[Fanfiction] Academy Chronicles: Episode Tsumugi

[Failinhearts]

After months and months of setup, the next prequel to the SSMB Heroes Academy Roleplay is here! This time, focusing on Tsumugi Shirogane, Season 2's Mastermind and her rise to power... and how it ties into the RP's entire history.

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A prequel of the crossover RP SSMB Heroes Academy's Second Season.

Evil never really dies. Sometimes, it only gets stronger. This is the case for Tsumugi Shirogane, who not only suffered a career ending defeat, but her own death.

Yet she lives as a new, more powerful force, and she's using that to get a second chance to fulfill her dream of entertaining an audience and becoming validated once more... no matter the cost and no matter who she has to work with.

And this time, the entire multiverse is her stage.

CHAPTER 1: CREATIVE AMBITION

Spoiler

Foundation Prime.

The center of all dimensions in the multiverse. A sacred land containing seas of bricks, occasionally blasting upwards to form hints of the many realities surrounding it.

A once undisturbed land, until one day, a being known as Lord Vortech sought to use its power to create one “perfect” universe before being stopped by the three “Travellers”.

The legendary hero of Gotham: Batman, the rebellious Master Builder Wyldstyle and the wise wizard Gandalf put an end to Vortech’s wish for multiversal consolidation and had the cruel mastermind trapped within a never-ending rift loop.

That is, until one day, the arrival of the Disciples changed the multiverse forever. These dimension hopping heroes lead by the Sentinel known as Sonic the Hedgehog and Sayaka Miki made the concept of universal travel a regular thing to both heroes and villains alike.

And the more rifts that open, the higher the risk of tears in the fabric of space and time become, freeing Vortech from his prison… and eventually becoming the leader of LOSE.

A multiversal organization of evildoers which he used to achieve a new goal: Find a way to kill the Writers who create the Fictional Realm and free villains from their fate of losing to the hero.

He eventually figured out a way to do so, by using the Foundation Elements of this unstable multiverse and the power of either Sonic or Sayaka to point the way to the Golden Weapons that convert a Writer’s thoughts into reality.

With only two, the Fourth Wall can break.

To accomplish his goal, he needs a spy to infiltrate the Skylanders, a new group of heroes formed by the Disciples from across the multiverse to protect it. Luckily… he knew just the one he could use.

He just needed to revive her…

….

………

……………….

Waddling across the room, a black and white bear looks across the hall of the grand palace of Foundation Prime: The home of LOSE.

“Ah, here we are!” Monokuma, LOSE’s second in command points out upon stumbling across a regal pair of doors. He proceeds to knock.

“Right, so uh… boss? Looking through the list of the crap we need for that little hourglass you’re makin’. You’re saying one of these Elements is that Madoka chick’s hair ribbon?”

Silence.

“…Boss? Oooopen says a me! Hellloooo?”

 He knocks again.

“Getting real tired of your shit, your majesty.” Monokuma says, sarcastically.

A loud voice booms from the other side.

“You will not interrupt me during my ritual!”

A gust flows through the cracks, pushing Monokuma into the wall.

“…Fine. I’ll ask Izanami then. Geez.” Monokuma growls. “Why am I working for this friggin’ guy again?”

Dusting himself off, he walks away, grumbling to himself as he wonders what’s even going on in there.

“Ritual… heh. He’s probably jacking off or something. Do these LEGO people even do that? I don’t wanna know.”

Meanwhile, inside those doors, Lord Vortech is hard at work.

Looking over a human-sized capsule, Vortech holds his staff high into the sky in his private throne room. The corrupted clouds of Foundation Prime swirl around as a rift opens within the capsule itself.

“By the powers of space and time… the limitless potential of the Brick! Reform the ultimate apprentice!”

Coming out of the rift, bouncing inside the capsule is a swarm of white bricks. They swirl like a tornado, clicking together to slowly form a shape.

Feet… legs… torso… arms… head…

It’s rough around the edges, but it can be made out that the bricks have come together to create the silhouette of a young woman.

“Excellent…” Vortech chuckles to himself. His blue body and gold armor shimmers in the bright light of the bricks performing their next step in the revival process.

The creation is consumed in a blue light, morphing in shape. The edges round out, the proportions shift and the sound of plastic slowly fade away and become replaced with that of moving fabric.

As the light fades, the image of a human emerges from it. Blue hair, glasses, white shirt, long dark skirt and a blazer to top it all off.

She seems plain, a normal girl. But Vortech knows what he has.

As she bears the potential to become one of the greatest threats in the multiverse.

 

[Failinhearts]

Been pretty busy, but I'm back in business to deliver updates once every two weeks as I alternate with Guidances!

CHAPTER 2: REBIRTH

Spoiler

The Ultimate Academy for Gifted Juveniles.

A place that seems to hold the best of the best students, only to turn out to be a refuge after a great disaster… to then be revealed as the stage of a sadistic game.

A game where people choose to be stripped of their identities, their personalities, everything that they are to become subjects of a killing game. A game broadcast to billions across the globe for their amusement.

The game is called Danganronpa. Or at least, so it has been claimed to be.

But now, 53 seasons in, the final survivors managed to put an end to this ceaseless killing. Who would be behind such a cruel act to begin with?

Tsumugi Shirogane. A seemingly plain girl with long blue hair, glasses and a passion for all things geek culture. The Ultimate Cosplayer with the ability to dress up as any fictional character down to the most impossible of qualities.

Some may call it illusion, disguise, or even shapeshifting. Nevertheless, it was pure talent.

A talent born from passion for Danganronpa. A talent turned into evil as she orchestrated this season to entertain the masses.

That is… until now. The masses have made their choice, Danganronpa will end. Now she watches her empire fall piece by piece.

“It’s all led up to this… huh?” Tsumugi asks herself internally as she looks up. A blue blaze ricochets from structure to structure. The only being keeping her company in her final moments is the Monokuma mascot she works with.

“Final punishment time.” Monokuma tells Tsumugi, waving to the remaining Nanokumas who are filming this last execution. The end of the set and of everyone inside it. “Smile and wave like you mean it, girlo! This is what you wanted, right?!”

“A Mastermind’s death!”

“Then why do I feel so empty…?” Tsumugi clutches her chest. It’s true, it’s not like she didn’t plan for her death or anything. She’d be fine with whatever may come to her. After all, this is Danganronpa. Anyone can die at any moment.

No.

This was Danganronpa.

This isn’t just the end of a season. This could be the end of the series. And it’s all on her. The people of the world rejected her stories. Her future plans. The spin-offs, the merchandise, the views, the fanfiction… all of which she dreamed she has, crumbling away like the building behind her.

With a somber sigh, filled with something that she never felt before. It’s not despair not like the one she aspired to give… rather something truly miserable. Something her favorite character, Junko Enoshima even hates.

Disappointment. In herself.

No matter her denial, this is all on her.

“…Right?”

Tsumugi’s mind goes hazy, as if the whole world is distorting around her. Almost like what she’s seeing isn’t real. Is this a virtual simulation? The truth? Or even a lie she told others?

Is Danganronpa really a worldwide phenomenon? Or was this something she claimed?

“I don’t know anymore…”

Tsumugi clutches her head, an extreme pain coursing through her. Almost like as if it is breaking and putting itself together again. Her eyes shut tightly as she anticipates for that final boulder to fall on her…

…Only it never did when she opens her eyes. She could only hear a digitized voice.

GENETIC RECONSTRUCTION COMPLETE. CONCLUSION: SUBJECT MAY HAVE MENTAL FRAGMENTATION.

“Where am I?”

Tsumugi looks at herself. Alive, in as pristine condition as she was during Danganronpa 53. Not only that, but she’s floating in a pod. Outside of the glass casing she noted is a palace made of bricks. Toy bricks.

“Hello? Hello?!” She calls out, floating towards the glass and placing her palms on it. “Can someone please let me out?!”

Nobody. Is the person behind this on some kind of break.

“So unprofessional…” She grumbles internally.

She bangs on the glass with her fist. “I said hello?! Let me out!”

Again, and again, and again she hits the glass with as much force as her body could muster.

“I should have made myself the Ultimate Martial Artist or something. What does Sakura do? Right, right!”

She winds up a powerful punch… only to hurt her knuckles against the glass.

“Shit!” She cries out, holding onto her fist.

She stares at the fist, trembling. Her eyes flare up with rage until something catches her attention… her fist is glowing blue.

Her arm follows suit, then her chest, and her legs, everything is illuminating, and it feels good.

Accepting her new powers, Tsumugi tries again. With a mighty cry based on all those shounen anime she watched as a kid, she strikes the glass with a powerful punch…

“Gaaah!” She cries. She didn’t leave a dent.

“…This definitely isn’t glass!”

 

[Failinhearts]

The next chapter is finally here, introducing the Lord of Games himself, originally portrayed by @Crow the BOOLET!

CHAPTER 3: Enter L.O.G

Spoiler

Floating around in the pod, Tsumugi continues to experiment with her powers. Generating a brick with her hands, she tosses it around, watching it slowly descend to her hands before lifting it up.

Her fear and confusion morphed into boredom and uncertainty. She still doesn’t know where this place is, who brought her here, and how the hell she even got these powers.

She could make out a throne room but it’s not like she knew who it belonged to. Whoever he is, he must sure be a busy man to leave her alone for so long.

Occasionally she would put her ear against the pod’s surface to hear murmuring. Talks about plans, setting up, their boss on some sort of investigation, it’s faint but something about her developing powers allowed her to make out some sort of English words.

…Maybe she would’ve been more attentive if one voice wasn’t distracting her from how familiar it sounds.

“…Is that Monokuma? No, it can’t be. Danganronpa’s fictional... right?”

Tsumugi rubs her head. This mental fragmentation isn’t going away any time soon.

Suddenly, Tsumugi could feel goosebumps run up her spine. An unfamiliar sound, almost like the sound of a ghost passing through a wall, like in the horror anime she watched as a child.

“Who’s there?!”

Her face suddenly presses against the glass dome of the pod in an attempt to intimidate the intruder.

Nothing.

Tsumugi slowly inches away from the glass. Maybe a false ala-

“WELL, WELL!”

In a flash, what appears to be a TV screen appears in front of Tsumugi, startling her.

“Gah!”

Recovering from the shock, Tsumugi looks down to see that this isn’t just some TV Screen, but it’s displaying… a game of pong? The paddles appear to make up eyes as they move in a natural manner to pupils.

Below, she could see an elegant robe, almost like this is royalty of some sort.

“A living… TV. Riiiight, this has to be another test. Only my boss could do something this crazy. Yeah, yeah, that’s it.”

“So this is what Vortech’s been up to, huh? Pffft, he’s always been so boring. Why bring HER back to life?”

“A-Alright, cut the crap, guys. I know this is you, Mr. Kodaka. Another one of your wacky auditions. You can take out the disguise now!” Tsumugi says with wavering denial.

“Mr. Kodaka? Oh, honey. I didn’t know you knew who your writer was! Did Vortech give you the ol’ existential runaround?” The TV playfully floated around, it seemed full of energy and enthusiasm… but Tsumugi could feel something chilling behind that demeanor. Almost like a façade.

“Who the hell is Vortech?”

“…Guess not! Well, he’s not important. Just some lame-o sore loser who hates making things interesting with his posse of other lame-o sore losers!”

The TV leans forward, observing Tsumugi. “And it looks like he wants to use you for something. That’s why he brought you back to life…”

“Wait, I actually died?!” Tsumugi gasps.

“Oh yeah. Biiiiig rock.” The TV screen changes to show a poorly rendered stick figure being crushed by a pong ball. “SQUISH!”

“Just a pool of Pepto-Bismol and flesh. Ain’t pretty.”

“And what does he want me to do?” Tsumugi asks.

“Girl, I know everything about you. You’re a disguisin’ machine! No doubt you’d be perfect for his stupid little evil plan to make things boring for characters like us!” The TV proceeds to go on a tangent. “I mean, who’d want to destroy writers? Our job is to entertain! That’s the point of a character, yeah?”

“T-That’s right.” Tsumugi says. “That’s what… I wanted to do.  Entertain people.” She twiddles her thumbs.

“They wanted Danganronpa, and I wanted to give them what they want. But they threw me away, instead.”

The TV looks at her, stays silent for a moment before turning away. “Oh, I hear that. One of my earliest gigs was bringing back a classic game franchise. But how was I supposed to know that they didn’t want cars?! Try something a little different, man.”

He turns around. “Hey, I may not be this… Kodaka you’re talkin’ about. But it looks we had the same problem. Tell ya what. I’m trying to make my own show, and I need a crew. How’s about you ditch this pidge and come with me? Have that second chance to show someone what we’re made of?”

Tsumugi stares in bewilderment. “And… who are we entertaining?”

“Well, basically gods. People who created us. I’ll fill you in on the way to my place, if you want.” The TV says.

“And your name is?” Tsumugi asks.

“I never thought you’d ask. Name’s the Lord of Games, but please! Call me L.O.G.” The TV finally states.

“L.O.G… Waiiiit a minute, you came here because you know I’d join your crew, huh?” Tsumugi asks.

“Well, they never said I was subtle.” L.O.G sighs. “But do you want out, or not?”

“Sure. I don’t understand what the hell a lot of what you said means, but if it means getting one more chance… I’ll do anything.” Tsumugi nods.

“Perfect! Now step back, daddy’s got some work to do!” Out of nowhere, L.O.G gets out a blowtorch.

 

[Failinhearts]

LOG's plan is underway as he sways Tsumugi to his cause... but what is his cause, exactly?

CHAPTER 4: THE BOX DIMENSION

Spoiler

“Here we are! My humble abode slash, studio slash, hideout slash, company headquarters!” LOG introduces as he and Tsumugi walk through a purple vortex, now that she’s freed from her pod prison.

Tsumugi gets a good look at her surroundings: An endless purple void populated with nothing but cardboard boxes.

There’s boxes in the air, boxes as buildings, boxes in the sea… also made of boxes. It’s a sight more surreal than any Killing Game she could possibly think of.

“Why is this… your house?” Tsumugi asks, still baffled by this new concept of dimension travel, writers, and floating, talking television screens.

“Oh, it’s simple, honey! Simple, indeed! Nobody ever lives here, and nobody visits here anymore. The only other creature in this place is that orange fuzzball over there.”

Directing Tsumugi’s attention upwards, she notices a box that flies by which opens up to reveal an orange, fuzzy sphere with eyes. Looking at Tsumugi, this orange creature opens its mouth happily, revealing its bucktooth smile.

“But enough about him! We should talk about what I do here!” LOG chirps. “Let’s talk, producer to producer, eh?”

“Definitely, so… you mentioned your failure at rebooting a game? Was there anything else you did in your career afterwards?” Tsumugi asks the enigmatic TV.

“Oh, ho! Skipping to the resume! I didn’t even offer you refreshments, yet!” LOG laughs.

“…They’d probably be made of boxes anyway.” Tsumugi whispers to herself.

“Well, lessee! I decided to move on from gaming after that… mishap which let me tell you! That’s gonna be a cult classic in 15 years just you wait! But I moved on to the film and TV biz!” LOG explains.

“TV, huh? Alright, I’m listening.” Tsumugi says. “And how did they do?”

“O-Oh! Uhh… they were marvelous! Top of their time slot! People from around the multiverse turn on the TV to see it!” LOG stutters. “Got Emmys, Oscars, Golden Globes, Silver Globes, Bronze Globes, Globes stolen from school desks, the works!”

“And yet your studio is in an empty world of boxes with no crew?” Tsumugi asks.

“I’m a one man band! Yup, yup!” LOG confidently says. “But my next project is so big… it needs a TWO man band!”

“Riiight…” Tsumugi mutters in doubt. She’s growing more and more weary about this creature’s reputation in the entertainment world. However she chooses to swallow her pride. After all, LOG did save her after all.

“And that project is?”

“Check it!”

LOG tosses a newspaper from thin air, having it land in front of Tsumugi’s face.

“Mmph!”

“Read that tippy top headline up there!”

Peeling the newspaper away, Tsumugi analyzes the article.

SKYLANDER ACADEMY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

HEROES OF THE MULTIVERSE WILL SOON REUNITE UNDER ONE ROOF!

“…Superheroes of the multiverse? Skylanders? Isn’t it that one cash grab game about buying toys?”

“Maybe in your world, but you gotta catch on, girl! Everything is real somewhere, and now people from AAAAALLLLL over are joining them!” LOG says.

Tsumugi looks closer at the article. “I dunno… this feels wrong.”

“What?! How in the nutty bolts is this wrong lookin’? This is awesome! Imagine filming the antics and goings on about heroes and villains from all corners of fiction, duking it out for supremecy! I smell Globes of which mankind has never heard of before!”

Tsumugi grinds her teeth. “I dunno, these characters really shouldn’t be together. Crossovers are one thing, but…”

She puts that thought aside, still trying to articulate the words as to what’s throwing her off.

LOG observes Tsumugi’s doubt, noticing she’s getting less and less swayed with whatever prospect LOG’s proposing. His speakers make the sound of a clicking tongue as he whispers to himself.

“You ain’t backing out…”

He resumes his more cheerful demeanor as he flies in to look at the newspaper with her. “Alright, alright! I see this is still gonna need some getting used to. But I know something you might liiiiiike~”

Turning the page, the article shifts to the image of a blue hedgehog and an all too familiar boy shaking hands.

The green hoodie, the brown hair, the obnoxious yet adorable spike atop it, these details are something Tsumugi could never NOT recognize. Not after years of perfecting his cosplay.

“…M-Makoto Naegi?”

“Yeeees! Makoto Naegi! I probably should’ve mentioned a long time ago, Danganronpa’s real, Smoogs! And he’s behind this operation! Betcha wanna make a show about him now, huh?”

Tsumugi, driven by a sudden force of enthusiasm she thought she once lost closes the newspaper and stares at LOG.

“Where do we start?!”

“Not where… but when?”