Episode Herself by Wordsworthy
Disclaimer: I obviously do not own The Shin Megami Tensei series since obviously Atlas does, along with all other references I make during the course of the story. This is, after all, just a fanfiction written for the sole purpose of entertainment and no profit motive whatsoever. So please just enjoy the story and do not sue me for this. If you wish to know more about the series, please support the companies producing them directly and purchase their merchandise if you like.
Chapter 3: Threads of Fate
The smell of smoke and ash littered the air as the fires continued to rage on, a small room of a small house ablaze by its four walls, the heat and glow of things burning permeating every sense there was… a veritable sea of scarlet and crimson.
And there she was, a familiar figure laid prone across the smouldering floorboards, motionless, unaware of the cackles and creaks above as the roof began to buckle. A shrill cry followed before tiny hands and feet scampered towards her desperately, reaching their anxious target in time only to spread her small body protectively over the older other, reliving the white heat and sting from the unforgiving crossbeam that now pinned her, no doubt intent on burning its way throughout her body, her memories and her life.
A small singed hand reached out over the length of brilliant silver gold, threading through them to their origins before turning her head around. The same sapphire eyes stared right back and through her, dulled and unseeing. Traces of red caked about her lips, words unsaid and unheard. A soundless scream erupted and echoed about helplessly, a stream of endless hurt.
Suddenly the scarlet and crimson engulfed the scene, turning the blonde hair into the colour of blood as her face blurred and contour into another, yet one just as precious. Her lips moved as though silent whispers before plumes of flame reiterated their possession of her and consumed her with wicked delight. A second soundless roar reverberated around and about, joining with the prior scream as hurt and wrath rose to form a quiet din revolving around a familiar name.
Eyes opened with a start as her lungs made a mad lunge for air, greedily demanding for more with each wayward breath, as though her dreams had suffocated her very being. Labouring still, she forced herself to sit up from the futon, the cool night air that ruffled her waist-length silver mane doing little to soothe her heated frame as sweat continued to pour from her brows and down both her bandaged and unclothed contours. Her hand shot instinctively beneath the covers and reached where she felt its call, pulling forth the lacquered body of her fated companion, her partner in sins. Tugging on its tsuba-less hilt, she stared into the thin mirrored steel that was revealed, in time to see red mists parting to reveal cerulean pupils, the redness reforming as crimson tears that cascaded slowly down from her eyes. The silver blade quickly joined its night-coloured sheath with a taut thud.
"Damn you, Sekishi."
Pale hands rubbed angrily at the telltale streaks, staining the bandages that lined her hands with redness. She raised her newly bloodied hand and looked at it intently as she flexed and clenched her fist absently, the pain no longer present save for a dull twinge.
"It felt smaller than it used to."
Scanning her eyes around the surroundings, she found herself within an all too familiar room, judging from the hastily cleaned state of its middle where she laid, pieces of clothing and unfinished gadgets that lined the room and an old treasured photograph of two little girls from years lost now. It was privately quite appalling how this could be the room of a girl, let alone the prodigious heir to the prestigious Kirijo name.
Nevertheless, the girl stood up from the futon and made her way to where the hidden closet was. Upon sliding the door open, she sidestepped another avalanche of miscellaneous clothing and unidentified material before reaching inside for one of the clean sets of yukata that she had stowed away beforehand. The mirror built into the wall reflected the back of an exceedingly beautiful young woman, clad in only her long platinum mane, yet those very straight silvered tresses also concealing all save hints of the cruel trauma etched into her mind and body. Wrapping the soft cobalt-blue silk about her, she reached up to guide her hair free from within the garment, the flicker of her tresses reigniting the faint throbbing of old wounds from the past.
"Eight years… has it been that long already…"
Securing the bow that bound her robes together, she slung her sword on before making for the door, in search of her relief and treasure.
A cursory look at the guest room uncovered the soundly asleep Souma girl while the lounge only contained the snoring Sanada boy, sprawled out on the couch. It seemed fortunate that the youngest one among them had gotten away with just scrapes, especially when compared to the bandages that swathed around the male's head. In any case, that left her with only one other place to look, the lab.
The sound of activity drifting forth from the other side of the large laboratory confirmed her suspicions on the whereabouts of the other girl. She crossed the floor of the workshop hurriedly, even if her ever silent and measured steps didn't show it. Judging by the condition of the twins that she passed, asleep in their stasis beds with little more than the automated repair arms servicing their damaged legs to show for the rough night out, it would seem that Sekishi's abrupt emergence had not worsened the situation as much as she feared. She released a long bated breath that she hadn't noticed she had been holding when she finally spotted the object of her search and concerns, in all her nerdy glory as she worked tirelessly on her task while sparks flew dangerously close to her goggled eyes, looking none the worse but for an angry bruise on her forehead.
"Mitsuki."
The head of red hair immediately rose up and turned in her direction before she smiled her breathtaking smile, the one she saved only for her. Yanking the goggles off her matted scarlet locks, the redhead rushed over and into the comfort of secure arms as the other met her halfway. They stole the briefest of moments as they stood together, savouring their shared relief and company before the mad scientist girl pulled back and pouted at her with a disapproving look.
"What are you doing up? She took you way over capacity again. You should be resting."
"I'm fine now."
A slender hand caressed the bruise just before the scarlet locks tenderly.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't strong enough. I promise I'll become stronger."
Amber eyes looked sceptically at her sapphire counterparts.
"You're plenty strong for a human already. In fact, you going further beyond your limits is exactly what I'm worrying non-stop about. One Sekishi is bad enough, okay?"
"Umm…"
The quick though reluctant agreement took Mitsuki by a little surprise, but she quickly recovered to pull her silver-haired other to the fruits of her labour.
"How is she?" asked Mirai in concern of the blonde on the table.
"Where do I start…? I still have no idea how she could have managed to function with her synaptic circuits in a mess like that, let alone where that huge… goddess being thingy came out from. But I've conducted repairs on all other visible damages, as well as giving her a few upgrades along the way, like enhanced palladium heat sinks, the portable cold fusion reactor, synthetic skin and nerve systems and the other basic features of other state-of-the-art androids from our time…"
Typical… thought the swordswoman. She turned her own ancestor into a walking treasure trove and potential quadra-nuclear incendiary device… She got carried away again…
The yukata-clad girl patted her hand atop of the slightly shorter girl's head and started to ruffle her hair.
"That also means you have been working all night again. Time to rest."
"Eh?? But I still haven't reverse-engineered her railgun and other armaments yet…"
"At least get something to eat."
"But…"
"No buts."
An insistent hand snaked around the protesting girl's waist and quelled her resistance almost immediately before the odd swordswoman-scientist pair made for the pantry.
Steam rose from the mug on the dining table while Mitsuki filled in and updated the Yagyu swordswoman of what she had missed.
"-and so we left the two stragglers beside a police station. They shouldn't have any memories of what happened, like the other cases before them…"
"I see… and the condition of the others?"
"Elda and Freya had damaged their legs quite a bit while Sanada had a minor concussion, nothing too serious. You on the other hand had severe blood-loss and extreme fatigue due to… you know. It was fortunate that Shion-chan and I only had scrapes and bruises, as compared to the others…"
"I see… but the girl seemed to be out like a light as well."
"… that's because… I drove us back…"
"Ah… No wonder…"
"It's not… (yawn)… my fault… Yukimura was out… no one else… to drive… zzz…"
The silver-haired girl looked on amusedly as the other girl yawned and muttered on before her head lowered onto her hands and she fell asleep just like that. She had known of course that once the redhead relaxed and was out of the workshop, she would be out like a light too. She leaned forward and touched her own lips gently on the swelling discolouration atop of the other's forehead.
"Pain pain fly away…"
She wrapped her arms protectively around the girl once again as she laid herself to sleep beside her, intent on guarding her precious treasure even in their sleep.
The delectable aroma of food and the sounds of cooking caused well-trained ears to perk up a few moments before the swordswoman stirred, her silver locks untangling from intertwined scarlet ones as she rose. She looked left and right hurriedly before sighing in relief at the still empty pantry, relieved that no one had seen her draped over the redhead as they slept, and that no one had seen her lightly tinted cheeks. Still, something was not quite right. And apparently, that something turned out to be the plates of bacon, scrambled and sunny-sided eggs, toast and various other warm breakfast foods that were laid out neatly on the table, but a safe distance from where she had spent the night. Before she could make head or tails out of the situation, two others joined her in the room.
"Something smells good!"
"Good. I'm so hungry I could eat a horse."
"Hey don't, they're almost an endangered species!"
"… You're a weird one Souma."
The short olive-haired girl and the beefy dark-haired male finally came into view from the entrance to the room.
"Uwa!! Look at all the food!! And they smell incredible!! Did you make them Mirai-san? Oh, and ohayo to you Mirai-san!" gushed Shion in appreciation for the spread before her, though the sequence of her words could use some work.
The silver-haired girl just raised her eyebrow at her, as though saying how that could even be remotely imaginable.
"Maybe it's the twins…" commented Yukimura casually as he seated himself at the table, helping himself to the coffee without much reservation.
"Hai? Did Sanada-sama call us?"
The two twin androids chose then to enter from the door adjoining to the workshop, their damaged legs having been restored to perfect condition overnight.
"Ah morning, thanks for the coffee and breakfast." thanked Yukimura as he raised his coffee as though in a toast, no not the bread kind but of the beverage variety.
Identical blonde heads turned to look at each other before addressing the young man again with a confused look about them.
"We didn't make them."
All heads then turned towards the still sleeping redhead, or rather the currently stirring redhead before looking at each other again, having decided in a vaguely disturbing synchrony to not ask the more improbable of questions regarding the scientist girl and the culinary.
"Well, who made it then…"
Shion's voice trailed off into the falsetto when an unexpected entrant appeared within the kitchen. Jaws could have literally dropped off when a new blonde dressed in their school uniform just casually strode up to the table, easing herself and settling into a spare seat before helping herself to some of the breakfast fare before her. Noticing the incredulous looks directed at her, she had the grace to cough slightly as she stayed her fork and knife for now.
"You kids must be hungry, we can talk after breakfast."
A few moments of elegant cutting, eating, and chewing of the bacon later, she noticed the six young ones still pretty much gaping at her, causing a weird mix of indignation and annoyance to rise in the much older person.
"What? Are you kids expecting me to munch on batteries or something?"
Breakfast was finally over and done with after a fair bit of prodding and staring by the young ones at their recently discovered elder. Even the twins could not help looking back at their blonde predecessor every now and then as they did the dishes. Curiosity was so thick in the air that you could practically cut it with a butter knife.
"Erm… Aigis-sama…" hazarded Mitsuki in her opening question for her venerable ancestor.
"It's Aigis. No sama at the back please." corrected the blonde swiftly but not unkindly.
"Okay, Aigis-san… first off, I'm really sorry for having disturbed your rest. My name is Kirijo Mitsuki. I am descended from…"
"Mitsuru, I know." the blonde touched the redhead's face lovingly. "You look just like her."
"I'm Sanada Yukimura. I'm a descendent of Sanada Akihiko-sama." greeted the sole male with a polite bow, earning a nod of acknowledgement.
"And I'm Souma Shion. Well, I'm not a descendent of anyone you knew… I think, but it's a pleasure to meet you too, Aigis-sama… I mean Aigis-san."
"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Shion-san."
"Aigis-sama." greeted the two other androids very respectfully as they hurried over to join the discussion. "We were constructed from old designs of yourself by Ojou-sama."
"I'm Elda."
"I'm Freya."
The blonde gave Mitsuki a quizzical look, inviting her to explain.
"Erm… you can consider them your sisters? Children? Nieces?"
The much older android turned back towards her juniors and petted them fondly on their heads.
"It's good to meet you too, Elda-chan, Freya-chan."
Aigis then turned her attentions to the silver-haired swordswoman who had piqued her interest previously. The girl, having noticed the overt attentions of the blonde, promptly gave a curt half-bow.
"Hajime mashite. I am Mirai, of the Yagyu Clan. Dozo yoroshiku."
The blonde nodded at her in reply as well. There would be time to investigate her interesting abilities later. For now…
"I suppose you would like to know about the strange time and the black monsters that we fought last night."
The nods all round confirmed it.
"The hidden hour is something we called the Dark Hour, a time period hidden between one day and the next. It occurs each night, but only few are ever aware of it. Most people just get transmogrified into coffins, but some people retain their form and ability to move. These people then become the primary prey of the monsters. And those monsters… we call them Shadows. From what I know, they are formed from the negativities of the human race; avarice, lust, pride, wrath… the basic components of sin or misery if you will. They feed on the minds of its prey; their victims become little more than a living corpse, something we called the Apathy Syndrome."
"What's their objective?" asked swordswoman tersely.
"I… am not sure actually. In fact, I did not think the Dark Hour would return at all, especially after what happened in 2010…"
The young ones were surprised to find how saddened the android's eyes had become, or rather it wasn't just the expression of but the depth of emotion that she was capable of that was amazing…
"She's more human than ice-girl there…" muttered Yukimura snidely, earning a glare from the silver-haired girl.
"What happened two centuries ago, Aigis-san?" ventured Shion hesitantly, unsure of what to make of this or how to react.
There are things that are better left buried in time…in that case…
"Two… centuries… mmm… well, it has become an old and long story, so I'll just give an abbreviated account. Two centuries ago, the Dark Hour occurred as a prelude to the arrival of Nyx, a primordial being that would have brought death to the entire world. To that end, twelve large shadows of twelve different Arcanas were scattered throughout the land. Upon defeating the twelve, the thirteenth Shadow of the Death Arcana appeared; Nyx's true herald. Your ancestors and I battled and successfully defeated him but in the end, it took the extraordinary sacrifice of a… precious friend to avert the impending doom… and that person's soul had been protecting humanity from their own subconscious desire to die ever since…"
A stunned silence set in for a few moments.
"You mean to say our ancestors saved the world against monsters and destruction in a secret war that nobody else knows of?" asked Yukimura with a good measure of pride and amazement.
"They were exceptional people…" agreed the blonde with a smile.
"Wait… if the Dark Hour has returned… does that mean that the world is ending again?" Mitsuki was looking rather pale as her logic played out in her head.
"I… cannot say for sure… but I do know a place where we might find some answers." She wrote down a set of coordinates and handed it over to the young leader of the group. "Please try to locate this place. It was once Gekkokan High during my time, but the place we're going is called Tartarus."
Mitsuki nodded and handed the slip of paper for Elda and Freya to check out.
"One last question… the incredible power that you used… what was it?" inquired Mirai with greater interest than previously shown.
"Ah that… it's a power that resides deep within our psyches… or rather our very soul. Think of it as the manifestation of our inner self that protects us from external stimuli or threat. However, in order to summon it, you people would need something called an Evoker."
"Something like this?"
In Mitsuki's hands was the silver gun-like device, handing it over to the blonde android.
"I couldn't figure out how it works though…"
"Ah yes, that's an Evoker." Aigis took the device in her hands and felt a pang of nostalgia hit home at the familiar weight and shine. She raised it to her head and pulled the trigger confidently to an audible click, much to the others' shock and disbelief. "And this is how you use it."
"Th-tha-that's… just crazy…" went Shion in a drone-like voice like a broken record.
"There's no two ways about it. To force out and manifest one's inner self fully, one would need to aim the Evoker at the base of their psyches. That would be the head for humans, although mine's at the top of my chest cavity."
Everyone wore an expression of apprehension at the thought of having to shoot themselves in the head.
"Oh, and one more thing; this power… it is called… Persona."
The group of young people and androids spent the afternoon in various ways as they tried to digest all that had been revealed to them. The Yagyu swordswoman and the Sanada boy had somehow got into a rather heated sparring session and were currently venting their frustrations physically, although the difference between was quite clear, thereby increasing the frustrations of the male further instead of soothing them. The twins were busy checking up on the coordinates, gathering data on the site and other logistic concerns while Shion took her uncertainties and insecurities out on the grand piano in the lounge, converting them into musical inspirations. Mitsuki and Aigis were… also busy on their own end…
And so the day ended. The light has given way gradually to the darkness and the hour got later and later towards the dreaded midnight. The group of seven now waited within the van as the more inquisitive eyes watched the aged and slightly rundown public school from within its interior.
"No matter how I look at it, it still looks just like any other spooky school building. Its rather unremarkable compared to ours though…" commented Yukimura sceptically while fingering the school emblem of their school for elites on his sleeve.
"Watch and learn young one." replied the eldest member of the group sagely.
And true enough, on the strike of midnight, the ground began to rumble as the familiar green light invaded the nightscape. Eyes widened in surprise as a new structure erupted and materialised from beneath the school building, reaching several feet into the air before another section materialised above it as it got higher and higher, as though the tower was bent on climbing to the very sky next to the moon.
"Any more questions?" asked Aigis with a wry grin as they disembarked.
"No not really…" uttered Yukimura softly.
"Erm… I do. Should we have our weapons out and all?" inquired Shion conveniently.
"Oh… I don't think that's necessary. The first level should be quite safe…"
However, no sooner had the gates to Tartarus opened did a feral beast-type Shadow jump right out at the group.
Even though caught by surprise, the silver-haired swordswoman was the first to react and dashed defensively in front of the group, her blade already in mid-flight from her improvised iaijutsu. However, before her katana could connect with the target, the unfortunate Shadow was impaled by a black rod-like beam before it disintegrated back into nothingness, causing the swordswoman attack to cut into empty air instead. By this time, everyone had their weapons out and rushed into the gates to find themselves awed by an incredible sight.
The entire first floor seemed overran with the same black monsters that greeted them at the gates; Shadows of various types and sizes swarming into the room through the open circular doors beyond the staircase. The Shadows seemed to have registered the entry of new prey and began to congregate and rush at the group, although the battle-savvy group were already prepared and was prepared to meet them head-on if necessary. However, a booming voice resonated in the room as it delivered a command to the group.
"Do not move."
From the ground and formerly empty space in front of the group, numerous black holes appeared spontaneously from nowhere before a salvo of black… lines shot out from them and speared into the first wave of the approaching Shadows, turning them into black nothingness even as the lines themselves lingered on. Unable to stop their charge at short notice, the second wave ran haplessly into the lines and found their bodies and limbs mercilessly shredded up by them, as though they were infinitely sharp blades made from darkness as well. The group of seven were simply taken aback at the cage-like barrier that had extended itself out before them and at the ease of the Shadows' demise.
"Over there!"
Heads quickly turned in the direction motioned by the swordswoman, her well-trained eyes having picked up something out of the ordinary. And extraordinary was perhaps a good way to describe what they had seen.
Out in the centre of the room, a defiant lone black figure stood with his back towards them but no doubt in direct opposition to the horde of Shadows still left in the room. In contrast to his black bodice, he wore gloves and boots of pure unadulterated white while his hair a shock of glaring white brilliance.
He waved his gloved hands about as though in a conductor's silent melody of destruction, throwing them out at various agglomerations of Shadows before black lines emerged from various directions to eradicate them in similar fashion to that shown previously. The few larger Gigas-type and Knight-type Shadows that had survived the attacks with varying degrees of dismemberment tried their best to lay their hands on the enigmatic figure, only to find themselves nonchalantly thrown back or severed by the mass of black strings that formed spontaneously out of nowhere and with which their lone nemesis was using to flay and knock them around with remarkable ease. Even the largest of the Knight-types with their considerably thicker armour could not stand up to him, the white gloves having condensed a cluster of black lines into a spiral form and threw them like black missiles that drilled straight through them. If it wasn't for the constant reinforcement through those open doors atop the staircase, the bloodless massacre would have been long but over by now.
However, that soon changed when the mysterious figure began to conjure up a series of seeming pointless horizontal lines across the room. As soon as setup was done, the figure leapt some twenty feet into the air before striking downwards at the strings with the edge of his palm, making sure to hit every single one as his vertical strike drove down to the base of the floor. The resultant massive sonic booms made even the newcomers cover their ears from collateral damage alone even though they were on the safer side of the attack; the Shadows on the other hand were much less fortunate as they found themselves obliterated in an instant by the deathly timbre. The impact of the sound-based attack also blew the circular gates shut as fulfilled its secondary intention, a fact that was probably just as timely or fortunate for the Shadows anyway. The barrier of black wires dissipated out of existence as well, allowing the now wary and cautious newcomers entry into the place.
"Phew… that idiot got a little carried away again… no matter… ahem…" went the figure that still had his back to them.
A deeper, more commanding voice then boomed out once again, in contrast to the much friendlier tone used in the interval.
"Welcome to Tartarus, young ones…"
Aigis released a little gasp and stepped forward in spite of herself, finding herself inexplicably drawn to the oddly familiar figure who resembled a cross between the Personas Thanatos and…
"I am Orpheus, Master of Strings as well as your guide to the heights of Tartarus and your ordeals."
Tears gathered in her eyes as hope began to swell within before they finally burst free from all restraints as the head of white hair finally turned, its glare reduced to a dim ashen glow and revealing a long-lost face, whose familiarity and all sorts of yearning for did everything but diminish and become forgotten with the times.
"But Aigis can still call me…"
"Minato!!"
Author's Notes:
Update time. This focus of this chapter is a little half and half between the Original Characters and our familiar Persona 3 characters, the earlier part being more on the character development of my OC protagonists Mirai and Mitsuki and the latter for Aigis and, yes, Minato. How can we have Persona 3 fanfic without bringing back our flagship character? I hope their returns were coolly done though, or at least a little bit well done for that matter, since I've gotten a lot of flak for it in my other project.
Well, there's not much to add for my original concepts this time round since the emphasis was on reunions and adding character depth, so I'll keep it short this time. That and I'm freaking tired after working on this in addition to the late nights spent following Euro 08. As usual, feel free to make use of the reviews if you have any comments or ideas to share.
On a further note, now that the Persona 3 characters have been re-established into the story, readers can now expect more Aigis-centric or Minato-centric chapters as well; a little something extra to look out for, especially for people wary of my OCs.
This is it then. Later.
Omake 3: The Fate of all Mad Scientists
(Back in the afternoon before the foray into Tartarus…)
Mitsuki: Ah Aigis-sa…n, I was meaning to ask you… about those clothes…
Aigis: Oh yes, I was going to ask you if you would mind if I borrow a set of clothes. The robe I had on was rather grimy.
Mitsuki: Of course not Aigis-san. I still have a few spare uniforms still in my closet… I think…
Aigis: Speaking of your wardrobe… I take it that that unsightly mess in the room over there belongs to you?
Mitsuki: Erm… well… technically…
(Aigis grabs hold of Mitsuki's hands and kidnaps her off to the her own room.)
Aigis: That simply will not do. You may seem to have Mitsuru's beauty and all round talents but you seem to lack her appreciation for cleanliness. However, that is something that I can help remedy…
Mitsuki: Eh!! B-but… that could be dangerous! Yes, that's it! Dangerous! You'll never know what could explode or not…"
Aigis: No buts. Go clean your room young lady. And then we'll talk about the merits of clean laundry and assorted undergarments.
Mitsuki (groans): Oh no… I've created a monster…
Aigis: Yes, yes, yes. I'll show you my Frankenstein impression later. Go clean your room now.
Mitsuki (doing her own Frankenstein impression): Nnnooo……
(In between Mirai and Yukimura's sparring session… where Yukimura is currently lying panting on the mats…)
Mirai: …
Yukimura: What…
Mirai: Nothing… just felt like something bad happened to someone close to me… Oh well… enough rest yet?
Yukimura: Peachy. Round 67, begins.
(Clack, clack, clack and a thud.)