Final Despair

1. Makoto Naegi

I was never much of a morning person. Even back in high school, I hated waking up, clawing myself out of my warm bed, throwing on something appropriate and going off to a place that did nothing to improve my mood. Of course, a twenty-two year old man should know better than to complain, so I force myself to not fuss when I get woken up at six A.M. It's a pattern: wake up, get breakfast, discuss plans, attend meeting, then take three hours in the afternoon to yourself. All in the name of keeping Hope alive.

Though I suppose I should be grateful to the Future Foundation; years ago, after I graduated high school at sixteen, they took me in and gave me shelter, so long as I began to work for them. That was... six years ago. I met a group of friends I will never forget... The sound of pounding on my door abruptly brought me from my dream state and into reality, where the pounding continued. Forcing myself into an upright position, I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and got up, making a mess of my blanket in the process. It wasn't too far to the door; I could deal with the cold metal floor for a bit. The access panel blinked to life as I hit the button to open the door. I was greeted with the stern face of Kyoko Kirigiri, one of my closest friends and the girl I almost fell in love with.

"Awake now, Naegi?" she asked, the slightest hint of friendliness in her otherwise calculative voice. I nodded, letting out an accidental yawn.
"Ah... S-sorry about that, Kiri." I said; smooth going Naegi, smooth going. She simply smirked, her purple eyes sparkling with amusement.
"Don't worry about it; just get down to the normal meeting room within five minutes. You know they hate waiting." she replied. God, I loved her easygoing attitude in the face of my childishness. Turning to walk back down the hall, I watched as her lavender hair moved with her. I was almost hypnotized by old emotions when I realized the time. She said five minutes, so I was almost late!!

Closing my door, I tore off my pajamas and opened my closet door. It was inset into the wall, just across from the foot of my bed. Between the two points I had been allowed a carpet, which was a relief from the chilled floors. I picked out my usual attire: a charcoal grey suit with matching dress pants, a white undershirt, red tie, and dress-casual shoes. Checking the mirror, I quickly combed down what hair I had sticking up and took off. My eHandbook I had brought with me when I first joined the Future Foundation lit up as a personal alarm went off, signaling that I was five minutes from the start of today's meeting. Dashing down the corridors, I passed the main dining hall, the smell of frying bacon making my stomach growl. I wanted to stop in, but I knew I didn't have time; though a two-minute detour to get some fresh coffee never hurt anyone. 

It was one minute to the meeting when I arrived at the door to the room, everyone looking at me as I halted my dash.
"S-sorry everyone!" I said, walking over to my chair. To my left was Byakuya Togami, the former heir to a large corporation that toppled during the Tragedy fifteen years ago. He and I started off rocky, but during our time here, we grew closer and trusted each other more. He was a part of the team that was pre-selected for a mission to Towa City, where the newer, more corrupt Warriors of Hope were located. To my right was Kirigiri, ever-attentive as usual, though her eyes drifted over to me for a few seconds, as if to confirm I was here. Why did I find those eyes to be so attractive? 

Clearing his throat, the leader of the Future Foundation, Kazuo Tengan, began speaking.
"Now that Mr. Naegi has decided to grace us with his presence," he began, other members silently snickering, "we can begin today's meeting. As you all may recall, we have began to put together a team of members to infiltrate Towa City, where the Warriors of Hope are said to be located. According to our sources, the Warriors have taken in survivors of the Tragedy as what can only be described as well-treated hostages. Many persons of interest have been recorded, and we hope to recover the hostages before the Warriors do anything to them."

On the screen behind Tengan, several faces appeared. Some seemed just odd, but one in particular stood out to me...
"That's my sister!!!" I shouted suddenly, standing up so suddenly my chair was knocked back. I had slammed my hands on the table, and just looking at the screen...
"Please do not cause a scene, Mr. Naegi." Kyosuke Munakata adjusted his glasses and glared at me, obviously displeased by my outburst. Normally I would sit down and humbly apologize, but this was my family!
"But that's my little sister!" I replied, pointing to the image of a young teenage girl. She looked to be about 16-17, with hair similar in style to mine. The name "Komaru Naegi" was labelled underneath her picture.
"And your point...?" Munakata retorted, his voice growing tense with frustration.
"How would you feel if your only family was trapped in a city with a group of homicidal maniacs, Munakata?" Miaya Gekkogahara, the Psychologist, interjected. She was a rather small woman, but useful nonetheless. Normally, she wouldn't speak in meetings, but when it came to matters of psychological states, she piped up. "If it were me, I'd be having a fit of worry as to whether or not she were alive."
"She's alive! She's got to be!" I snapped, feeling my self-control fade.She couldn't be dead; Komaru wasn't the type of person who would just let herself be killed.

"Enough." Tengan interrupted. The stern old man could silence the likes of even Munakata, and that was saying something. "We will discuss who will be allowed to go on the rescue mission to Towa City at a later date. For now-"
"Sir. If you'll allow it, I'd like to volunteer the 14th Division for the mission" Kirigiri suddenly interrupted. She usually would never to something like that, but it seemed that desperate times called for desperate measures. Tengan looked her over, almost as if the two were having a silent battle of wits, debating the pros and cons of the action. Finally, Tengan closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and said: "Very well. I hereby permit the 14th Division to depart to Towa City. Your mission will begin in three days. Until then, take time to prepare yourselves. Regular meetings will be postponed until the mission has ended."

"Thank you very much, sir." Kirigiri responded. It seemed like most matters had been settled. Tengan ended the meeting, and we all left, me going back to my room. Sitting on the edge of my bed, I buried my face in my hands, stress and worry causing me to shake. Would she really be alright? Self-doubt at my abilities entered my mind. Was it only just dumb luck that I managed to join the Future Foundation? Thinking back to my days in high school... my thoughts were interrupted by a light knocking at my door. Kirigiri entered, obviously using an override to unlock the door.
"I just wanted to check and make sure you were alright." she said as she entered, closing the door behind her. I couldn't do much more than stare up at her, my eyes a storm of emotions. I was on the verge of tears when she did something unexpected: she knelt down and hugged me. Her familiar smell slowly soothing my mind. 
"Hey, it'll be alright, Naegi. I'm sure your sister is just as resilient as you are." she said quietly, as I managed to get myself together. She stood up, a rare smile on her face as she saw how much better I was doing.
"All better now?" she asked, her sympathy being the thing that brought me back.
"Mhm!" I replied, standing up, a new confidence lit up within me. I couldn't focus on the past; I had to rescue my sister. I stood just slightly above Kirigiri, and I placed my hand on her shoulder, a simple sign that I was back to normal. "Thanks, Kiri." I said as I exited my room. I had the rest of the day to myself; what to do. The obvious answer: training, then lounge. 

The rest of the time was like that. Wednesday I took time to practice my skills against Togami, who wasn't just a prodigy in business, but also apparently in combat skills. Thursday I spent some time with Hagakure, meditating and soothing my nerves. Friday I wanted to spend alone with Kiri, but I knew she had her own agenda, so I settled for just a day of R&R. Finally, the day came.

The day us five shipped off to rescue my sister and everyone else trapped in Towa City.