Alice in Borderland | Transmigration

Chapter 1

You nestled deeper into the blanket, eyes fixated on the bleary light emitting from the screen. It was currently 2:47am, and you were onto the last episode of the popular TV series, 'Alice in Borderland'. There were various snacks strung around you, the aircon was running, and life was good.

Until it wasn't.

You awoke with a start, blinking at the harsh sunlight. You were lying face up on the concrete, tall buildings surrounded you on all sides. You quickly sat up, registering the fact that you were currently sitting in the middle of a sidewalk, with no one in sight. 

Your heart started fluttering, panic settling into your stomach. You stumbled up, eyes rapidly searching for any signs of movement. You hesitantly stepped forward, before gaining momentum and rushing onto the streets. You were in Tokyo, that much was obvious, you recognised the signs and names. You had a sneaking suspicion, but forced the thought down because there was just no way it was possible.

You emerged at the Shibuya crosswalk, and sucked in a harsh breath. It was getting darker now, the sun finally slipped below the horizon. Sitting right in the middle of the sidewalk were three people, who you fortunately (or unfortunately) recognized as the main character and his best friends. 

You closed your eyes, willing to just wake up, because as big of a fan you were of the TV show, you definitely did not want to participate in death games with a 0.1% survival rate. God, you didn't even have plot armour.

"Hey! Hey! You over there!"

You opened your eyes, realising they were talking to you. Karube was waving his hands wildly, gesturing for you to come over. The rest of the trio were standing, relieved they weren't alone. You took a moment to accept your current reality, and walked over.

You plastered a smile on your face, "uh, hi?"

They chorused various greetings back, and Arisu was quick to ask you something in rushed japanese. Ah, fuck.

You furrowed your brow, "fuck, uh, sorry- my japanese-"

Karube blinked, "a foreigner?"

You nodded rapidly, recognising the word. You have always been better at listening than speaking. You were super rusty talking-wise, having not spoken a word of Japanese in years.

Arisu gestured to the majority of Tokyo, speaking with accented English, "uh, you see? No one?"

"I understand japanese, I have problems speaking."

"Do you know what happened to everyone?"

You shook your head, "sorry..."

Chota gave a tired sigh, "so what, are we seriously alone in Tokyo?"

They sat in solemn silence for a couple beats, and before you could open your mouth the large screen overhead flashed to life.

'WELCOME PLAYERS. THE GAME WILL COMMENCE IN A MOMENT.'

You groaned internally, it was starting. "Game?" Karube parroted, the trio wearing similar looks of confusion on their faces. You waited in anticipation, heart jackrabbiting in your chest. You really didn't want to participate, just imagining the trauma had you shivering. The big screen flashed again, with an arrow pointing to the direction of the game.

Arisu turned, eyes locking on the light in a world of darkness, "over there!"

Karube nodded to us, "let's go."

It didn't take long to reach our destination, for most of the route you were trying to remember the correct doors. You remembered the first one, 'die', and you were pretty sure the next one was 'live'. What was after? You tried your best to play through the events.

When the lit up building was in front of you, you looked up, taking in the flashing lights rimming the edges and the colourful sign at the top spelling 'GM Building'. Without a word, the trio stepped in through the entrance, and you followed close behind.

'GAME ARENA IS UP AHEAD.'

Exchanging glances, the four of you made your way down the hall and took a right, you glanced at the phones resting on the counter. Quickly stepping forward and grabbing one, you didn't see the alarmed glances the trio gave each other. They followed hesitantly while you were fiddling with the phone.

"It has facial recognition."

"Can we use these phones?"

You shook your head, "there's no signal, can't make calls with this." You eyed the VISA icon almost venomously, you don't even know how you got into this shitty world, but you would do whatever it takes to get back home. Although your life may have been a bit repetitive and boring, you still had a loving family and a stable life.

'Please wait for the game to commence. Two minutes until registration closes. There are currently four participants.'

Arisu wearily eyed the notification, "what's this?"

"A game."

They startled, whipping around to stare at the women who you were already looking at. Shibuki's heels clicked as she stepped past the borderline. You watched in rapt amusement as she pulled out Chota's ID card and threw it.

A laser immediately gunned down on the card, fast and threatening. You knew what was about to happen, yet you still flinched at the sound. "Once you cross the borderline, you can never return. You have no choice but to participate in the game."

It was fascinating to watch a scene unfold before your eyes, being able to witness it first hand was certainly an experience. These characters, once so unreachable, are now right in front of you.

You looked over at the trio, feeling a pang of sadness when remembering how their friendship ended. You were thinking about this before, should you try and save them? It wouldn't be too hard, all you needed to do was make sure Chota didn't burn his leg and that they participated in the tag game instead of the seven of hearts. But the one thing stopping you was the butterfly effect. There was no saying how their survival could affect the rest of the storyline.

Would you be a monster if you knew what was gonna happen but you just let them die? Should you risk your knowledge to save two lives? You sighed, not even wanting to think about it anymore. Whatever happens, happens. Let's see how far your impulsive actions will take you.

A highschool girl appeared at the end of the hall, relief was evident on her face.

"Ah, I'm so relieved. I thought I wouldn't find anyone here." She started walking towards them despite the warning noises the trio were emitting, she crossed the borderline. It would be useless to stop her anyway, her VISA would probably expire if she didn't participate.

You bit your lip, should you save her?

The ding of the phone notifying everyone that the registration was closed redirected your attention. The game rules were exactly as you remembered. The elevator opened, and you didn't hesitate to push yourself off the wall and step into it, mirroring Shibuki. The rest reluctantly followed you, and you noticed Arisu giving the evacuation map a once over. Damn, you were jealous of his observation skills.

The elevator doors opened, revealing a square room with chequered tile floors. The doors, 'die' and 'live' were in front of you. You marvelled at the room, before your eyes landed on the 'die' door.

'The time limit for this room is two minutes.'

Ah, well, fuck it.