Voided Truth (Hollow Lies Sequel) (Danganronpa)

Chapter 5 ~ Dark World

Kaito didn't hesitate to force Kokichi to get dressed and drag him out of the house. Kokichi gave a bit of a protest but was quickly silenced by a glare. Caught between fear of Kaito and fear of the outside world, Kokichi didn't know what to do. Many things could happen once out of the house. Whose to say someone won't choose to make Kokichi a victim again. Of anything. And to him, there was the possibility that Kaito would allow it. Before he knew it, he was shoved into the back of Maki's car, staring blankly out the front window as the car left their driveway. His breathing felt out of control as he remained frozen in place, unaware of the worried look from Kaito, who sat up in the passenger seat.

Maki mumbled something in annoyance, earning a shrug from Kaito. Kokichi was unable to make out what was said, only making the fear worse. His eyes focused on the passing trees which covered the road in slight darkness. Despite the shining sun up above, it felt as if the path was going darker and darker, hiding the car from anyone who may be around. While that may sound like a good like in Kokichi's case, it was quite the opposite. With no witnesses around, it wouldn't take much for the two up front to drag him out, kill him, and leave him to rot. Or maybe it wouldn't be his friends, instead being a stranger who started following them. Remembering the strange encounter from the night before, his fear only got worse.

He hadn't even heard the person enter the room at the time, too fixated on trying to hear the conversation in the kitchen from the bedroom. Next thing he knew, his mouth was covered and he was pulled back. Fight or flight instincts kicked in, Kokichi managing to bite the hand away. Quickly, he alerted the others before feeling something cold begin to touch his neck. His heart stopped for a second, before he was suddenly let go and the person fled from the way they came. There were so many thought going through his mind in that moment, all coming out as sobs. The only good thing he could say came out of it was getting to return to sleep with Kaito. But he knew how little that should mean after everything that happened.

"Kokichi," Kaito shouted, waving a hand in front of Kokichi's face.

Kokichi immediately jumped back in surprise, raising his arms in self defense and letting out a whimper.

"Seriously, Kaito," Maki asked, voice laced with disappointment.

"I forgot, okay," Kaito replied, sighing in defeat.

Kokichi looked at the two, wondering what the reason was for the yelling. Surely he hadn't done anything wrong with simply sitting there. The unsureness of what was happening brought him back into a frozen state of fear. This immediately went noticed by Kaito.

"Hey, everything is going to be fine. We are just going to take a quick stop at Himiko's house and figure out what is happening. I'm sure everything is fine." Kaito gave a reassuring smile, earning a confused look from Kokichi.

This was something he never understood about the guy. The way he so easily brushed things off as fine and believed that everything would work out. In a way, it was admirable. However, Kokichi couldn't dare to imagine a life full of that kind of freedom. As nice as it may sound, it was extremely naïve and dangerous. If Himiko truly was fine, he wouldn't be here right now, forced to experience the outside world. He knew this wouldn't be over in mere seconds, worrying Kokichi deeply. As little of a bond as Kokichi had with the fake mage, he'd never wish her any harm. And if last night's intruder was anything to go off of, this could be far worse than Kaito could even imagine.

The car suddenly came to a stop, grabbing Kokichi's attention. The trees from before had vanished completely, now replaced with a simple neighborhood setting. Some people could be seen chatting and walking off without a care in the world. As nice as that seemed, he had a pretty good idea of what messed up discussions they were having.

"Kokichi," Kaito said, voice getting impatient.

His attention went straight to Kaito, giving a look of fear. Though, he never got a chance to give a pointless apology as Kaito continued talking.

"Maki roll and I are going in. You coming with?"

Kokichi pondered the question, unsure what would be the safest option. Fortunately, he didn't need to decide.

"Shuichi is in there," Maki said. "It's best if he stays here."

"Right. Okay. We'll try to be quick." Kaito quickly got out, followed by Maki.

Kokichi sat there in silence, unsure what to do in the mean time. The car was off, preventing him from listening to any music. Even if he could, it would probably be better to keep it off, making sure to keep his senses sharp. However, it didn't take much to get Kokichi trapped in a thought, contradicting Kokichi's reasoning about the radio. He sighed, realizing what he was doing to himself. The more the days went on, the more he seemed trapped within his own mind. Though it was best to stay sharp, Kokichi decided to take a chance at a calming distraction. With no one around to prevent such a thing, he got comfortable in the seat and begun singing quietly.

It wasn't anything too crazy, just a simple song he remembered hearing a lot awhile back. Something his fellow students would play on repeat through out the halls. While those memories aren't typically filled with happiness, the song itself was quite catchy. He didn't care whether he supported the show or not, simply enjoying a song made to contribute to the fandom.

Misery and sorrow. Academy of Hope. Bring the world into its ultimate destruction.

This made him laugh a bit, remember how the academy was anything but that. There was a memory of that short time he enjoyed the show, and the hope it brought him for revenge.

Masters in their art forms. Naivete ran through them. Unaware the sadness they would find themselves in.

It was quite comical, knowing what the lyrics were referring to and yet feeling as if it were a direct attack on them. Their killing game wasn't just a show. It stopped being that once their real lives got involved. However, that didn't stop them. They full on embraced it, oblivious to the fact that they'd get no say in how the story played out.

Treated like prisoners. Trapped in a world filled with nothing but despair. A game where's it's kill or be killed. We were lured into the devil's lair.

If they had been in control of their actions, the game would be over in minutes. The killing game would turn into full out war as everyone tried their best to make the perfect murder. Why would something to hurtful to the show's message be allowed to pass through? That was easily answerable. Since few survivors lived to tell a tale, not many would know of the brainwashing. Well, the kind they aren't suppose to know about, that is. Only if it played a role would it be welcomed to the stage. This wasn't one of those times, though. And because of him, they'd never find out the full truth. He smiled at that thought. Though it was hard to believe Kaito truly changed, he felt a slight comfort in telling himself this.

D-E-S-P-A-I-R- La~

Kokichi suddenly stopped, feeling a strange disturbance. Not only that, but noticing a change in scenery out of the corner of his eye. Slowly looking over, he saw a strange girl staring at him, excitement written all over her face. His eyes slowly traveled to the phone in her hand, the camera part up for a clear view of himself. He begun to panic, having no clue who this girl was or what her intentions were. While he'd like to believe she just wanted a picture and then would leave, he knew better.

He sighed in relief when the girl ran off, replaced by a agitated Maki. She got back in the car, followed by Kaito. However, Kaito sat beside him this time. Before Kokichi got a chance to question it, the passenger door opened, Shuichi getting it. And with that, the car was started and quickly drove out of the neighborhood.