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Format: 09/16/2030, 09:16 -- ----  A world where everything was closed off. Sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste... he'd been disconnected from all his senses. It didn't feel like there was a world around for him to experience at all. ???: (Where am I...?) He didn't know. His head was a total blank. ???: (What is this...?) All he could sense was a feeling of loss. ???: (What's... going on...?) It felt like he was lacking anything definitive. ???: (How did this happen?) He desperately tried to figure out why. Soon enough, fragmented images twinkled in the corners of his mind.  This image flashes for a second, then disappears again. ???: (...! I see... so that thing attacked me--)  A flash of blood splatters. Is this death?  Another flash of blood splatters, this time of less. No...!  This time, a short lens flare flash. The sound of a beating heart-- echoed inside him. He knew for sure he could perceive that. This guy is-- No, not "this guy"...! ???: (I'm...!)  Sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch-- pain-- I have all of those senses...! My body and consciousness are right here... ???: (I'm right here...!!) ....... ------- Fade to black.  Woman 1: ...Captain, please hang in there! Captain! Woman 2: Get up, Captain! C'mon! With the sound of those voices suddenly filling his ears-- the man opened his eyes.  ♪ BGM: LABO Security Lv. 2 ♫  Ah...! You've finally come to, haven't you!? W-what a relief! I thought you bit it there for a sec! ...?I might as well stop beating around the bush a bit here. This scene establishes now that our main character right now is the Captain of the rescue squad - and therefore, we are Watase Kasasagi. We seem to have been found by the two female members of the rescue squad, those being Tachibana and Moribe. You'd have also been able to tell from the voices, if you had audio. However, given that the audio is Japanese only, I'm not going to bother giving you voice clips of a language you probably don't understand for the sake of recognizing a few voices from earlier. I'll just mention when that is the case instead. The man said nothing as the women before him started addressing him. But what the heck are you doing here, Captain!? Shouldn't you be at the command post!?Seems Team Tachibana/Moribe didn't know of Kasasagi going into the basement, which can probably be blamed on the faulty connection between them. More importantly, can you say your own name, or what day and month it is today? ...what... huh?The man already felt confused in the face of the sudden storm of questions he'd been sucked into. He first tried to grasp the situation around him. The women in front of him were wearing orange uniforms. (So they're firefighters... no, rescue workers?)Their uniforms were covered in soot. Disaster, accident, rescue-- vague images related to those words swirled around the man's head. Who a-- no, where am I...? Ah, you shouldn't sit up yet! He was in some building he'd never seen before. He'd apparently ben lying in the middle of a hall. He could see cold steel doors and fire hydrants lining the corridor. A glance up at the ceiling revealed air ducts, sprinklers, and so--  A sharp headache hit the man at that moment, causing him to fall to the floor yet again. Are you okay!? Are you in pain!? N-no... I'm fine... Just then, the man realized he was wearing the same uniform as the women. (...? Why am I wearing this thing...?)He felt a strange sense of discomfort. Like he had no connection with himself. Why was he in this uniform? What... am I...?The man stood up as he shook his groggy head. His body also felt off. Almost like his body and mind weren't properly linked. (It kinda feels like this isn't my body or something...)The screen starts shaking and the sound of more explosions goes off. No sooner had this thought crossed the man's mind-- than did the air suddenly shake. ♪ BGM: LABO Security Lv. 3 ♫ Wh-what was that!?The women paid no heed to the man's confusion and instead exchanged glances.   Right! Captain, please rest here! We'll handle this one by ourselves!The woman who'd been called "Lieutenant" broke off into a run alongside the other woman (who was apparently her subordinate). ...Huh? H-hold on!Scared of being left alone and totally in the dark about what was going on, the man followed the two.  W-wait up, you guys! Captain!? I thought I asked you to rest! Nah, I think he looks okay! Give us a hand, all right!? N-no, that's not it! I just want to ask you something! What was that noise!? What's happening!? Huh!? Wh-what're you talking about, Captain!? You saying you don't get what's going on!? N-no, I don't...The women looked at each other for a brief second. --You'll understand if you come along! Please keep close to us!The lieutenant broke off into another run at those words, with the man hot on her trail. She then opened a door at the end of the hall--  (What is this heat...!?)A heat haze filled the area, distorting their vision of what was before them. Khh... we need to put out this fire on the double! Yeah, before there's another explosion!The women passed through the open doorway. The man followed suit and ran through the hallway--   The man froze in shock at the scene he was confronted with. But the women quickly got to work without even a moment's hesistation. Get a hose ready! Roger! The screen shakes a bit and we get the sound of somebody bumping into somebody else. Whoa!?The female rescue worker pushed the man aside and pulled out a hose from the fire hydrant built into the nearby wall. She then passed it to the lieutenant, who directed its nozzle toward the flames.  Commence water release! Roger! Here it comes! A jetstream of water collided with the flames, which erupted into large clouds of steam. (Incredible... the fire's getting smaller and smaller by the second...!)The man stared at the swiftly dying fire with stark amazement. Just then, he heard something else mixed in with the sound of the flames evaporating-- a faint sound.  (Was that a voice...?)He wondered if it was his mind playing tricks on him for a second. But as soon as he strained his ears-- Girl: He... help me...!   The man's body started running as soon as this thought hit him, weaving its way through the gaps between the flames. The room's door was crushed inwards due to the effects of the explosion. The man peeked into the room from the shadow of the broken door--  (Where is it!? Where's that voice coming from...?)His hair was singed by the sparks bathing him, creating an awful stench that hung in the air. What's more, his eyes were tearing up thanks to the smoke irritating them. But he endured it and focused on searching the room--  ♪ BGM: Psychological Warfare ♫ --Found her!  Through the fire and flames, he could see a girl crouching under a desk in the room. Are you okay!?The girl looked towards the man's voice with hope in her eyes. But the moment her gaze met the man's,   --!?her face froze. (Wha... what's with that look!?)Overcome with confusion, he came to a halt. But at that moment--  {Save her!} So whenever we get something like this, you'll be able to tell because of {it being in these curly brackets}. As for what "something like this" actually is... He suddenly heard a voice. !?He didn't know whose voice it was. It sounded like it'd echoed from inside him. But the moment he heard it, everything suddenly fell into place. He finally realized why he was here. (That's right-- I came here to save her!)The moment he came to that realization, his previously divided body and nerves seemed to finally become one. The flames were closing in on the girl. The voice resounded yet again in his head. {--Go save her!!} And with that command giving him the final push he needed-- the man lunged into the blazing flames.  We fade to white...  ...and here we are - at the beginning of the first chapter of Route After. But that will have to wait until next time - and it's probably not like you're lacking in questions to be asking about the situation. How many will be answered relatively soon? Only time will tell.
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| ← # ? Oct 3, 2016 17:19 |
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