Chapter 4: The Dark Hour
Minato slept peacefully after recapping the days flustering events until a loud rumble shook the building and disturbed him from his slumber.
"Huh?!" I sat up in my bed quickly and looked around for the loud sound. The eerie green light from the other night poured through the window. "It's a full moon tonight…" I started to get comfortable on my bed again, but all of a sudden I heard quick steps running up the stairs and approach my door. "My Pajamas!" I had these Jack Frost pajamas with a hat that were a bit embarrassing so I tried to quickly change. "I'm coming in!" An all too common voice said from outside the door. I felt my heart stop as the door began to open. "W-wait!" I was only down to my boxers and the jack frost hat now and Yukari was about to see it all. Yukari and I stood locked in an awkward gaze both of our faces red with embarrassment. "S-sorry!" Yukari spun around which broke the tension slightly. "Hurry up and grab clothes we need to move quickly!" I didn't ask why because I was still embarrassed that she saw me in my boxers, but it was better than those Jack Frost pajamas.
I quickly got dressed in my school uniform as it was the closest thing to clothes that I had near me. I tapped Yukari on the shoulder to let her know she could turn around now. I still felt the awkward tension as she turned to face me, but made no eye contact "Here take this…" As she turned around the hilt of a small blade stuck from her hand. "A sword?! What's going on?!" I was concerned, why would she hand me a weapon? "I'll explain later right now we need to run out the back door!" She began to run down the stairs as I followed behind. From outside I could hear the voices from the two other people that lived in the dorm. "H-hey, shouldn't we go help them?" As we approached the back door something large hit it, almost knocking it off it's hinges. "We can't help them if we get killed! Come on!" Yukari immediately turned around and ran back up the stairs. I continued to follow, thoroughly confused at this point.
I heard the door bust open as we reached the second floor. I pulled on Yukari's sleeve to stop her. "What's going on here, you can't leave me in the dark!" Yukari turned to face me, she had a look of fear "Listen…" She stopped in her tracks. "What's wro-..?!" Before I could finish my sentence she grabbed my hand and continued to run. I turned my head to look behind us as we approached the roof level and saw something that struck fear in my heart. A manifestation of pure darkness. "What is that thing?!" I shouted as Yukari began to punch the numbers on the keypad to unlock the roof door. The door swung open and we both bolted through it. I shut it behind us and pressed my back against it as whatever was following us tried busting through the door. "Yukari, what the hell are you hiding from me?!" I looked up at her for answers. "Look, there's something between one day and the next. it's called the dark hour and that's when these… things come out." I wanted to reply, but was cut off by a loud stamping coming from the far end of the building.
Yukari turned to face the sound and gasped in fear. I looked over and saw a giant manifestation that held swords in each of it's hands. "Yukari, look out!" She quickly pulled out the same gun from the other night and pressed it against her forehead. "Y-Yukari?!" The monster began to approach her with speed that I had never seen before. It was going to kill her! I had to make a decision now… "Yukari look out!" I pulled the blade she gave me out of it's sheath and threw the sheath away, running as fast as I could to block the incoming blade. I felt the adrenaline surging through my body as it's blade hit mine and slid off. "Minato?!" I managed to block one of it's blades, but another came and slashed Yukari in the arm. "Yukari! Are you okay?!" Her gun lie at my feet while she was out of reach for me to help.
The monster backed up as if readying itself to charge again. "This gun…" I picked up the gun that Yukari dropped and I could feel a worrying stare coming from Yukari. "I have to protect my friend!" I began to take aim at the monster that began it's approach when time seemed to slow down. "Can… you do it?" I saw the little boy from the other day pointing his finger against his head like a gun. I felt like he was trying to tell me something. My mind got cloudy and a voice began to ring in my head. I gathered all my courage and pointed the gun at my head. "Per..." it didn't make sense what was going on. "So..." but I had only one goal at this time even if it cost my life "na!" I pulled the trigger and felt something emerge from me.
The shadow was hesitating now as a voice rang through the air. "Thou art I, and I art thou. I am the instrumentalist of mysteries. I am Orpheus." The monster began to charge at me reaching full speed in only a moment. I felt something deep inside of me trying to rip out. I let out a shout of pain as the being from inside of me was ripped apart and a new being was released from within. It let out a screech as it flew at the monster with lightning speed and tore it apart. I fell to my knees feeling exhausted watching the being destroy the monsters that seemed to come with no signs of stopping. The door from behind was rushed open as more smaller monsters came through rushing to the incapacitated Yukari. "I can't sit here and do nothing…" I thought to myself.
I stood up and faced all the small fragments of the now torn apart monster. I felt the power inside of me die down as the being disappeared from sight. "ORPHEUS!" I put the gun up against my head and pulled the trigger again. I felt even more exhausted than the first time I called for it's help. The instrumentalist played a vivacious tune and I watched all the monsters get engulfed in flames as I fell over to the ground. Darkness was all I could see and the faint echo of shouting in the distance. Was I going to die? A familiar door came into view and before I knew it I was in the velvet room. "Ah, our most honored guest has arrived." The man with the long nose was conversing with his silent assistant.
"Please excuse my manners. My name is Igor. This is my assistant Elizabeth." the girl turned to face me and bowed "I'm pleased to make your acquaintance." I looked at her and was met with a semi blank stare. "U-um, pleased to meet you as well." Igor seemed to call a familiar folder from the darkness and flipped it open. "Please, remember that you must accept responsibility for the actions you make over the course of this upcoming year." I thought back to why that seemed familiar. It was the same contract I signed on the first day I arrived at the dormitory. "How did you…?" Igor flipped it closed and it disappeared. "You'll need our services, but until then hold onto that key." I was still a little confused about this place because last I remember I was on the roof of the dorm. "H-hey, wait! Is Yukari- er I mean, Is everybody okay?!" I felt a little embarrassed that I blurted that out. Igor changed sitting positions "Well, we shouldn't keep you here much longer so you can find out." I felt lightheaded again and the darkness engulfed my vision.