14th Dream//Video Post
Warnings: MASSIVE Devil Survivor spoilers. The end of day six in particular.
Dream Effects: Exhaustion, fear, frustration. The feeling of being trapped. And near the end, the feeling of being stabbed in the back by someone you care about a great deal.
[It had been a long six days. Six days of fighting and struggling and just barely gaining enough information to make sure that they stayed alive.
The final solution the government was going to use... everyone was going to die if they didn't do something. It wouldn't kill all the demons in the Lockdown. He knew that much. But it was the best the government could come up with.
The others were resting. Good, they needed it.
... His COMP beeped. Flicking it open, he scrolled through the screens until he found the e-mail screen. Three e-mails blinked at him, unread.
FROM: YUZ
SUBJECT: What do we do!?
Im so scared. I just want 2 get up and run away, even while im typing this.
Every1 has their own thoughts, but this isn't something we can handle by ourselves...
If only we can get the govmint to delay their plan to kill us all... Is ther nething we can do???
... Yuzu. She was scared, which was understandable. But... running away wasn't the answer. That would just be abandoning everyone... and he couldn't do that.
The next e-mail, then.
FROM: AMANE
SUBJECT: Please
I have reflected on the events of the past week, and have reconfirmed our need of your power in order to end this situation.
The angel Remiel has promised to me that humanity will be saved if you gain control of all the demons and obey the Lord.
Please, lend me your power so that we can show mankind the path of righteousness. I will be waiting for you to come visit me.
... Amane. It was something to think about. He might as well see what Amane had to say.
... But there was still one e-mail left.
FROM: NAOYA
SUBJECT: What's wrong?
Why do you hesitate, Kiyoshi? There is no other way for man to survive the coming storm. The way is clear.
All you have to do is become the overlord and order the demons to not harm humans. You can even lift the lockdown afterwards, either through words or might.
Kiyoshi...
Come to me. Now.
When he finished reading the e-mails, he looked up. That... gigolo... was walking towards him, grinning.
"Oh my, we meet again. I'm glad to see that you made it out alive. Well done! But you know... everyone's going to die tomorrow. That's a sad thing."
... He didn't look very sad, though.
Kiyoshi shook his head, trying to keep the worry off of his face. "It's not over yet."
"Haha... I had a feeling you'd say that. Well, whatever you think, you may be able to change that destiny in the remaining time."
Might as well humor him... "Really?"
"Ha... you can believe me, or not. You're free to decide. People's thoughts are useful. Oddly enough, Naoya's summoning program proved that. If you use that power to your advantage, you can change the world... or your destiny."
The man grinned again. "... Walk the path with those sympathetic to you and with whom you would share destiny."
What. "What path?"
"Well... didn't you receive an email from that person, just a moment ago? I believe that's the invitation to go forth, hand in hand, into destiny. There are an infinity of roads before you. You should already know who walks which path..."
Kiyoshi sighed. "Humor me."
"Well, what world would you like to hear about?"
... The man received a flat look in response. "Tell me about Amane's plan, then."
"Ah! This world will come if you heed the angels' words and become the Messiah. As long as God's wishes are met, mankind can avoid further ordeals. A world of complete order, with no injustice or discontent... whether you think of that as wonderful or restrictive is up to you. But, knowing that the angels ordered this lockdown and suffering, can you obey them?"
... He didn't think he could. It left a bad taste in his mouth...
"Tell me about Naoya's plan next."
The man grinned. "This path leads you to become the King of Bel, ruling over the demons and saving mankind. And, in using that power to battle God, humanity will gain eternal freedom from His whim. Of course, man will never have God's salvation, but will be free of his judgement as well. It will be a world where the weak fall victim to the strong and power is all that matters." A pause, and a shrug.
"Well, a certain amount of natural selection is to be expected..."
... The weak falling victim to the strong... he didn't like the sound of that.
"... Are there any other options?"
"Oh, my... still looking for more options? All right, I'll tell you. You can give up on deciding the future of humanity and just escape the lockdown. You demon tamers should be able to break through the military cordon, right? Whether you live or die is up to you. But think about what will happen afterward..."
... He liked the sound of that even less.
The man stretched, and chuckled. "Anyway, tomorrow is the last day. I wish you the best of luck."
... And then he disappeared into thin air, right in front of Kiyoshi's eyes.
He needed to find these people.
A short walk to Shinagawa later, Kiyoshi was face to face with Amane - well. Not really. Remiel was talking, and it was obvious from Amane's manner of speech.
"Kiyoshi Yamada. Have you made your decision to become the Messiah and save mankind? You have been selected by our Almighty Lord. ... This glory can be none other than yours. ... Now, Kiyoshi. Let us go forth together with Him."
Kiyoshi was hesitant. "What happens to humanity?"
"Kindhearted Kiyoshi... your heart aches with worry for your people, does it not? It is true that not all will be safe, even in a world under His rule. Those who do not repent breaking His teachings will suffer His judgement. But, Kiyoshi, man has continuously chosen to walk a fool's path. When the unjust kill the just, and the righteous shed tears, can all truly be forgiven? Now is when man must awaken and take the path of justice and order, as he was meant to. In order for that to happen, you must become the Messiah and lead humanity."
Kiyoshi thought about Gin and Mari, and how they had died for stupid, stupid things. It wasn't fair... but this still made him uncomfortable.
"I want to think it over."
Remiel nodded. "I await your answer."
... Time to hear what Naoya had to say. Kiyoshi headed towards Aoyama, where he spotted Naoya talking to... Kaido. Dammit.
"Yo, you guys." The gang leader nodded to them briefly.
Naoya chuckled. "... You've come, Kiyoshi. I found someone with interesting talents, so I invited him... it seems that you already know each other."
Kaido snorted. "Hmph... this guy says that he's your cousin? That explains a lot. You're both weird."
Naoya ignored Kaido for the moment. "Kiyoshi, have you made your decision to become overlord? If you become the overlord, the lockdown will be lfited and mankind will be saved. But the angels who ordered the lockdown, and their own leader, won't be happy."
"... You mean God." Something was off, here...
"That's right... it's 'God'. The one who rules this world, and master of the angels who force these ordeals on us! If you try to use the power of demons to take control, they will surely intervene. ... The battle against God will begin. Unless God's hold on the world is broken, your wishes will never come true."
Kaido, aggravating as usual, butted in. "Being released from God, huh... ? Well, bring it on! This lockdown only happened because God's selfish about having power. He's sittin' back in heaven while He orders the government to do whatever He wants. All this was starting to piss me off... I want to meet this God guy face-to-face and beat his punk ass down!"
Naoya, mercifully, interrupted again. "Heh... it won't end with the death of God. Once Kiyoshi is overlord, this world is his. Everything you want will be yours. Money, food... everything you can wish for. Then again... money will be useless at that point. Ha ha..."
... He didn't want to rule. He just wanted to help people.
"Now, Kiyoshi... tell me your decision. Have you made up your mind to become king?"
He had a choice to make. He could either become the Messiah... or rule over demons. But to become the Messiah, he would have to obey God... and God was the one who ordered this whole ordeal, wasn't He?
... That really left only one option.
"... I'll become king."
Naoya started to laugh. "Ha ha ha... good! There's my cousin!"
Yuzu stared at Kiyoshi. "H-hey, Kiyoshi... you're... not serious about this, are you?"
"... I'm very serious."
Yuzu looked crushed. "Sorry, Kiyoshi... I can't go with you!"
Atsuro stood there with his mouth open for a moment. "Huh... !? Yoohoo, what're you say -"
"We can't do this. All this talk about killing God and crushing the SDF people..."
"But we don't have a choice! If we don't, they're going to kill us anyway!"
Yuzu shook her head. "... I'm sorry. Thanks for everything. ... Goodbye..."
"Yuzu, hey!"
Midori approached them. "I'm sorry. I... I can't go along with this, either."
"Wha - !?" Atsuro blinked hard.
Midori shook her head and walked off.
Keisuke stared at the two of them, and bit his lip. "I'm... I'm sorry. I can't... this isn't right."
"Keisuke, wait!"
Kiyoshi didn't say anything for a long moment. Midori he had barely known. Keisuke had been Atsuro's friend. But Yuzu...
They had been best friends since they were little. And just like that, she walked away from him... from something this important.
He couldn't blame her for being scared, but... it still hurt. Atsuro put a hand on Kiyoshi's shoulder.
Naoya didn't look concerned. "... Leave them be. Anyone in this world can be replaced easily. You choose your own friends. Don't waste time and energy fighting with them."
Anyone in this world can be replaced easily.]
[Kiyoshi's expression is carefully blank as he looks over at the Dreamberry. He knows Naoya's going to see this, so why filter it?]
[... But he sighs, and shuts it off after a few moments.]
Dream Effects: Exhaustion, fear, frustration. The feeling of being trapped. And near the end, the feeling of being stabbed in the back by someone you care about a great deal.
[It had been a long six days. Six days of fighting and struggling and just barely gaining enough information to make sure that they stayed alive.
The final solution the government was going to use... everyone was going to die if they didn't do something. It wouldn't kill all the demons in the Lockdown. He knew that much. But it was the best the government could come up with.
The others were resting. Good, they needed it.
... His COMP beeped. Flicking it open, he scrolled through the screens until he found the e-mail screen. Three e-mails blinked at him, unread.
FROM: YUZ
SUBJECT: What do we do!?
Im so scared. I just want 2 get up and run away, even while im typing this.
Every1 has their own thoughts, but this isn't something we can handle by ourselves...
If only we can get the govmint to delay their plan to kill us all... Is ther nething we can do???
... Yuzu. She was scared, which was understandable. But... running away wasn't the answer. That would just be abandoning everyone... and he couldn't do that.
The next e-mail, then.
FROM: AMANE
SUBJECT: Please
I have reflected on the events of the past week, and have reconfirmed our need of your power in order to end this situation.
The angel Remiel has promised to me that humanity will be saved if you gain control of all the demons and obey the Lord.
Please, lend me your power so that we can show mankind the path of righteousness. I will be waiting for you to come visit me.
... Amane. It was something to think about. He might as well see what Amane had to say.
... But there was still one e-mail left.
FROM: NAOYA
SUBJECT: What's wrong?
Why do you hesitate, Kiyoshi? There is no other way for man to survive the coming storm. The way is clear.
All you have to do is become the overlord and order the demons to not harm humans. You can even lift the lockdown afterwards, either through words or might.
Kiyoshi...
Come to me. Now.
When he finished reading the e-mails, he looked up. That... gigolo... was walking towards him, grinning.
"Oh my, we meet again. I'm glad to see that you made it out alive. Well done! But you know... everyone's going to die tomorrow. That's a sad thing."
... He didn't look very sad, though.
Kiyoshi shook his head, trying to keep the worry off of his face. "It's not over yet."
"Haha... I had a feeling you'd say that. Well, whatever you think, you may be able to change that destiny in the remaining time."
Might as well humor him... "Really?"
"Ha... you can believe me, or not. You're free to decide. People's thoughts are useful. Oddly enough, Naoya's summoning program proved that. If you use that power to your advantage, you can change the world... or your destiny."
The man grinned again. "... Walk the path with those sympathetic to you and with whom you would share destiny."
What. "What path?"
"Well... didn't you receive an email from that person, just a moment ago? I believe that's the invitation to go forth, hand in hand, into destiny. There are an infinity of roads before you. You should already know who walks which path..."
Kiyoshi sighed. "Humor me."
"Well, what world would you like to hear about?"
... The man received a flat look in response. "Tell me about Amane's plan, then."
"Ah! This world will come if you heed the angels' words and become the Messiah. As long as God's wishes are met, mankind can avoid further ordeals. A world of complete order, with no injustice or discontent... whether you think of that as wonderful or restrictive is up to you. But, knowing that the angels ordered this lockdown and suffering, can you obey them?"
... He didn't think he could. It left a bad taste in his mouth...
"Tell me about Naoya's plan next."
The man grinned. "This path leads you to become the King of Bel, ruling over the demons and saving mankind. And, in using that power to battle God, humanity will gain eternal freedom from His whim. Of course, man will never have God's salvation, but will be free of his judgement as well. It will be a world where the weak fall victim to the strong and power is all that matters." A pause, and a shrug.
"Well, a certain amount of natural selection is to be expected..."
... The weak falling victim to the strong... he didn't like the sound of that.
"... Are there any other options?"
"Oh, my... still looking for more options? All right, I'll tell you. You can give up on deciding the future of humanity and just escape the lockdown. You demon tamers should be able to break through the military cordon, right? Whether you live or die is up to you. But think about what will happen afterward..."
... He liked the sound of that even less.
The man stretched, and chuckled. "Anyway, tomorrow is the last day. I wish you the best of luck."
... And then he disappeared into thin air, right in front of Kiyoshi's eyes.
He needed to find these people.
A short walk to Shinagawa later, Kiyoshi was face to face with Amane - well. Not really. Remiel was talking, and it was obvious from Amane's manner of speech.
"Kiyoshi Yamada. Have you made your decision to become the Messiah and save mankind? You have been selected by our Almighty Lord. ... This glory can be none other than yours. ... Now, Kiyoshi. Let us go forth together with Him."
Kiyoshi was hesitant. "What happens to humanity?"
"Kindhearted Kiyoshi... your heart aches with worry for your people, does it not? It is true that not all will be safe, even in a world under His rule. Those who do not repent breaking His teachings will suffer His judgement. But, Kiyoshi, man has continuously chosen to walk a fool's path. When the unjust kill the just, and the righteous shed tears, can all truly be forgiven? Now is when man must awaken and take the path of justice and order, as he was meant to. In order for that to happen, you must become the Messiah and lead humanity."
Kiyoshi thought about Gin and Mari, and how they had died for stupid, stupid things. It wasn't fair... but this still made him uncomfortable.
"I want to think it over."
Remiel nodded. "I await your answer."
... Time to hear what Naoya had to say. Kiyoshi headed towards Aoyama, where he spotted Naoya talking to... Kaido. Dammit.
"Yo, you guys." The gang leader nodded to them briefly.
Naoya chuckled. "... You've come, Kiyoshi. I found someone with interesting talents, so I invited him... it seems that you already know each other."
Kaido snorted. "Hmph... this guy says that he's your cousin? That explains a lot. You're both weird."
Naoya ignored Kaido for the moment. "Kiyoshi, have you made your decision to become overlord? If you become the overlord, the lockdown will be lfited and mankind will be saved. But the angels who ordered the lockdown, and their own leader, won't be happy."
"... You mean God." Something was off, here...
"That's right... it's 'God'. The one who rules this world, and master of the angels who force these ordeals on us! If you try to use the power of demons to take control, they will surely intervene. ... The battle against God will begin. Unless God's hold on the world is broken, your wishes will never come true."
Kaido, aggravating as usual, butted in. "Being released from God, huh... ? Well, bring it on! This lockdown only happened because God's selfish about having power. He's sittin' back in heaven while He orders the government to do whatever He wants. All this was starting to piss me off... I want to meet this God guy face-to-face and beat his punk ass down!"
Naoya, mercifully, interrupted again. "Heh... it won't end with the death of God. Once Kiyoshi is overlord, this world is his. Everything you want will be yours. Money, food... everything you can wish for. Then again... money will be useless at that point. Ha ha..."
... He didn't want to rule. He just wanted to help people.
"Now, Kiyoshi... tell me your decision. Have you made up your mind to become king?"
He had a choice to make. He could either become the Messiah... or rule over demons. But to become the Messiah, he would have to obey God... and God was the one who ordered this whole ordeal, wasn't He?
... That really left only one option.
"... I'll become king."
Naoya started to laugh. "Ha ha ha... good! There's my cousin!"
Yuzu stared at Kiyoshi. "H-hey, Kiyoshi... you're... not serious about this, are you?"
"... I'm very serious."
Yuzu looked crushed. "Sorry, Kiyoshi... I can't go with you!"
Atsuro stood there with his mouth open for a moment. "Huh... !? Yoohoo, what're you say -"
"We can't do this. All this talk about killing God and crushing the SDF people..."
"But we don't have a choice! If we don't, they're going to kill us anyway!"
Yuzu shook her head. "... I'm sorry. Thanks for everything. ... Goodbye..."
"Yuzu, hey!"
Midori approached them. "I'm sorry. I... I can't go along with this, either."
"Wha - !?" Atsuro blinked hard.
Midori shook her head and walked off.
Keisuke stared at the two of them, and bit his lip. "I'm... I'm sorry. I can't... this isn't right."
"Keisuke, wait!"
Kiyoshi didn't say anything for a long moment. Midori he had barely known. Keisuke had been Atsuro's friend. But Yuzu...
They had been best friends since they were little. And just like that, she walked away from him... from something this important.
He couldn't blame her for being scared, but... it still hurt. Atsuro put a hand on Kiyoshi's shoulder.
Naoya didn't look concerned. "... Leave them be. Anyone in this world can be replaced easily. You choose your own friends. Don't waste time and energy fighting with them."
Anyone in this world can be replaced easily.]
[Kiyoshi's expression is carefully blank as he looks over at the Dreamberry. He knows Naoya's going to see this, so why filter it?]
[... But he sighs, and shuts it off after a few moments.]