I want to run back to my room and cry, to just hide there until everyone comes back again, but i don't. The threat of tears stings my eyes, but i don't cry. I can't. Pull yourself together Kamiko, there must be someone else here.
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I walk around aimlessly until the sun sets and the world is engulfed by darkness. By then, i don't even know where i am, and i can barely remember the path i took to get here. Stop this. You have more to worry about than just being alone. Why is this happening? Let's figure that out first. We can worry about everything and anything else later. What is this place? And why is everyone gone? The fireworks and power cut were really weird, but they couldn't have caused this... could they?
Suddenly, all of the building screens turn on. My eyes take a second to adjust to the bright white lights surrounding me. There's writing on the screen, that takes me another second to read, but even then, i don't understand it.
Welcome players. The game is about to begin. This way.
Game? What does that mean? Looking in the direction that the screen rows are pointing in, i see a single building, near the forest, with lights on. Why would only one building... a game. Maybe people are there! Hope surges as i run towards the building. There have to people here, there must be! Slowing down as i near the steps, i see... people! I walk up the steps and through the entryway, trying to mentally note all the details i notice. Toei Sendagaya Apartment. There's quite a few people here. Counting in my head, 2,4, 6, 8, 10. A total of eleven people, including me. Everyone's standing in pair or alone with a phone in their hand... hm. My attention goes to the sign on the table.
One per person.
On the table, there's a number of phones. I hesitantly pick up a simple black phone with no case. Facial recognition in process. Please wait a moment. Facial recognition? Before i can think about anything else the loading icon finishes spinning and brings me to a home page. A second later, another blank screen with nothing but a timer pops up.
Please wait until the game commences. Two minutes until registration closes. Beside me, i can hear a guy in a cap asking a pretty girl with short hair and exercise clothes where everyone in Tokyo went. He gets interrupted by a large guy in a tank top and some weird blue bracelet that walks in and grabs a phone, like he's done this before. Huh. Now that i think about it, a lot of people here look like they've done this before, or at least, been here longer than i have. How did they get here? I'll figure that out later but right now, what is this? What kinda game are we about to play? I should leave, I don't feel good about this. I'm about to walk out when Cap guy stops me,
"Excuse me, do you know why everyone disappeared?" I can feel everyone staring at me, everyone...except for this guy in a white hoodie. But that doesn't matter, i don't even know why I even noticed that he wasn't looking. He's still got his hoodie hiding his face and i think he's listening to music? He's charging his music player too, which is... weird. Why charge your music player in a building with all these other people while waiting to play a game? And how does he have electricity? Everyone else's stares make me extremely uncomfortable so i edge back until I'm mostly hidden behind a column. But, the deep breath i take before replying does nothing to ease the tightness in my chest.
"No, i have no idea what happened. I was reading and then when i stopped everyone was gone." I whisper this, but the room is silent enough that everyone would've heard me anyways. From the corner of my eye, i see a guy in a business suit scoff and say to his friend,
"Newbies. They won't make it one day here." What does he mean? The guy in the cap noticed what he said too, and I'm sure the fear in his eyes was reflected in my own. I clear my throat,
"Um, I'm Kamiko."
"Tatta."
"Let's hope we make it out of this alive, why don't we?" I mean it as a joke but it doesn't come out like one. Tatta opens his mouth to reply but stops when we hear another 2 people walking up the steps.
"There's so many people." Wait... i think i recognise that voice. A...Arisu? Another voice speaks,
"There must be a doctor here." Oh god. I wasn't sure at first but I'm certain now. Karube has told me so many stories of things that've happened to him that I'd recognise his voice anywhere. I don't even care how loud my cry of relief is when my brother's two best friends enter the building.
"ARISU! KARUBE!" I hug them both and they nearly fall over from my unexpected embrace. It takes them a second to recognise who just jumped to hug them, but they hold me tighter when they realise. Arisu is the first to speak,
"Kamiko? What are you doing here? How... how did you get here?" The worry in his voice makes me step back from the two of them. He continues to grab my shoulders though, while Karube kisses my head quickly, a gesture he does every time he sees me. The tightness in my chest lessens ever so slightly.
"I don't know how you got here Kamiko, but I'm glad we found you." He says, grabbing 2 phones, giving one to Arisu and holding one himself. "It would've been a lot worse on you if we hadn't." What does he mean by that..?
Chota has been friends with Karube and Arisu since they were in middle school, and I've basically grown up with them in my life. Karube treats me like his equal, telling me things like how he's planning to propose but he hasn't told anyone else yet, and Arisu always helps me with schoolwork and does online puzzles with me. I love them as much as I love Chota, and maybe there have been times where it felt like more... but not anymore. I smile a bit at Karube, and then answer Arisu's question.
"There was a... a blackout and fireworks- and, um... and it uh- it just happened. I can't really remember it well. Everyone in Tokyo disappeared. I thought I was all alone. I was so scared." Arisu gives me another tight hug after i speak, but it doesn't make me feel any better. "Where's-" I'm interrupted by Tatta, talking to Arisu and Karube this time,
"Excuse me, what exactly is this? I just ended up here. I have no idea what's going on." I don't blame him for asking, but it'd be nice to know where Chota is, and if he's safe. Still, it can wait. Karube eyes Tatta warily. Arisu seems to hesitate for a second before he says,
"It's a gam-"
Karube interrupts Arisu as soon as he speaks,
"Stop it." Karube suddenly lowers his voice so only Arisu can hear it. Something about... beginners will only slow them down? Horrible... to do what Shibuki did? Who's Shibuki? Karube glances at me, "Kamiko's the only exception. We aren't leaving her behind." Arisu nods immediately, seeming to agree with whatever Karube said. What aren't they telling me?
Registration closed. There are a total of 14 participants. The game will now commence. Difficulty: 5 of spades.
What does that mean? The pretty girl from before starts stretching... why? Arisu notices too, and it seems like he keeps his eye on her a second too long before he glances back at his phone.
"Five of spades?" He says.
"It's a physical game. Strength is everything here." A guy with a black cap and moustache sticks his hand out to Karube. "I'm Nitobe, nice to meet you." He has the kind of smile you only see on magicians, or performers. The slightly unnatural one that tries a little too hard to be friendly. Karube stares at him blankly for a second, and i can see Nitobe deciding whether to put his hand down or not.
"Every mark has a different meaning?" Arisu asks. Nitobe smiles even wider, sticking his hand out for Arisu. He shakes it.
"Exactly! The mark on a card signifies the game's genre. Club refers to a team battle, and diamonds is a battle of wits." Interesting...
"What about hearts?" I say, and Nitobe's smile drops the tiniest bit when he looks at me. It comes back almost as fast, but it looks even more forced now. He turns away from me and speaks to Arisu. Rude.
"Hearts... it's the worst one of all. It's a game of betrayal where you play with people's hearts." Nitobe must be crazy, cause he smiles wider as he says it. Has he been through a hearts game? If he's smiling it can't be that bad right?
"And the number?" Karube questions. He's somehow made his way from Arisu's side to mine, his arm snaking protectively around my shoulder, as though he saw how Nitobe had treated me. Nitobe barely even looks at me as his gaze slides from Arisu on my right to Karube on my left.
"Why, the difficulty level of course. The larger the number is, the harder it is to clear." A ping from our phones interrupts us all.
Game; a game of tag.
Rule, run away from the tagger.
Clear condition, discover the safe zone hidden in one of the building rooms within the time limit. You clear the game when this objective is fulfilled.
Time limit, 20 minutes. After 20 minutes has passed, the time bomb hidden in the building will explode.
The tightness in my chest that had been slowly unraveling since Arisu and Karube arrived came back. Everyone started to talk, their voices rising as everyone tries to be heard over the others.
"Tag?! Isn't that a children's game?"
"What? I don't get thi-"'
"Why are we playing tag?!"
5 minutes until the game begins
"Let's go." Karube says to me and Arisu. He heads up the stairs and we follow behind him. I quickly glance back to see poor Tatta still standing there, scared and confused. I want to invite him to join us but Karube didn't want that for some reason, and i trust him. Hoodie guy unplugs his device and heads for the elevator, his face still hidden under the hood. I didn't even notice the elevator. We should've done that too, just taken the elevator. It beats walking up stairs. I want to tell Karube to wait for the lift instead, but I don't. I still have so many questions. How did we end up here? Who planted the bomb? Why don't we just leave? I'm sure i can ask them all later, so i stay silent and walk in between Karube and Arisu.
Nitobe trails behind us, silent but there. After a few flights of stairs, Karube sighs,
"Stop following us."
Nitobe laughs,
"I'm just gauging you guys out. Maybe you two are suitable to be my allies." I try not to let his words affect me. You two are suitable to be my allies. He clearly isn't talking about me. Karube catches on to my discomfort,
"What a joke."
Arisu, I'm sure, realised as well, but he didn't know what to say, so he changed the subject.
"Are you a doctor?"
"No i'm a real estate agent."
"Wait," i say, "why do you need a doctor? Is Chota ok?? Also, what is this place? How did we end up in an empty Tokyo? And why can't we just leave the game?" The questions spill out of me. Arisu suddenly pauses.
"Kamiko," he turns to me halfway up the stairs, the sympathy clear on his face, "is this your first game?" Confused, i nod slowly. "Oh I'm so sorry Kamiko." He embraces me again, "I'm so so sorry. This is only Karube's and my second game but i wish this didn't happen to you too." He explains everything he knows. About how they ended up here and the game they played. The girl who died in front of their eyes and Shibuki. About-
"That's a lovely story and all," Nitobe says. I'd completely forgotten that he was there, and it made me uncomfortable knowing that he knows all this stuff about us now. Still, we probably won't see him ever again. Hopefully. "But we should probably get moving." He walked past us, up to level 5. Our phones chimed.
The game will now commence. The time limit is 20 minutes. Game start. The tagger is on the move.
A trumpet sound blared through the building. Everything was silent. We stood there, and waited. Arisu kept looking over the edge of the balcony like he'd be able to see the tagger. He leaned over so much that it seemed like he was about to fall over the edge. The silence stayed for a full minute. It was so quiet. Everyone waiting for something, someone.
When nothing happened, he broke the silence among us.
"Anyways. We should look for an unlocked door." He grabbed the room door closes to him, and tried to open it. It didn't open, and he looked surprisingly disappointed, like he'd actually expected the first door he opened to be the correct one. Out of all of us, Arisu has the worst luck. Always the first for presentations he wasn't ready for, his umbrella breaks the day it's storming, and i can't remember a single time a coin flip or scissors-papers-rock has gone his way. It make me smile that he really expected the first door he opened to be the safe zone. Karube releases a breath,
"We're never gonna make it if we dawdle like this!"
3 minutes have passed.
*gunshots*
...what was that? We all stared at each other, it sounded like it came from upstairs. Slowly, Karube walked up the stairs, the rest of us following behind. I have a very bad feeling about this. I was about to walk up the stairs behind them when a body tumbled down in front of the step Karube was about to walk onto. My stomach sinks. We're really gonna die here.
I don't know if i can live at the cost of other people. The dread in my stomach grows bigger and heavier as Karube looked around to the other flight of stairs where the body fell from.
Run.
I don't even know why i thought that but as soon as i did i ran. Suddenly, they started to scream and more gunshots followed. I hated that i wasn't there with them, but it was the right choice to run away from who ever was shooting us. It was the right choice. It was... I would've slowed us down and gotten us all killed probably. I ran across level five to the stairs on the other side, and ran up. Please, Arisu and Karube have to have survived. Please don't let them die. I prayed to whatever part of the universe was listening. I should've stayed with them though... no. That wouldn't have helped anything. But...
I ran up to level 7 and look down from the balcony. I could hear someone shouting and then gunshots again... someone else died? Suddenly, another guy, one in a blue office shirt ran outside of the building and fell to the ground. A red laser? Out of the sky? That's what Arisu had said would happen to players who ran out of visa days but i couldn't imagine it...not until now. But a huge part of me was glad that i wasn't the one dead, and that made me feel incredibly guilty.
"Hah... 3 players have died. That's eleven players left." I turned to whoever said that, and on the very corner of the east wing of level 7 was hoodie guy. I scoff,
"Do you realise how insensitive you sound right now? That's three people dead. Never coming back ever again. And sure maybe you didn't know them but they had lives of their own." I don't know where the sudden burst of frustration came from, maybe from my worry for my brother and his friends, or the shock that 3 people have actually died here, or the tiny part of me that doesn't care who dies as long as I live. Hoodie guy just looks at me and smirks,
"People are dying here everyday, and all that really matters to anyone here is making it through this game. They don't care who has to be sacrificed in the process. They just don't talk about it the way i do. They pretend they actually care about the stranger that died instead of them. Does that make them better than me?" He continues to watch everyone playing. I stand and watch as a person wearing a horse mask, the tagger i guess, shoots another two girls. Does doing nothing really make me as bad as him? "Make that 9 players left." He says, mildly amused. Why is he amused over these people dying? That's absolutely disgusting, does he have no empathy at all?
I should stop talking to him. I should go look for the safe zone. But i don't. There's some part of me that's sure I'll make it out of this alive if I'm his ally. Whether 'this' is referring to the game or this 'world', I don't know. But, I walk over to lean against the balcony right next to him. This is a really good spot admittedly, you can see almost the whole building from here.
"So, why are you not looking for the safe zone?" I ask.
"Why aren't you?"
"I asked first."
"Does it look like i care?" Hoodie guy doesn't look over at all, still observing the game. I give in and answer him, cause I have a feeling he won't answer my question unless i answer his.
"I saw you and wanted to know what you were doing. That's all." Hoodie guy doesn't even acknowledge my words, like he didn't hear me, and continues watching the lower levels. "Why are you not looking for the safe zone?" I ask again.
"I am."
"No you aren't. You're literally just standing here. You've been here the whole game."
"How would you know?" A moment of silence falls as i think of what to say next. I don't. But I'm pretty sure he has been here the whole time. Hoodie guy continues, "but you'd be right. I have been here the whole game."
"Why?" This is the third time I've asked why he isn't looking for the safe zone, and I'm sure i sound pathetic. I should leave, go find Arisu and Karube and just try to survive. He doesn't matter, not to me. I probably won't see him again after this. But my curiosity gets the better of me though. "Fine then." I say, "a question for a question. Answer mine and I'll answer one of yours." Hoodie seems mildly amused,
"Sure." He laughs, "whatever. The answer to your question is that I'm waiting."
"Waiting...for what?"
"EVERYONE!" I suddenly hear someone shouting. Arisu? He's alive? I scan each level and find him on level two, with Karube running behind him trying to shut him up. I thank the universe over and over again. They're alive and ok. I don't know how I would've coped if they weren't. "The tagger is currently at the second level of the central area! The tagger has bad vision because of it's mask! Let's work together and inform each other of the tagger's location! And search for the safe zone together!" I'm about to shout back when Hoodie laughs,
"It's a good plan, but no one will respond." I ignore him, what does he know?
"Arisu! I'm sorry i left you guys but I'm ok! The tagger is on the stairs of the third level of the central area!" Not five seconds later, i hear another voice,
"The tagger is moving across the fourth level of the central area! Anyone nearby, run!" I can't tell who the voice belongs to, but i don't care, because the smug look on Hoodie's face was wiped off when the person spoke.
"Really?" He says, and he sounds like he's used to things always going his way.
I hate it.
On level 5, i see the girl in the exercise clothes, running and shouting at the older woman there,
"Hurry! Run away!" The tagger appears through the other staircase. The girl in the blue exercise jacket looks genuinely apologetic as she jumps onto the edge of the balcony, using a pole to swing and pull herself up to level 6. Hoodie's smug expression comes back, the annoying, mildly amused tone returned,
"Oh? A climber? She's pretty good" I throw a dirty look at him. He's making comments about these people in the game like they aren't risking their lives. Like they won't literally die in 10 minutes if they don't find the safe zone. "Ok, now it's your turn to answer a question." He says, changing the subject as smoothly as if we're talking about the weather. "Why are you wasting time talking to me when you could be looking for the safe zone?" I take a second to think about it. Another second. There's so many ways to answer that, all of which sound wrong when said out loud.
Because i believe he knows how to survive in this world. Because he seems so confident in himself. Because my intuition says to stick with him. Because he immediately chose the best spot in the whole game to stand and spectate, even if i don't know why. Because he's mysterious and smart and i kinda like that. I'm about to answer him when our phones light up.
8 minutes until the game ends. There are currently 8 survivors.
A second later, gunshots burst through the silence left by our phones speakers. From where I'm standing, i can just see the top of Tatta's cap at level 4. The tagger is one level below me, and shooting at the door Tatta was about to open.
"Tatta!" I shout. I'm not really sure what to do or say next, but then i see Arisu crawling to where he is and pulling him to safety. Thank goodness. I barely know Tatta but I don't want him to die. He's kinda like me, brand new to the 'games', but i have 2 older brother figures to protect me, while he's all alone. Hoodie checks the timer, 6 and a half minutes left. He sighs to himself,
"Right..shall we begin?" He puts his phone in his jacket pocket, removing his hood and starting to walk away.
"Wait!" I shout at him, but he doesn't slow his pace. "What's your name?"
"A question for a question Kamiko, and you didn't answer mine." He heads down the staircase before I can think of another thing to say. How does he know my name...oh. When i was talking to Tatta before the game. That feels like ages ago. I guess Hoodie was paying more attention than I thought he was.
I'm about to follow after him when I see the climber girl drop from level 4 to level 2 . Arisu, Karube, the big guy in the tank top and his friend are all huddled up near the level 4 stairs. What are they planning...
Karube follows the two guys, leaving Arisu alone. I hope they know what they're doing.
Shibuki... Shibuki is no good. Don't trust her.
Woah where did that thought come from? I think its another part of my horribly good intuition. Although i barely know anything about her, i just know. Chota isn't safe with her. I really hope we finish this game fast and i can go see him.
Anyways, I'd never told anyone about my crazily accurate 'sixth sense', cause i was sure no one would believe me. But it happens a lot, i get a bad vibe or feeling about something and it turns out to be true. Focus. I snap back to where i am, and realise that I'm staring at the door that Tatta had nearly gotten shot at before.
"Kamiko? Oh Kamiko it is you!" Arisu ran from the staircase over to me and crushed me in another hug. "I was so worried, I know you said you were ok but i didn't know where you were. I couldn't see you. Why didn't you come looking for me and Karube? On second thoughts, that would've been more dangerous, have you been here the whole time?" He keeps rambling, the words spilling out so fast i can barely comprehend them. I'm focused on the door. So many bullet shots and Tatta was lucky enough that not one of them hit him. Something isn't adding up. I put a hand on Arisu's chest to stop him from rambling,
"Arisu, you were worried about me, i get it, and i was worried for you too and you know i love you but can you shut up for two seconds? I think I'm onto something." He steps back and looks where I'm looking, the door. He says out loud what I'm thinking,
"Why did the tagger shoot from such a far distance?" We both straighten when we realise. A quick glance is all it takes to confirm what Arisu and i are both thinking about. We run to door at level 5, slowing as we realise someone else is almost at the door too.
"So you realised that too?" Hoodie says to Arisu. He flicks his gaze over to me, "i wasn't particularly expecting it from you, but good job i guess." Hiding my annoyance, i reach for the door knob, sighing,
"Can we just go inside already?"
Arisu puts his hand over mine, stopping me from opening the door,
"Wait, why did the tagger chase us? They could've just waited here."
"I guess there's something else we don't know." Hoodie guy says, taking out his phone to show it to us. 3 minutes left. "However, if you don't open the door." Arisu nods and we turn open the door together to...
Nothing. It's a normal apartment room, without any lights on. We step in, and everything feels fine. We can see every corner of the room and theres no one hiding in here. It's just a dark, empty room with an extra door. Arisu and Hoodie walk towards that door, and that's when things start to feel weird. Off.
"Arisu, i don't like thi-" as he turned to look at me, he shouted,
"LOOK OUT!" Within a time span of 2 seconds, he had pushed Hoodie to the ground while I dropped down too, dodging the bullets from the second shooter, and Hoodie grabbed his music player and tasered the tagger. So it wasn't a music player after all. Horse head crumpled to the ground, and i breathed a sigh of relief as we all stood back up.
"Never hurts to be prepar-" He's interrupted by a sudden flash of lights and sounds that happen too fast for me to understand. Before I know it, I've been pulled back outside of the room and Hoodie guy slams shut the door. I keep looking between the bullet-dented door and him,
"WHAT did you just do? Arisu's in there all alone he's gonna die!" Hoodie is clearly panicked from the near death experience too but he hides it better than me.
"Believe it or not, i just saved your life." He smirks in an attempt to hide his emotions, "you owe me one."
"I'm going back in."
Hoodie guy grabs my arm, tugging me,
"Do you have a death wish? As soon as you walk in you'll be shot 10 times with that gun." He's worried. For me? Why? This is the first time I've heard him speak with anything other than amusement. It's kinda concerning. I'm about to retort when i hear Arisu shouting,
"Someone please come over! The safe zone is apartment 406! We need 2 people to clear the game!" Hoodie guy mutters under his breath,
"Seriously?" I think i can hear Karube shouting for Arisu, but i can't go looking for him. I need to make sure Arisu survives. The gunshots inside stop, and i wait one second before runnning inside. The tagger is in the extra room with Arisu now, and they're wrestling for the gun. Hoodie pulls me away from the doorway of the second room as a round of bullets get shot. "Second time." He murmurs. Whether to me or himself i don't know.
"SOMEBODY! PLEASE!" I run back into the room and find Arisu trying to the force the gun away from his head. I grab the gun and try to pull it away as well, but a kick to the stomach from horse head knocks me back into the opposite wall.
Time left: 1 minute
"Hey!" Hoodie guy throws the taser to me, and i try to tase the leg of horse head, but they're moving too much so i can't get a clear aim and I just get kicked again. We're gonna die here. We're really gonna die.
Time left: 30 seconds
"You called?" Its climber girl, who just burst in through the window. I throw the taser to her,
"Use it!" It takes her a second to figure it out, and i keep thinking faster, please move faster.
I try to get up, i have to get ready to push one of the buttons, but i can't. Each time i try to get up, it feels even harder to stand. My head is groggy and i don't really know what's happening. But i have to press the buttons. I need to. It's the only thought in my head.
Time left: 10 seconds
Climber tases Horse head and Arisu collapses.
"The buttons!" I shout, "PRESS THE BUTTONS!"
Time left: 5 seconds
5
4
3
2
1
They jump to press the buttons at the same time.
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A moment of silence.
Congratulations. Game clear.