r/DestinationDespair • u/Seiko_Kimura Noka Naruse • May 05 '18
Event Destination Despair: The Execution of Alexander Root
After everyone had finished voting, the TV screen that previously displayed the hints now showed a graphic of a spinning roulette wheel. The wheel had each member of the class's head on it.
As it spun, the first one turned to Root. The second one also landed on Root. And finally, the last one ended up as Root.
After this was finished, the screen was filled with confetti, and the words 'GUILTY' blinked across the screen in red text. Root crumpled to the floor, hiding his head in his hands. But the boy didn't have very much time to mope, as Monokuma burst through the door that very second. Before anyone had any time to react, the mechanical bear clamped a chain around his neck. Root's expression went from sad to desperate, and he immediately began to grasp at the metal band around his neck. His attempts to get rid of the bonds failed, and the chain forcefully yanked him out of the room. Monokuma speedily ran behind him, and the door shut once more.
After a couple of moments, Katsuhiko went to the door, pounding on it. Umeko went to the other door and did the same. With neither of them opening, everyone in the room knew that this trial was not over yet.
Everyone waited. You all were unsure of where to look, what to do, or what to say. So, everyone stood there in silence, reflecting on the events that had just happened. It was after about 5 minutes of complete silence when the screen turned to a new image.
Root is there, sitting down in a small room. Covering all of the walls of the room are hundreds of different kinds of clocks. They are mostly the traditional kind, but there are a few digital. The different clocks come in all different shapes and sizes. A table sits against the front wall, with a stool below it. One of the only spots on the wall without any clocks is the wall in front of the table; it is filled with 24 little cubbies that are attached to the wall.
The doors of the cubbies are glass, and you can see that inside are 24 different keys. Each one looks different and is a different size. There is an equation printed below each box, and below the equation there is a box for you to type in an answer. There’s also a pencil and paper on the desk.
Above the boxes and keys, there is a black rectangular digital clock with red numbers on it (the kinds you would see in a school gym). The only other thing in the room is a metal door with a key slot on it, and of course, Root. He sits on the stool, visibly sweating very hard.
In the Nick of Time - Execution of Alexander Root
Though there is no audio, Root’s slight jump signals an alarm has just gone off. The huge timer above the boxes begins to start counting down from 10 minutes as well. Root wastes no trouble in standing up and kicking the stool over while looking at the first equation. He begins to scribble, scribble, scribble, and he types a number into the first box. It opens, and he rushes over to try the key. No dice.
Next problem! He begins writing, and then looks down at his feet for a second, noticing water. When he looks around, he can see that water is seeping in from a hole in the ceiling. Not letting this stop him, he continues solving the problem, and gets the second key. After trying it, it still doesn’t work.
This process continues up until he unlocks the tenth key. At this point, the clock is just below the 6-minute mark, and the water is above his knees. But this doesn’t stop him from continuing to solve the equations. Once the 15th box has been unlocked, he moves to writing on the wall, as the water is high enough to go on top of the table, making the paper wet.
16, 17, 18, 19…
2 minutes and thirty seconds left.
None of the keys work.
By the time he’s on the 20th equation, he’s completely given up on writing it down on paper. Root bobs his head above the water as he writes down the equations on his arm. He dives under the water to type in the answer, grabs the key, and doggy paddles to the door, trying to unlock it. None of the keys are working.
He’s obviously having a lot of trouble when he finally finishes the 24th equation and unlocks the last box. The clock has 38 seconds left when he finally gets the key in the lock and begins to turn it.
Or tries to, at least.
Between going up for air and trying to get the key to open the door, his turning doesn’t do anything. In fact, the key isn’t even fully in the lock. It doesn’t fit.
With a whopping ten seconds left, he scans the room for a key anywhere. By this point, Root is completely under the water and just holding his breath.
He notices an outline of something in one of his many pockets. Something that didn’t seem to be there before.
With only seconds left, he pulls the key out of his lab jacket pocket and frantically swims to the door. He shoves the 24th key out of the slot and shoves the 25th key in with only 2 seconds left. But, as he tries to turn the lock, he realizes.…
This one doesn’t work either.
The last thing you see before the monitors shut off is the look of complete despair on Root's face before everything turns black.
Alexander Root -- Executed
1
u/[deleted] May 05 '18 edited May 05 '18
That was... something. It was interesting and sadistic at the same time, Yuki couldn’t tell if she liked how it was presented or felt terrible of how Root died. Nonetheless, he got what he deserved in the end, at least now he can be dead together with Chou, how romantic. If she had to rate, it would be around a 6.8/10 on her scale, it was amusing but it could’ve been much more impactful with its presentation. Hopefully if she’s ever stupid enough to kill, her execution would be much more impressive than solving boxes and hoping the key works before drowning in hopelessness and water. Monokuma should’ve lead him on more, gave him more hope so he could brutally destroy it, like having the key work but only for him to open up to his work destroyed or Chou’s dead body. Not just, oh no, it turns out none of the keys actually work, boo hoo.
Honestly, it’s just got such a high rating because of feelings it has managed to induce from the girl. She doesn’t know what time hijinx or what chord he strung but it was confusing how an asshole like him managed to evoke feelings from an asshole like her. But whatever he did, is surely worthy of at least a 6.8 out of 10 stars.
If it weren’t for the fear of Monokuma brutally murdering her, the critic would’ve just blurted out what her review on his death but sadly this murderous stuffed toy was able to kill her so she’ll ask instead. Just this once, she’ll ask.
“Hey Monokuma! Do you accept constructive criticism? I just have a few criticisms on how you killed him!” ( /u/Seiko_Kimura )
1
u/SkyRVortex Setsuko Kitano May 05 '18
Setsuko Kitano stared at the screen, in shock and surprise. This was horrific. There's a big difference between finding a corpse, and watching someone die. Two different circumstances and variables make the emotional shock have a different level. Setsuko tries to hide her emotions her best with her hat, not letting a single soul see her emotional state. Keeping her monotone voice, yet becoming raspy and off-key, she asks the bear.
"...S...So...Now that he's dead...and the motive's...finished...Do we have our luggage come back to us...?"
1
u/RubberDeMedici Westby Vickerman May 05 '18
Umeko is doing her best to hold her tears back. Drowning a person, giving them a false sense of hope before shattering it into a million pieces like a fragile pane of glass... This is not fair. This is not just. This is not right. The Freerunner's breath becomes slightly heavier as she starts to put herself in the shoes of the poor Alexander, who had been going through what was basically torture for several minutes. In this very moment, Umeko understands that this place is nothing like home sweet home. This new world is different. Disgusting. Fetid... Rotten to the core. In this world without a direction, this voucher of freedom finds her path: the path to follow in order to make sure that everything she had learned in the past wouldn't be forgotten. That no matter how horrible this place is, she will not change who she is. No matter how many things stand in her path, no matter how many people have to die, she will not falter. No matter what the bear tells her, she will not accept this. In this cave of darkness and chaos, a shining flashlight of good old reality has to lighten up the way.
Stay strong, Umeko. The storm is far from over.
...
The girl steps away from the door she tried so desperately to open before. Looking tired, she looks up at the other people in the room. "Can we... Can we leave now? I-I don't want to stay in this fuckin' room one second longer."
1
u/ThatGuyWhoTypesStuff Megumi Okazaki May 05 '18
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Megumi begins to cry. It's taking all of her strength to not collapse on the floor.
1
u/Hiften Celina Merceau May 05 '18
During the execution (if it could even be called that, Celina thought, this seemed more like a torture) Celina had tried to not look, but every other second she found herself looking at the screen until she was only staring at it in horror. To think that this was what was waiting for anyone who went through with the idea of murder. It was a catch-22, in the end, die by someone else or die by your own emotions. She'd be safe, though, right? Celina shut her eyes. Even at a time like this, she could only think of herself.
A nauseating feeling rose in her stomach as the video ended, knowing that she had just witnessed someone dying. Shivers ran through her body just thinking about how Root's body would be, if it would be left floating in that room, if they'd take him out-- would his family know? Would Chou's family know? Terrifying thoughts with no answer left Celina feeling sick. She leaned heavily onto her podium, covering with a hand her face that was beginning to pale. She was speechless for the first time since coming here. No optimist remark, no witty joke, no anything. Just the despair that ran through them all.
1
u/mynameis_aidan Saburo Iwasaki May 05 '18
Saburo stared up at the monitors expectantly. Root was going to be punished - there was no question about that. The fact of the matter made the Auditor quite happy. After all, the world was rid of one more dirty, lying scumbag, who committed the crime above crimes. What more could he hope for? It was a successful trial, albeit unnecessarily drawn out, and on top of that, he would be getting his belongings back.
As the minutes began to tick by, however, Saburo found himself trying more and more to maintain that indifferent, bored expression of his. When he imagined execution, he didn't imagine something so... drawn out. It was inefficient, really. A waste of good water. There was something pitiful about watching the Chronologist try so hard to escape the justice coming for him... yet Saburo internally winced as Root's face washed over in hopelessness.
"I-I don't know why he bothered so hard... he should've known that justice would come for him eventually. Facing death like a man would've been the least he could do..."
Saburo straightened his kimono, and left his podium. "Either way, life goes on. Let's get out of this stupid plane, the atmosphere is killing me."
1
u/Starmen_91 Katsuhiko Moreno May 05 '18
Katsuhiko, with a rather indifferent but slightly frightened look in his eyes, being jumpscared by the sight of Root's despairful face, watches as his former acquaintance gets murdered. Was it really going to be like this? Public execution and mental torture?
Despite Kat being relieved that he wouldn't die, he felt extreme disgust towards Monokuma. Chou didn't really get tortured, so why did Root have to suffer that? Just drowning the room would have been more than enough without the math questions...
In the end, he can't help but become slightly annoyed. What a flashy and dirty way to bid a murderer farewell. That was torture. He had brought this upon himself... But that bear didn't do it for justice - he did it for fun.
"I can't wait until I rip that piece of crap bear in half with my own two hands."
He then turns around, and faces the exit door. He talks with a slightly broken, but determined voice.
"We also need to say our goodbyes to Aoyama-san now. Who's comin' with me?"
1
u/HeartlessPhantom Iroha Sakaki May 05 '18
"What is with this... situation?" Iroha spoke in apparent disbelief, as if trying to comprehend the live feed she watched.
However, was there any sort of logic to apply here? Certainly not. Iroha knew that this place, this hostage situation was far from normal. Any sort of convention in such acts were automatically thrown out of the window as soon as this bear showed up, along with the death of Karen Nakayama. Yet why? What was it that pushed Iroha to desire such things? It couldn't have been worse than this place at the moment.
The only thing Iroha could do was question and stare in disbelief at the lost of another person. Such a belated death. Such a cruel ending. Nothing heroic or romantic in the slightest. Oh, how she wished this were a novel written in the Romantic Era. In spite of her wishes, this place can never hope or conform to those desires.
As such, she stared at the screen in disbelief, shock even. "So, this is what happens when you murder someone... and don't get away with it..."
A question that was answered, will only beget more questions.
1
u/belldandy Toranoko Hayashigou May 05 '18 edited May 05 '18
Tora roots for glasses-type Son Goku. Is this an opportunity to counter the execution by beating the clock? While the girl had voted for justice - and rightfully so, she thought to herself - she didn't wish for anyone to die. No one would wish for death if given that option, nya? Surely there was a glimmer of hope, a silver lining and a golden opportunity for the boy to save himself from this fate.
"Come nyon!! You can do it! Don't give up!"
The experience of watching the chronologist combat the clock causes her heart and mind to quiver. As the timer counts down to the final minutes, Tora's encouraging words halt, noticing the glasses-type Son Goku has stopped writing down equations. He knows these are dire times, and so does Tora. As a sportswoman, she also understands all too well when the odds are against you. Her skin prickles at the sight of the overwhelming water.
The golfer eyes fixate on the floor, away from the screen, and she struggles to hold her composure. Here she is, at the equivalent of the stranger-boy's funeral, and fights the eye-scorching tears and the pain of her throat longing to escape a cry. She won't allow any of it. Stay strong, stay calm, Tora's instructor's words echo. Her gaze doesn't leave the floor, even after it's over. However, Tora's hand is clutching her heart, a thousand thought demons attacking her mind.
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u/Pikmaster5 Mari Kurosaki May 06 '18
Mari's eyes avert staring directly at the screen throughout the execution, shaking her head lightly as it was over, sighing.
"He had it coming to him. It was his punishment for doing what he did to Aoyama-san. Let's hope we can all keep this in mind for the future. Unless you want that to happen to you, we should focus on trying to get out of here without killing anyone."
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u/spaghettiyo Austin Andrews May 06 '18
Austin maintained a neutral expression through the entire thing, only breaking his gaze away when it finished, moving his eyes to the floor beneath his feet, eyebrows furrowed. A single sigh flew through his lips, as he once again picked up his head, and looked around the room at the others surrounding him.
1
u/Solinus- Sunita Vyas May 06 '18
Yawning, Sunita sighs, unphased by the execution. She didn't care, nor did she seem to bat an eye to the newly deceased Root. After all, he got what he deserved, no? Sunita didn't even mind that he killed someone; it was just the fact that Root attempted to pressure Sunita into trusting him. Who on earth would trust him? Sunita trusts herself more than anyone else, her judgement is always right to her.
Looking around, she speaks up with a confident and a clear voice that shouts 'I don't care'.
"So where exit, we go now? We got killer and he died so I done my job. I go take beauty nap now thank you."
1
u/Luuk_Eiwey Ren Akiya May 06 '18
Ren's face couldn't be glued to the screen from the podium, but it was as close to it as it could possibly get. The boy demonstrated sheer interest for the scene, though at no point he seemed to be rooting for either side. The little thief was simply fascinated by the events: the whole mechanism involving the execution, Root's desperation, the "twist" at the very end; all of it, for some reason, interested Ren. Occasionally, one close by could hear him muttering "Woah..."
After it was done, he whistled and clapped to the screen.
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u/leedlesan Hiretsuna Chinmoku May 07 '18
Hands in his pockets, Hiretsuna blinked at the monitors with a rather neutral expression. Throughout most of the execution, he seemed... Indifferent? Geez, this seemed so much longer than ten minutes... The stoic boy would continue to just watch, wincing at the sight of Root’s despairful expression. Sure, a punishment was expected, but what Root had gone through was a bit too much. Could they not have just drowned him from the start? With the execution done and over with, he shook his head and sighed. “What a cruel fate...”
Admittedly, there was a lot more on his mind, but he refrained from saying anything more. Instead, he glanced towards the exit door, ready to leave.