeth.
The creature let out a deafening roar that sent shiver down his spine, but this did not stop him.
Though he was a bit taken aback about, he still continued to fight on for his dear life.
With a snarl of annoyance, the reptilian monster snatched Akira off the ground, playfully tossing him into the air like a toy before catching him in its jaws. Akira woke up with a start, screaming and gasping for air as the terrifying scene played out in his mind.
As she approached Akira, the school nurse, aka doctor, extended her hand in concern, hoping to check on his well-being. However, Akira recoiled at the gesture, swatting her hand away as if it were the most revolting thing he'd ever laid eyes on.
"Who the fuck are you?" Akira growled, his voice rough and feral like a wild dog.
"I'm the school nurse for grade 1 students," she replied calmly. "My name is Hagumi."
"Nurse?" Akira asked, his brain struggling to process the information.
"That's correct. You're currently in the freshman nurse's office."
"Huh?" Akira muttered, his body reacting before his brain could fully comprehend the situation. Despite understanding the words being spoken to him, his mind struggled to process them in a timely manner.
"I'm the school nurse for grade 1 students," Hagumi explained in a soft, gentle tone, "so I'm responsible for taking care of the health and well-being of the students in that grade level. Is that clear?"
Akira's anger was palpable as he glared at her. "What the hell do you think I am, an idiot? I asked why the fuck I'm here-" As the events of the day came rushing back to him, his frustration only grew. "Who the hell brought me here?"
Hagumi hesitated before answering, unsure if she should reveal the information. But ultimately, she decided to tell him the truth. "You're asking about the people who brought you here, correct? Their name are Bo and Keisuke. Why do you ask?"
"I need to thank them..." Akira said, his voice still laced with anger.
Hagumi was taken aback by his response. She was used to dealing with people with all kinds of personalities, and though Akira's voice was consistently angry, she chalked it up to his unique demeanor. "Unfortunately, they just left," she said.
Without another word, Akira stormed out of the nurse's office, leaving Hagumi behind with a /sigh/. "This is going to be a tough year, that's for sure," she muttered to herself.
As Akira stumbled through the school, searching for Keisuke, he came across a calm, purple-haired girl. Before he could even approach her, she spoke up. "I apologize for being presumptuous, but are you perhaps seeking someone in particular"
He ignored her and continue on with looking for Keisuke and Akua, not knowing he just went by one of his targets, but when he heard her utter the name Keisuke, he came to a completely halt and rushes back to her.
"You know where he is?! Tell me!" Yelled AKira.
"I'll tell you on one condition."
"And what would that be?"
"You will-" Her voice had changed, taking on a deeper, more sinister tone, and her eyes had seemed to bore into his very soul as she made her demand. "-Join me..."
And yet, he had agreed without hesitation, consumed by his hatred for Keisuke and Akua.
"He's on the rooftop eating lunch by himself."
As Akira sprinted through the school halls, his heart pounded in his chest. He had to find Keisuke, no matter what it took. He didn't have time to stop and consider why a mysterious girl would know where Keisuke was or why she would have the information in the first place. All he cared about was getting to the rooftop and finding his friend.
As Akira sprinted past Class 1-A, Ryoto caught a glimpse of his fuming face and decided to follow him with his group of followers in tow. Ryoto couldn't resist the thrill of the chase, and he was curious to see where Akira's determination would lead him. As he followed Akira towards Keisuke, Ryoto couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and anticipation building inside him. He knew that whatever was about to unfold would be a memorable experience, and he couldn't wait to see how it would all play out.
"This seems like fun," said Ryoto.
Catching up to Akira in a matter of seconds, Ryoto asked him what he was doing. Without hesitation, Akira spat out, "I'm going to kill Keisuke!" His face was redder than the sun as he spoke.
Ryoto couldn't help but smile at the prospect of finally having something to break up the monotony of his day. Without hesitation, he offered to help Akira carry out his plan, even offering to have his father cover up the "accident" if things got out of hand. Akira's face lit up at the prospect of getting revenge on Keisuke.
『10 seconds later』
The group of young teens made their way to the rooftop stairs, where they found an iron door blocking their path. As they pushed it open, they saw Keisuke, a four-eyed kid, sitting alone and eating his lunch. When he saw the group approaching, he was clearly surprised, but he didn't have much time to react before Ryoto ordered his goons to hold the door and keep watch while Akira and another goon formed a circle around Keisuke, mercilessly beating him.
Eventually, Ryoto's minions were holding Keisuke by his feet, dangling him in the air as his naked body was battered by the cold breeze. Akira took a baseball stance and threw a rock at Keisuke's testicles, shouting, "This will teach you to laugh at me!!!" The rock landed square on one of Keisuke's nuts.
"Please let me go, I don't know what I did," Keisuke cried, tears streaming down his face. But Akira was not swayed.
"You don't know what you did! You laughed at me while I was down, while I showed my wrong side towards his highness Ryoto!!!" He yelled.
Akira's anger was palpable as he and his friends pelted Keisuke with rocks, refusing to listen to his pleas of innocence. Ryoto, in a moment of twisted amusement, grabbed Keisuke by the leg and lifted him over the edge of the roof, causing the terrified young man to beg for mercy and promise to never repeat his perceived transgression. Ryoto and the others only laughed, enjoying the power they held over Keisuke as they took turns dropping him and catching him again.
But as Ryoto cackled with glee, he lost his balance and began to plummet from the roof. Akira raced to help, grabbing onto the first arm he could reach and hauling the person back to safety. To his horror, he realized it was not Ryoto he had saved, but Keisuke. Glancing down, Akira saw Ryoto's lifeless body below, covered in blood. In that moment, Akira made the difficult decision to call the authorities and try to right the wrongs that had been committed.
『2 hours later』
Keisuke found himself on trial, facing charges of battery, attempted murder, assault, and more. He pleaded with his lawyers and the judge, but they seemed unwilling to listen. Without a fair trial, Keisuke was sentenced for a crime he did not intentionally commit.
As the verdict was pronounced, Keisuke's mind went blank with shock. He couldn't even hear the commotion around him as he was dragged out of the courtroom by unfamiliar police officers, destined for his new life on the prison island. The building was swarmed with reporters shouting questions, but Keisuke was in a daze, unable to process anything.
As they descended the stairs, Keisuke saw his parents waiting for him at the bottom. Despite the turmoil of the past weeks, he had not seen them once and was relieved to finally be able to speak to them. But before he could even utter a word, his father slapped him across the face and screamed, "You are not our son!" The outburst was so loud that everyone in the vicinity could hear.
Keisuke's world crumbled as he realized his own parents had disowned him. He wished for nothing more than to disappear in that moment.
The guards dragged him away from the scene and into a helicopter that had somehow been permitted to land in the middle of the busy street, ignoring all laws of traffic.
As Keisuke was ushered into the helicopter surrounded by armed men, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was headed towards his own death. And as the helicopter lifted off towards Shinseina Gisei, Keisuke world would forever be flipped upside down.
He had been sentenced to two years on the infamous Shinseina Gisei prison island, a place known for its brutal and inhumane conditions. As he stepped off the helicopter and onto the iron platform, Keisuke was greeted by the sounds of shouting and chaos. A giant man, standing at an imposing seven feet tall, began to bellow threats at the guards. "You think you low life guards can tame me! HA! Don't make me laugh, there is at least 100 of us here, but there's only 20 of you guys, we can take you guys like your a bu-" His words were cut short as his body crumpled to the ground, a bullet hole in the center of his forehead.
Panic and confusion set in as the prisoners scattered in all directions, trying to escape the unseen assailant. Shots rang out, and one by one, the prisoners fell to the ground. When the dust settled, only thirty prisoners remained, almost the same number as the guards. The survivors were left in a state of shock as they surveyed the scene, noticing that many of the dead bodies had gun wounds in their foreheads, yet no gunshots had been heard. It was as if the gun had been fitted with a silencer, but even that should have made some noise.
One of the guards standing next to Keisuke muttered to himself, "There's a lot more prisoners alive than last year." Keisuke's heart dropped as he realized the terrifying truth - this was a yearly occurrence on Shinseina Gisei. How would he survive two years in this living nightmare?
As Keisuke was grabbed by the guard, he shouted at the other prisoners to form a single file line behind Keisuke. Any disobedience would be met with a bullet, so naturally, everyone complied.
A guard carrying the tub of futuristic handcuffs approached Keisuke, followed by another guard holding a set of futuristic neck restraints of the same design. The restraints were sleek and modern, with a rectangular button in the center of the neck chain that opened and closed with a fingerprint module at its center.
The first guard approached Keisuke, pulling out a knife and making a small slice on his index finger. He then placed the bloodied finger on the rectangular button before fastening the restraints around Keisuke's wrists. He repeated the process with the neck restraints, which were labeled with the number 2Yc1C. He went on to do the same with the other prisoners.
"These restraints are made of lightweight materials and are designed to be comfortable and easy to wear," the guard explained. "However, they are also extremely effective at preventing escape. The handcuffs and neck cuffs use powerful magnets to lock in place, creating a secure and unbreakable bond between you both. You better get used to them, because they're your new kids."
"I'll explain this once and only once," he continued, pulling out diamond shape coin. "This here act as currency in this place. Save enough and you can have a pretty modest lifestyle, to a certain extent that is."
After explaining the rules, the prisoners were blindfolded and put on a boat. A few minutes later, the blindfolds were removed to reveal that they were standing in front of a prison with distorted cubes stacked upon each other.
'What is this place?' Keisuke thought to himself.