I HAD TO DIE TO SURVIVE「 End of Start 」

CULPABILITY AND THE PANOPTICON | EPISODE 04

~ Warnings for this Episode -> Decaying Corpses & Animal Abuse.
Please proceed with caution.

>> Soramimi is an official character btw<< (https://note.com/wacosan/n/nf8fceec50695)

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Once upon a time, back when humanity had something to believe in. There lived a human named Soramimi, also known as the one of a kind explorer; a spectacle who descended amongst the skies. An overwhelming presence. Not a single person has ever dared to intervene in his travels, they said that accompanying Sora was like a curse; dragging you into the depths of a never-ending rabbit hole, constantly searching for answers until you've gone completely mad. Of course, there were some attempts—but none of them had been the same ever since. He was always alone, bored, it all felt like a routine to him.

"So what happened next, mister Rabbit?" one of the children said, "Will the clown be able to see himself in front of the looking glass?"

"It depends on how much he dwelt in the past," Sora replied, in a whimsical manner. "The only way he could see himself, is if he can think outside of the box."

Despite being a lone explorer, he was also a storyteller; Sora would often share his voyages to a small set of audience—they were mostly children, and he knew that children would consider his adventures as a mere fairytale. Soramimi had always liked to sugarcoat his experiences, that way, he could protect their childlike innocence. The young traveler sees the world as nothing more but a nonsensical wonderland, where everything or anything can be perceived as nonsense; he didn't want them to feel the same way.

"Mister Rabbit, what're you trying to imply?" one of the children added.

"You simply just had to believe in the impossible." Sora replied.

And yet, even the great Soramimi couldn't achieve the possible. He was made to be their spectacle, he exists just for the sake of their entertainment. He exists, to give those children what they need; he exists, so he can understand what it truly means to be a human—but he was never given a chance to do so. He wanted to become a part of thee, but in the process—he will be affected by the same curse that haunted his former companions along the way. Sora doesn't realize that he is getting madder each day, he's mad, they're mad, even the wild animals have gotten mad—at the end of the day, all of this will only be considered as nonsense.

They reaped what they sow, and they've sowed greed.

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~ ✦ ~
「 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐩𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐧 」
< 𝐄𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫 >
~ ✦ ~

Popee wanders around the circus, trying to see if there was any sign of life to it. But there was none. He, along with the dead rabbits were the only inhabitants of that circus; at least he wasn't lonely, well.. That's what he thought it was. Popee continued searching, until finally, a familiar object had caught his attention. He picked it up, and it was a—

"..Mask?"

The mask seemed to be owned by an artist, it was well-crafted and had a cunning doodled expression of a smile. There were faint claw marks underneath, and it doesn't look like the mask belonged to a person at all; rather, it belonged to a carnivore. Some predators might've taken shelter beforehand, this is definitely not a safe place for our protagonist.

Suddenly, Popee started feeling nauseous. Both of his ears kept on ringing, and his hands couldn't stop twitching; he dropped the mask and made a dash towards an open area. His body trembles as he falls into the ground—gasping for air; he hasn't managed to breathe on time. His unconscious body lays in the sand, waiting for him to come back.

Light took over his vision, losing his grip on reality, once again—

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「  Don't get bothered by it.  」

"No, no–please you can't do this to me!" the masked wolf cried, pleading for his life. Popee slowly approached him, positioning his chainsaw directly on the beast's hips.

"Shh, don't ruin my act." he spat.

The wolf tries to untangle the rope that had been wrapped around his paws, but even his whole body could barely move—he's hopeless.

"Quit whining!"
Popee lets out a grin, eager to saw the masked  wolf in half—he is ready to take the beast's life.

"Please, I beg you!" he exclaimed, "Don't let me die!"

But he didn't reply, and with a swing of his chainsaw; the wolf was separated from his lower body. The beast was screaming in agony, whilst Popee was satisfied with the applause from his audience.

"That's right, bow down to me! Worship me! For I am the greatest performer in the world!"

「 Just keep walking, no one is going to save you. 」

Former TV star  ▌│║▌║▌█, also known by his stage name "Popee The Performer", has been reported missing on the 28th of March—only a few days before his birthday. Co-workers say that he was last seen inside his workplace at Genjitsu Medical Hospital while other witnesses said that they saw him entering Hakozaki station at 11:51 pm, just before his disappearance. He was unable to be tracked down.

So far, there hasn't been any recent updates from the Fukuoka Police Headquarters, but they have assured us that they are doing everything they can to search for his whereabouts. If he hasn't been found within the next twenty-four hours, a further investigation will commence.

「 They're just jealous of you. 」

"I didn't want to do it in the first place.." Popee stated, resisting the urge to lash out on the masked wolf.

"But you did." the beast scoffed, "And now look at us, we are going to be stuck in this desert forever!"

"I am only feeding them a PART of me!"

The beast exclaimed, "Even if it means selling your dignity to those assholes?!"

「 They are all fools. 」

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Popee woke up, feeling a cold sweat all over his body. He sat up, catching his breath; both of his hands have stopped twitching, no longer sensing the paranoia. The teen went on to investigate his environment, it seems like he's back in reality. Popee saw how the crows were eating away the lives of the deceased rabbits, this frightens him—causing the teen to get away from that area. He has no recollection of his dreams, nor his memories; but deep down he knew that there was something sinister about this place.

He wanted to run away, no, he needed to escape. But he couldn't do it alone, he needed help.

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"That was a lovely story, Mister Rabbit!" one of the children commented, "But, oh how I wished for the clown to see himself in front of the looking glass!"

Soramimi let out a chuckle, "Please don't be disappointed, I can assure you that I am certainly not the type of author to end my character's story on a disastrous note."

The young traveler puts the manuscript inside his white satchel, ready to set off for his next adventure.

"In fact this story isn't finished yet."

The kid replied, "Really, does that mean you can change the clown's fate?!"

".... Maybe, but not today." Sora replied, patting his head.

Little did we know, that things are just getting curiouser and curiouser for our dear, Soramimi.

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「 𝐄𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫 」