15strangers | (no subject)

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*round 6

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W̡͜E̶EK ̵̕2̕͠

[The blight would not stop.

The world's leading experts have been trying to find a cure, to no avail. Th blight keeps changing, keeps foiling all attempts at being fully understood. It's almost sentient, or at least more sentient than any disease that's been encountered before. People fear the disease jumping from what's left of the grapes into other plants, into animals, or even humans.

You can only watch as entire economies and ecosystems collapse. You can only bury your head in your hands as your own business comes to its end. The destruction of the clusters of grapes has not simply destroyed the wine industry, either-other businesses are being destroyed by the plague. Food, transport, retail, nothing is untouched.

You look on your own vineyard, its yield almost entirely blackened and dead.

This can't keep going on.

-

A week has passed since everyone's arrival. No one has died, yet. But surely no one is holding their breath to see if they would survive this unscathed. They are veterans of the game, and they must know that whoever it is that is in charge demands their pound of flesh. The question is when it will happen.

It is the second week, after all-and when the second week of the game comes, death is not far behind. Not even when you wake up, feeling something different in your mind as you remember the truths you originally woke up with, deep in your mind. You feel...lighter, somehow, when you realize there is a change.

Even so, there are 15 strangers left in this place.]

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I guess. We just haven't gotten to talk much, aside from the meetings. I wanted to know about where you came from... before these games.

[is that okay? he knows he shouldn't really trust these guys, but... harmless chatter is fine, right?]

[ It takes a moment for him to think that over, wondering if he should tell things to people his mind keeps telling him not to trust. Eventually it comes down to that it's generally harmless for the most part. ]

Where I come from isn't horribly interesting. Mostly. Barring one thing but I really doubt you'd believe me if I told you what it was that stood out this past year for me and my classmates.

[ Just maybe Oso would see how briefly wistful he looks, though he covers it up quick with a smile. ]

[hm]

Iiiii dunno that I’d doubt you. I’ve seen some pretty crazy things lately.

[like King, for example. and before him, he’d met people who use magic, like Ambrosine and Akko. he met non-humans like Felicity, and Millium. he’s heard from others who were in the middle of protecting their world, or who were on quests, or owned pokemon.

he’s seen... a lot...]

Well, then. If that's the case, then i'll share.

[ A soft laugh escapes him and back is the almost flippant, casual nature of his as if it had never left to start with. ]

For the past year, my class's teacher was a yellow tentacled being who could move at mach twenty speeds and taught us the skills we could use to assassinate him. [ Said with a completely straight face here. ] I normally don't think much of teachers but throughout the year he proved to be a good influence... on all of us. Me included.

[ Karma looked down for a moment, seeming to go quiet for a couple short moments. ]

There's of course much more to it but... i'm glad he was there for us.

[he's listening, mostly surprised, but also not that surprised at all. maybe he's just gotten used to accepting what people say at face-value nowadays. sure, the kid could be lying, but what would he have to gain by doing that?

Osomatsu doesn't think about that too hard]

So his main goal was just to teach you how to kill him?

[ It's actually nice when people do accept things as they are, and this is no different. ]

Well, he was also our teacher for the school year, too. Helped us get our grades up quite a bit along with our respective self-esteem you could say.

[ He laughs a little as he looks back up to Osomatsu shortly afterwards. Nothing about this is made up and hopefully it comes off as such. ]

Though as far as his main goal? Yeah. We had the year to try and assassinate him or he'd blow up earth like with what he'd supposedly done to a chunk of the moon, but we found out that wasn't really the case at all.

[w h a t]

...So, did you assassinate him in the end?

[ A couple seconds passed and it's worth noting that Karma's entire expression seemed to tense up minutely before just nodding and looking off somewhere else. Something vaguely distant visible there in his eyes. ]

Our class did, technically. We all... kind of 'held' him down, and one of us... someone i'm close to? He was the one to drive the knife into our teacher's chest. We had to do it... it didn't feel right letting the government do it instead of us.

[ It's still a recent-ish memory for him. Only a couple months old now. ]

[oh. hm. that sounds... intense. enough that Osomatsu won't ask him to elaborate. he looks away for a moment, too, before giving Karma a sad smile]

You're pretty strong, huh?

[ While it will go unsaid, Karma is grateful Osomatsu didn't press anything past that. Instead just giving him a slightly confused look for a second as he hadn't expected that question. ]

Hm? What makes you say that?

[ It's not that he doesn't like a good compliment or anything, but curiosity won out here. ]

I just don't know many kids would would go through with that kinda thing. Assassinating their own teacher. It seems like it'd take a lot of guts.

[ Initially he opened his mouth to say something but words never came out at first, and it's clear then that Karma was trying to keep emotions from showing on his face and only partially succeeding. ]

...At first... when the year started? It was fun. Everyone in the class had no problems trying to do it. I actively tried to do it when I first arrived, and we did it for well over half a year. [ He sighed, something tense wrought in his shoulders. ] The reward for doing it was tempting. Everyone wanted to do it... but somewhere along the line things changed.

[ His fingers come up and run through his hair, trying his best to keep his expression level. ~~Can you see the cracks forming, Oso?~~ ]

It wasn't like we didn't try to. None of us hesitated at first... then we tried to see if we could save him. Almost were able to... but then government intervention forced our hands. We had to kill him, and it wasn't... it was definitely hard on all of us.

[Osomatsu is not expecting such honesty. he didn't mean to make Karma upset, or to cause him to crack like that. the subtle tenseness, the way the other runs his hand through his hair, it's all telling. and, for a moment, Osomatsu feels like he's touching on something dangerous.

he sucks in a breath. he doesn't understand, he can't understand what the other is going through, because he's never been put in that situation. but he can tell that Karma is affected]

...

[he still feels the same, still thinks Karma is strong. heck, even if he had only participated in the murder game, Osomatsu would have called him strong. everyone here is strong, in their own ways]

I'm sorry. Really. Whatever you've gone through, you didn't deserve it.

[ The odd part about it all was that if this was still him back at home? He never would have been so open with discussing something so inherently personal without having added on a few sharp jabs and maybe even a flippant backhanded comment.

Maybe would have even lied about things in some form, but being through a murdergame and then remembering his teacher's death kind of stuck with him. There was only so much lying even he could do when it came to things like this, and more to the point?

Karma had been keeping all this information to himself and he just didn't see a point in lying about it. The truth just kind of came out on it's own. Koro-sensei had a very apt affect on everyone, and he'd be damned if he ever forgot what he'd done for him, as well as the others in Class E. ]

Nah. I probably did deserve it to some extent...

[ His eyes were burning and it took a couple seconds to realize he might be crying and just hadn't picked up on it. Too hyper focused from keeping things showing, and it backfired.

Was it because of what Osomatsu had said? Through apologizing to him for all of that? Either way, he turns his head away as he brings up a hand to stubbornly try to wipe those tears away. ]

...Heh. Didn't think i'd get so attached to a teacher. Probably why I can't really do him the dishonor by lying about what happened.

[tears... tears! Karma is crying, and Osomatsu is not expecting that at all. from what little he's seen of Karma, the kid always seemed... oh, like he was untouchable? something like that. and here he is, pouring his heart out to Osomatsu now, of all people.

he's baffled, but not at all scared of the connection. if anything, it makes Osomatsu feel like he can trust Karma more than some of the other people here. which is great, because there's always that nagging feeling in the back of his mind that he shouldn't trust anyone. that he can only rely on himself.

but that kind of thinking is so lonely. he hates it.

he doesn't know what to say at first, if he should say anything at all. he feels like he should tell his own secrets, in exchange. maybe he will open up to him, too, if Karma asks]

It's better not to lie, anyway, I think. At least about stuff like that. Everything that you've had to handle on your own... it's admirable! That's why I think you're really strong.

[ It wasn't like Karma had ever forgotten about that nagging feeling like he shouldn't trust anyone, as it was always lingering. To stand on his own and say hell to the others, but maybe it's just the old memories of things he's experienced that's pushed him to this point. To look past that feeling the best he's able to, so he never goes back to the way he'd been before joining Class 3-E.

He's rationalized as well that this information wasn't entirely something he figured could be used against him so he'd also done it for that reason as well. All of this subconscious need to distrust others bugged him because he knew what he went through in the Mall with Akira and Kurama, so he could never truly abandon them.

Part of him was also just frustrated at him because he really wasn't at all the type of guy who just cried in front of strangers. The old him, he knew would have just stormed off instead of showing that side of him. This just meant they'd somehow managed to make a connection amidst all the weirdness going on in this awful place, though he never expected it would happen over a simple conversation like this. ]

...Hm. You have a point.

[ Wait. That was praise and also some kind of compliment wasn't it?

It's enough to make him smile a bit and for just a second he has the actual audacity to look almost slightly flustered by it. Not much, but a little. Something he'll never admit to, even covering it up with a small laugh as he tried to put up his usual front again. ]

I wasn't really alone. Not if you count my class who'd went through it with me, but... Thanks. Kinda feels nice having someone tell me that.

[ By the time he finally looks back up to Osomatsu, there's something almost curious on his face now. ]

So. I've said my bit on what things were like for me back home. Feel like sharing how it was for you?

[when Karma smiles, Osomatsu smiles back, a weight lifting off his shoulders. Karma is probably stronger than him, but Osomatsu already feels a need to protect him. he couldn’t protect the other kids. Millium, Sakura, Arthur, Emma, Akko. he couldn’t protect Franciscus. but maybe...

the question is asked before he can finish his thought. ah, it’s as though Karma is reading his mind! his smile gets a little wider, and he nods]

I suppose it’s only fair! Since we’re tellin’ secrets.

[Osomatsu wonders just how much Franciscus shared with the others in the mansion. but he guesses that none of these new strangers know fully about what went on in Cartesio. he hasn’t felt the need to share with everyone. but maybe now he can]

Let’s see... for starters, I’m not meant to exist.

[and he says this with that grin on his face]

[ Honestly it was nice to just have the other so readily agree after all the things he'd said before now, and he really did enjoy hearing what life was like for other people who came from different worlds. Whether it was mundane or not didn't matter as each one was different.

Yet it still didn't stop the complete look of confusion that showed on his face when Osomatsu said something like that with a smile. ]

Normally, I don't think people should be so happy to admit something like that.

[ After a small pause, though, he does add on something else. ]

Who told you that anyway?

[Osomatsu tilts his head, the smile becoming a bit softer. he looks up for a moment, thinking about how to explain, then his gaze falls back on Karma again]

That's not what I mean. I'm really... not meant to exist. I'm a clone, yanno? My soul purpose was to be filled with so much corruption that I'd be able to wipe out the world.

[ That was the complete opposite of what he'd been expecting. So it takes a moment for him to process that, and yet it also just makes him even more curious. ]

Clearly that didn't work out since you're still here. Didn't think human cloning actually existed.

[ At least in his world it didn't. Not making any comments about Oso's world but assuming it was okay. ]

Yeeeeah... I didn't think it existed either. But, here I am. An abomination. I couldn't even carry out Sarge's orders properly.

[not that he wanted to]

I don't mind it too much, anymore... except when I go to think of a memory and realize it isn't mine. That shit screws you up.

[ There's just oh so many questions here, but he's mostly focusing on the main two things that seem the most important over everything else. ]

Going to assume 'Sarge' was the name of the one who ran the last game you were in?

[ Since he didn't know about Oso having been in TWO of these things already, it was a normal assumption to make. He's also not going to be a jackass and ask him something like 'how do you know you're a clone?' or something stupid along those lines. ]

I can imagine it would. You've got a lot of other memories of your own to make up for it, so that probably helps.

[he shakes his head in regards to the first question. as if the clone secret wasn't bad enough, here comes the next one!]

The Sergeant ran the, uh... "game" in Cartesio. He's the one who created me.

[by now, Osomatsu's smile has faded completely. he looks quite solemn]

It was not unlike these other ones, except there were more than fifteen strangers. I think, in Cartesio, it was closer to thirty? Went on for a long time! But it was the same principle; people from different worlds were gathered together and told to murder each other in exchange for prizes, or motives. Then there were trials, and different puzzles you had to solve that would help you figure out the mystery. In the end, we found out that we weren't the original people, just clones he'd made filled with the memories of the originals, so we'd think we were them.

...The only memories that I know are mine, are from Cartesio, and the Mansion.

[ WHAT. ]

[ That definitely blindsides him and honestly he doesn't have anything he could say to that initially, shock clear on his face. All of that was a lot to take in, but after a few short moments he did exhale a soft sigh and smiled slightly. ]

Clone or not, it doesn't matter to me. You're still Osomatsu.

[ He chuckled a bit, musing on something briefly. ]

Far as I'm concerned, you're the real one as I got to know you first. I don't see anything about you that sets you apart from any of us here.

[hmmmm doubt. but at the same time, it feels good to hear that. so when Osomatsu raises his head, he's smiling gently]

I don't... know how much Arthur or Ambrosine know about Sarge and the clones, but you're the first person here I've told about Cartesio. It's kind of a sore subject with me. But it's the truth.

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CW: Assassination Classroom Spoilers

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