Kingdom Fallen

Midnight

Destroyer assumes the moment Cipher stopped struggling was the moment they were allowed to leave the room. Sparklez had been quick to guide him out, purposefully using his wings to block his vision of what was behind him, keeping it so Destroyer wouldn't see the corpse of the murderer hanging lifeless above the table where he had taken part of the man's condemnation.

Then again, it was announced failure to get away with murder would be met with death, so... Was he really guilty of Cipher's death? He could feel something gnawing at his stomach, yet he couldn't place the name for the emotion— overall he was just overwhelmingly numb.

Stars. That couldn't be healthy.

Sparklez had swiftly moved his hands from Destroyer's ears and to his shoulders as he ushered him out of the room. He didn't fight it, but he couldn't help but pick up on Sparklez muttering, "In front of a kid... I know he's witnessed this before but what the heck? So far away from okay..."

The moment they were out of the room, Destroyer felt the man's scaly wings wrap around him, and immediately, Sparklez was on his knees and embracing him. Destroyer just stood there, letting it happen, despite the fact he was not a hugger.

"You did so good," Sparklez whispered. "You handled that so well, and you're contribution to the trial was a major help."

Destroyer simply nodded.

"I know you've got Mully, Arrator, and Coterie, but if something happens or they aren't available, I'm here for you."

Destroyer only nodded again.

"Hey, Kid," it was Mully who spoke this time. He felt Sparklez's wings unwrap from around him and Sparklez stepped away as Mully took his place. "Thanks, Sparklez," Mully whispered to the man before returning his attention to Destroyer. "You good?"

"Are-Are," Destroyer despised how his voice wavered. I sound so weak-- "Are we like him now?"

"What do you mean by that?" Mully asked as Arrator and Coterie approached the duo.

"We-We se-sent him to-to his death!" He quietly exclaimed. "He-He's dead b-because we--"

"Hey, Kid," Coterie quickly interrupted him, kneeling beside Mully and putting both hands on his shoulders. "Monokuma made it extremely clear what would happen if a Blackened failed to get away with murder. Cipher made that decision knowing if he failed to convince everyone he was innocent, he would be executed. Cipher's dead because of his own actions. Cipher killed himself."

"But--!"

"No buts," Mully cut him off. "Coterie is right. Everything that happened to Cipher is Cipher's fault."

Destroyer didn't verbally respond but nodded understanding.

"Why don't you spend the night with one of us," Arrator offered.

"That-- That would be preferable," Destroyer muttered.

"Gotcha," Mully mumbled. "Who do you--"

"ATTENTION PEASENTS!" Monokuma's shrill, robotic voice pierced through the quiet hall.

It was only now that Destroyer realized they were the only ones remaining in the Grand Hall.

"Just a reminder it IS NIGHTTIME! PRETTY PLEASE make your way to your quarters or whoever's quarters you are staying in tonight ASAP! Thank youuuuuuuu~ Good eve!"

"Who do you wanna bunk with?" Mully continued his sentence once the announcement was over.

"Could-- Could we all just bunk together?" Destroyer hesitantly requests.

"Sure, we can figure that out," Coterie answers as he stands, squeezing Destroyer's shoulders.

"Let's go to my room," Arrator suggests. "It's the closest out of all of ours'."

Without another word, the group makes their way to Arrator's quarters. To be honest, Destroyer felt like the silence of the walk was the most deafening thing he'd ever heard. He shifted uncomfortably as they walked.

What they said makes sense, but there has to be some way we could have helped, right? Some way we could have stopped Cipher... Maybe if we hadn't congregated in the storage closet and instead in the library... No. No. We couldn't have known. There was no way we could have predicted. Monokuma gives motives... He's always had to give motives... There are usually two days of respite before things actually happen from what my random, fragmented memories serve. Monokuma made the consequences of failure known, painfully so. Cipher knew what he was getting into. All the future Blackeneds will know what they're getting themselves into. But still...

Why does it feel like I didn't try hard enough?

I think that's what they call self-blame, Ant meekly responded. That or survivors' guilt. Maybe a mixture of both?

Not helping, Ant, Destroyer muttered in response as Arrator unlocked his quarter's door. When had they arrived?

I know. But Des, I'm right there with ya, Ant reassured. It— It just can't always end like that... Right?

Arrator's quarter was identical to Destroyer's in every way. A bare desk with a chair, a bed in the back corner, a closet, and a nightstand beside the bed with a charger for the iPad. Arrator placed his iPad on the charger as the rest entered the room, and Coterie being the last, closed the door behind them.

"I can sleep on the floor," Coterie immediately volunteers.

"Alright good, Destroyer you can get the bed," Arrator offers.

"I don't—" Destroyer begins.

"Mate, you are not intruding," Mully stops him before he can finish. "If we had an issue, none of us would be here right now."

Destroyer hesitantly nodded before getting into the bed while the others got spaces ready on the floor. Coterie ended up sitting near the door, his back being supported by the corner as he faced the group. However, instead of finding a spot, Arrator and Mully shared a short, hushed conversation. When they were done, Mully situated himself on the floor at the end of the bed, and Arrator sat next to Destroyer on the side of the bed.

"Is it still bothering you?" Arrator questioned.

"A bit yea..." Destroyer admitted.

"Which part?"

"I mean, I've come to terms with the fact that Cipher condemned himself, but Chaotic... He didn't even get a chance."

"That is true," Arrator solemnly agrees. "However, we did all that we could."

"Did we though?" Destroyer quietly questioned, looking up to meet Arrator's gentle gaze. "In his last moments... Do you think he tried to call out for help, but Cipher had mangled his mouth so bad he couldn't make a sound?"

"Sadly, there's that possibility," Arrator admitted after a pause. "We'll never know, but we can't dwell on that, Des." The nickname caught Destroyer off guard, considering he had only just heard it from Ant. It seemingly also caught Arrator off too, however, the man pushed that to the side as he continued. "We did not know that Cipher would kill Chaotic without being given a motive. We did not know that the silver candelabra in the library would be used to bludgeon Chaotic's face in. There was no way we could have known. But guess what, despite that, we still helped Chaotic."

"How so? He's still dead."

"We found his killer, and we got justice. Even though the idea of justice here is twisted and cruel, we still got it."

Destroyer leaned his head against Arrator's shoulder and stared at the wall "You promise you won't be a Blackened?"

"Of course."

Destroyer smiled at that and closed his eyes. "Good, I'd hate to kick your tail in court."

Arrator quietly laughed at that, and that quiet laugh was the last thing Destroyer heard as he slipped into a restless sleep.