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TheMcD
May 4, 2013

Monaca / Subject N 2024
---------
Despair will never let you down.
Malice will never disappoint you.

Binding



♪ BGM: Evil and Nightmares

...Captain, did you really lose your memory?
Tachibana...!?
I apologize for asking this, but like Moribe says, your actions are far too incomprehensible. You claim that you went down to the basement because you were summoned by Dojima and Hiyama-- But normally, you would have contacted me and Moribe and ordered us to go instead. Yet that is not what you did. Please answer this question: why did you leave the command post and go down to the basement by yourself?

The calculating look in Kazami's eyes pierced Watase's heart.

W-well...

Watase desperately tried to remember in detail what the situation had been back then. But he didn't know anything. His memories of that time were completely gone.

... Can you... not answer?
S-sorry...
...Understood.

Kazami breathed a heavy sigh, then signaled at Moribe with a glance and spoke.

Moribe, please get a rope or a wire or something like that. We're going to restrain the Captain.
Huh...?

Restrain? Watase didn't understand the meaning of that phrase for a moment. But that moment was long enough for Jun to pull out a cable lying under the control panel.

...Mr. Ukita, can we use this?
Yes, I don't mind in this case.

Jun then cut the cable loose with her army knife once she'd received Ukita's consent. Said cable was more than long enough to tie someone up.

(... Don't tell me they're...!) A-are you kidding me...?

Kazami then looked at Watase with a cold look in her eyes and spoke.

We have no idea what could happen in this situation, and your existence is completely disrupting what little order we have here. Therefore, we have to restrain you until you're clear of all suspicion.

--They then restrained Watase's body with the cable, tied his hands behind his back, and brought him to a laboratory on B2 of Area 2's outer ring.



♪ BGM: Psychological Warfare

Kazami then placed her AD on the floor as if saying that it was the least she could do. Watase's hands were tied behind his back, but he probably could indeed still inject himself with it. But that didn't matter in the slightest to him.

Tachibana... are you sure you're really okay with this?

Watase looked into Kazami's eyes with a heartfelt yet pleading gaze.

Captain, please don't look at me like that... If we find anything that clears you of suspicion, then I swear I'll come untie you right away, so please...

Kazami said that, then left the laboratory as if she were running away from him. The other members soon followed suit--

Just sit as still as you can until the lockdown ends.
Captain, don't get any funny ideas, okay? I don't want to do anything worse than this to you.
Captain Kasasagi... I'm sorry.

--and left Watase alone in the laboratory.

...Goddammit...!

He instinctively cursed. To be abandoned by the comrades he'd been through thick and thin with felt like being cut off from the world itself. But he could understand why they were nervous. The fact was that his actions before he'd lost his memories truly were simply too unnatural. The incident with Yuuri in particular had been fatal.



Kazami's cold glare was still burned into his brain.

(But... what was I supposed to have done...?)

He didn't have an answer to that. And so time flew by as Watase kept pondering questions like that for a while--



Watase had yet to use the AD that'd been left for him, both so that the survivors could use it and so he could prove his innocence.

Automatic PA: --Main and backup power supplies offline. Now switching to emergency power.

Just then, the lights suddenly went out with that announcement, leaving Watase in darkness and confused. What in the world was happening outside...?



Watase had already thrown up twice, likely due to the effects of radiation exposure. Yet his nausea just wouldn't go away, and his headaches and the numbness in his skin only grew worse with time.

(Dammit... enough is enough...)

Without the willpower to speak, Watase had to settle for cursing in his head--

We hear two dull, muffled sounds.

♪ BGM: Abyss

Watase felt goosebumps spread all over his body at that sound.

(Were those-- gunshots!? What happened!? What's going on out there!?)

Anxiety swiftly filled Watase's heart.

Hey, is anyone around!? Get me out of here, please!

Watase started shouting outside as his panic grew worse and worse. Soon enough--



Captain...

She staggered into the room on unsteady feet.

Moribe, what happened!? I thought I heard gunshots!
...

But Jun cut Watase's bonds with her army knife without another word. Her face was unbelievably pale. Her pained breaths made it even clearer that she wasn't her normal self.

M-Moribe...?

Watase called out to her in worry--

Ugh...

--only for Jun to pitch forward. Watase immediately caught her.

H-hey!

His palms were damp with something sticky.



Watase then noticed that Jun's back was being stained red by a large cut that was ripping right through it.

Moribe... how...!?
Cap... tain... run... for it... She... she's...

Jun wheezed out a breath before she could say any more. And with that, she stopped moving altogether.

M-Moribe...?

She didn't respond to him. He could tell Jun's body was losing heat and fast.

Moribe! Hang in there, you hear me!? Moribe!

But Jun didn't move.

N-no way... If this is a bad joke, then cut it out!

Watase silently prayed as he checked Jun's Vital Checker.



That signified ''death''.

Moribe... no... Why...? Why did this happen...? Moribe... ... ... ... Dammit... -—DAMMIT! Who the hell did this to Moribe!?



(--What happened here!? What in the world has been happening in LABO while I've been locked up!?)



Only to find Ukita sitting against the well. Watase had a bad feeling about the situation. He could see a pool of blood spreading in front of Ukita.

--Old man!

Watase ran up to Ukita and touched his shoulder. When he did, Ukita's body fell to the ground sideways without offering the slightest resistance-- There was a giant, deep cut stretching from his right shoulder all the way to his heart.

Old man! Hey! Hang in there!

But Ukita didn't answer-- Watase just then noticed that there was something in Ukita's hand.



The pistol in Ukita's hand was a totally different model from the one Ena had given him. Watase looked around to find there were bullet marks in the nearby walls and floor.

Then that gunfire I heard was--!?

Ukita had probably been trying to fight off someone with that pistol. But he had been no match for them. He had been slain in one mere strike. And his wound looked identical to the one on Jun's back.

(Which means that the old man fought their attacker here to give Jun time to escape!? But even though he was no expert with guns, who could have avoided all the old man's shots and killed him like this...!? --No way!)

Several scenes of all the death Watase had seen in this place went through his head.







(Is the one who killed those five now on the move!?)

Then the fact that the same killer had murdered Ukita and Jun meant--

(poo poo! Are they trying to kill us all!?)

Watase then gasped as it finally hit him.

--Then that means Tachibana and Teach are in trouble!

Watase left Ukita's corpse behind and ran through the connecting passageway.



Wha...!?

Watase was immediately rendered speechless when he arrived at the inner ring.



Kazami was lying face up right in the middle of it.

♪ BGM: Memento Mori

--Tachibana!?

Watase ran up to her and held her in his arms. There was a large vertical cut across Kazami's chest. The same kind of cut that Jun and Ukita had. Rivets of still warm blood poured out of it.



Kazami was still breathing faintly.

Tachibana! Just hold on, I'll treat you right away!

But Kazami kept talking deliriously as if she didn't hear a word Watase said.

Wata.. se... I'm... sorry... If only... I'd... trusted... you... more...

Kazami's life grew fainter with each word.

Tachibana, that's enough! It's okay, just save your breath!
Aah... I can't see... Hey... where are you...? N-no... I don't... want to be alone... any... more...

It seemed Kazami's eyesight was rapidly failing.

Tachibana! I'm here! I'm right here!

Watase looked into Kazami's eyes as he desperately called out to her.



And then, all of a sudden, something shined in her eyes.

(Is that something silver...?)

At the very moment Watase realized that...





Something smashed right into the top of Watase's head, making his entire world shake. --A second later, his brain went haywire.

(Split head's been)

Split

(brain's been) brain's been

BRAIN's been

--sPLiT!

AGH, AAAAGH, GAAAAAAGHHHHHHH...

Strange sounds came out of his mouth. Just then, something was ripped out of his brain and let out a sound as it hit the ground. At that moment--







A memory forgotten flew right past him.







He didn't know when it was from.







Watase miraculously regained his ability to think soundly just then.

(-~Tachibana will be killed too if I don't do something!)

Watase then held on to Kazami with all his might in order to protect her--