Part 43: Yuki Takamiya 3

We haven’t spent time with Yuki in quite a while. Let’s rectify that.



Chapter 43: Yuki Takamiya 3




But one thing’s for damn sure. Nat-chan’s definitely involved. Gotta look for more clues.



Drink Hey-C

Our first priority should, of course, be drinking our apple juice.

(Can’t go wrong with apple juice. Me and Nat-chan used to drink it all the time when we were kids.)





I’ve been looking for you.
……

I’m sure you were, android! What, you couldn’t use your robo-eyes to see through walls or… whatever? But… is “426” still in the Tamao android right now, or is it someone else…?

Consider Tomi Kisaragi

(Right before the incident in the girls’ bathroom… There was another Kisaragi chasing after Nat-chan. Kisaragi is also one of the names on that list. So that means four-eyes wants me to watch her…)

Use Girls’ Bathroom on Erika Aiba



Oh, didn’t I tell you? They’ve started renovating. Even if we can get inside, there’s nothing to see anymore.
Well, shit. That was fast.

How very convenient… for you, Aiba. Well, let’s head back over to the athletics building and investigate some more.

Music: LONER (Azusa Chiba)




Let’s see, last time we were here…

Did you notice anything strange about her? Besides her being absent from school.
Well, depends what you define as strange, but… Natsuno did stop coming to training. But I’d still see her in the locker room.
Doing what?
It seemed like she was there to get something.
Something like…?
Some kinda UFO-looking thing? I don’t know exactly. It just looked like a box when it was in her bag.
A box in the locker room, huh?
Yeah.

Let’s continue pulling that thread.



We never checked out the inside of the track and field room before, so let’s do that.



That room is for authorized personnel only.






This is how the robot uprising starts: with menial favors.

Use Track and Field Room on Erika Aiba




But that goody two-shoes over there keeps stopping me.
…… You want me to be a decoy?
What, you don’t wanna do it?
Oh, good heavens! You and I are partners, Takamiya-san.



Yeah, okay. Just hold her attention until I get inside the room. Wait for me out here when you’re done.
*affirmative grunt*



Okay, let’s try this again.




Oh. Yeah?
I would like to inquire about Minami-san.
You too?
Oh, was there someone else?
Well, yeah…



That seems to have worked.

What did you want to know about Natsuno?
Ohhh…
……
Weeell…
……





Nat-chan’s, found it.




The one that girl in Nat-chan’s class was talking about. She said she saw her “fervently scribbling” into it…

Yeah, Megumi did tell us something about that, right…

I did see her fervently scribbling something in her notebook. And it didn’t seem like it was just notes on the lecture.




I thought you were supposed to be distracting that girl?
She was called over by her senpai. So off she went. *giggle*
……

That’s robot for “she’s dead,” right?

Consider Minami’s Notebook





“He has arrived from outer space. An actual extraterrestrial being! In summary, whoa. Aliens really do exist.”



Consider Extraterrestrial Being

(An extraterrestrial being… Did Nat-chan make all this up? Or is it possible… She really *was* abducted by aliens?)

Consider Minami’s Notebook




“Who could have dreamed that their technology had such capability… An actual gateway to time travel. Right in Tokisaka Shrine!”



Consider Tokisaka Shrine

(Tokisaka Shrine… Maybe Nat-chan went there. Either way, it’s definitely a clue.)

Consider Minami’s Notebook




“It’s called Sentinel No. 17. Riding inside of it seems to enable him to fight against evil aliens.”



Consider Sentinel No. 17

(A robot… Could this be what four-eyes was talking about? Is this the weapon Shikishima is developing?)

Each of these notebook entries will give us a new Thought Cloud item, but only the most recent thought will be saved. This is annoying because we’ve already seen the thought that results in progression, meaning we have to go back and examine the notebook entry again to get it back. This had me stuck for a good bit on my first run when I just couldn’t figure out how to move forward.



I can’t do that.



Just think of the drama that unfolds here.

Man, this robit is dumb.

To progress, we need to examine the second entry again to get the “Tokisaka Shrine” thought back.

Use Tokisaka Shrine on Erika Aiba



It’s nearby, actually!




Take me there, will you? I’m gonna go grab my bag. I’ll meet you at the front gate.




Oh hey, is that…?

Music: Between The Lines (Kikuchi Yukinori)



Nenji told us something interesting before, didn’t he?

So, Nat-chan. You know she’s gone missing?
…Yeah. I do know. I suspect the black suits have something to do with that.
Why do you say that?
I saw Minami being chased by them one time.
. . . (The agent on Nat-chan’s case… Shinonome. Do I have to ask her for help after all? I mean, she is pretty messed up too. ……)

Maybe we should confront her about that.





Weren’t you told not to contact me?
Shinonome… There’s something I need to speak to you about.
……



Use Natsuno Minami on Ryoko Shinonome



I heard she was being pursued by men in black suits. If that’s true…



…… I’ve already told you. Natsuno Minami has to do with my investigation. But I can tell you one thing for certain. We didn’t kidnap her. If we had, there’d be no need for this investigation in the first place.
…… Are you giving me your word on that?
…Get back to your assignment.



D’okay.




I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it… You said you hid something for me.
Oh, right. You told me to hide it. You don’t remember, do you? It was in the passageway to the old school building.




What happened there?

Use Old School Building on Ryoko Shinonome



It was being shown through a projector. And you started crying…



Yeah, and you were saying something about four-eyes.
Mr. Ida…?



So sudden… My pills.




Ryoko runs inside.






Give me a minute.



(What happened in the old building’s passageway… But I remember.)



Consider Old School Building




I saw her. She was near the old school building…




I was thinking there were fewer people around here.



I heard it’s gonna be demolished soon. No doubt it is old. It was built during the war. Seems like a shame, really. This place is so quiet. Would’ve been a perfect place to hang out.



Consider Sakura High School



I wonder if I could have gotten into Sakura the normal way. Heh. Yeah, right.



Over on the other side of the passageway…




Ryoko presses something, causing BJ (?) to turn back into a box.




Look for the information on me and Mr. Ida.



Music: STAGNATION (Yoshimi Kudo)




Oh fuck me, not this again!

His love was nothing but empty words. Mr. Ida… He was using me, right from the very start.
*gasp*
I was such a fool. We are all that remains of humanity. And still we deceive each other, so filled with hate… I have had… enough.



Humanity has always been fated for ruin. Project Ark was a mistake. But it is already in its second stage. I cannot stop it… All I can do is derail it. I have linked in parts of the terraforming project.

Wait… terraforming? I feel like I’ve heard that befooooooohhhhhhhh no

The heavy machinery will then purge humans from all sectors. If everything goes according to plan… The final phase will be reset. And all sectors will fall into a never-ending loop.

There’s that word again, “loop.”

What remains will be a peaceful world. Finally free of humanity…



This place will be destroyed as well. The human race has reached its end. We have no need for a future.

…………….WHAT!?



As Yuki approaches, Ryoko can be heard sobbing.




Ahh… *whimpering*



Shinonome, right?
It’s… impossible…



Music: Impending Doom (Mitsuhiro Kaneda)

Did I do it? Was it really me?



Oh geez, that’s… that’s rough, buddy.



Mr. Ida would never deceive me.
What are you talking about?
There’s no way… That isn’t my future…



Okay?




Was it four-eyes?
*crying*





This is a wholly inappropriate time for an incredibly timely reference to “Threw It On The Ground,” and thus I will avoid making it.





Use Shinonome’s Pills on Ryoko Shinonome




Ryoko turns away.

Don’t you need these?
…… Why… Why are you trying to help me?
Well… I just… You’re my senpai at the SIU, so…
……
Oh, yeah.





……




So how do you work this thing? I want to see that video again…



*gasp*




Get that thing out of here… Please… Don’t tell Mr. Ida… Don’t tell anyone… Please…





Can’t believe you collapsed on me like that…





*groggy noises*

Use Shinonome’s Pills on Ryoko Shinonome



It’s your medicine.




That’s… quite a few pills you just took.




It was the first thing she did when I carried you in here. Are you sure it’s okay? To take so much of it, I mean.



Why did you have my medicine?

Oh dear.



I… threw it?
Yeah… Anyway, about that… *thing*. You sure it was okay?




Music: Sneaking Suspicions (Kikuchi Yukinori)

The thing you told me to hide.
*sigh* I said no such thing.

Oh come on!

Are you trying to play games with me? You were babbling on and on about that damn four-eyes. And crying. …A lot.



Don’t lie to me.
The hell is going on with this girl?



Ugh…




Ryoko takes more pills.

Shit, seriously… What are those for anyways?
I can’t think straight unless I take them.




More pills for Ryoko.

I dunno dude… Looks like bad news to me.





I’m fine. Takamiya-san… Please, just stay out of this.
……
Is something wrong?
No. It’s just…




*frightened gasp*



The light suddenly shifts, casting an ominous shadow across Ryoko and Ms. Morimura…





Well, that was… a lot!



We can unlock Yuki again.



*sigh* We’re going to have to deal with this, aren’t we? Ryoko… is the one responsible for sending the “kaiju” to kill everyone!? Well, future Ryoko, but still! What the hell is going on!? It seems like she utilized Shikishima’s terraforming equipment to initiate the purge due to losing hope for humanity after being manipulated by Ida. This… causes a reset of Project Ark (???????) somehow, resulting in “a never-ending loop.” Huh. Still a lot we don’t understand there.

But it’s definitely time to break out the board again after that chaos.




The first thing we do is get rid of these two mysteries. Natsuno being the commander is due to her having the D-Code along with the other main characters, so we should have gotten rid of that a while back. And we know Megumi came to some understanding with Juro’s grandma or something. Maybe there’s more to that, but we’ll see in time.



We also get rid of “Why Are The Kaiju Invading?”, because we actually have the answer to that now! Not in a way that makes any sense, but still!



We’ll also be getting rid of 2188…



…And replacing it with a much larger 2188!



2188 is now its own section of the board! This is a nightmare from which I will never escape! I add questions about Ryoko sending the kaiju and Project Ark, and add a note about Tamao Kurabe being an AI expert.



The last thing we’re going to do is add Tamao as a character. I debated whether she’s important enough to warrant one, but her appearing both as an android and in Shu’s Ida dream seems like enough grounds to give her presence here. I link her indirectly to Yuki and Juro, and directly to Ida, Miura, and 426. For those wondering, Juro’s link is indirect because while they are obviously connected in some way, it doesn’t seem terribly important yet.



And here’s the finished board at present.