I know it took me forever to write this... I wanted to make it even longer, but then I would've had to post it in like three days, because I wouldn't have time to write more today or tomorrow. I hope you guys still enjoy this!
Chapter 7: Tartarus
Tuesday: April 21st, 2009
I wake up late again today. These weird dreams I'm having really drain me. I don't even know if they're just dreams or… I shouldn't dwell on these things or I'll just end up going insane! I have to hurry up and get ready for school.
I stretch my arms and yawn. Classes are finally over for today. I hear another yawn from behind me and I realize that it's Yukari.
"I thought I was going to fall asleep in there…"
Right when I'm about to answer her, Mitsuru walks into our class and heads straight towards us.
"Can I have a minute? Come to the command room when you get back to the dorm. I have something to tell everyone. I'll save the details for later. See you there."
She doesn't even give us a chance to say anything and leaves.
"That was fast…"
When I say that, Yukari just shrugs.
"She's probably busy with things like Student Council, unlike us."
Junpei then appears from behind Yukari.
"Whoa, Yuka-tan! Do I sense some hostility?"
Yukari looks a bit flustered at Junpei's comment.
"Well, it's not that I don't like her… She's just… N-Never mind! Let's go!"
I follow Yukari out of school and we head to Iwatodai Strip Mall.
"A-About earlier… It's not that I don't like her or anything, y'know? Oh, I'm talking about Mitsuru-senpai… Why's Junpei always have to talk about stuff that isn't any of his business, huh!? Plus, he says it all in the creepiest, most perverted way. He's like the poster boy for sexual harassment. You know, last year he…"
While Yukari is talking, I look at the time on my cellphone. It's almost time for me to go to work. Good thing we're already in the mall. I should tell her that I have to go soon.
"Yukari-chan, I have to go soon."
"Oh… What's up? You're not heading back to the dorm with me?"
"No, I have to go somewhere. I'll be at the dorm at like 9:30PM."
"If you say so… Then I'll go ahead."
When Yukari leaves, I head to Mandragora. I would've told her that I had to go to work, but then I would have to explain way too many things to her.
When I enter the Karaoke Bar, the man at the counter greets me.
"Welcome. Room for one?"
"No, I'm actually the new part-timer here."
"Oh! Aren't you a bit young?"
He doesn't seem that much older than me either… I'd say he's just barely twenty-one. I shrug at his remark.
"Whatever… As long as someone is here to take over my shift. I'm going."
Wait… Am I supposed to take care of things here on my own? I don't know how to make any of the drinks!
I go behind the counter and find a note there.
To the new girl,
No one's available today, so you're on your own. The recipes for the drinks are in the back. Hard to miss.
So… I am on my own! Alright… No use panicking. I need to first go find the recipes.
I go to the back, and find a table, a fridge, and a bunch of stacked papers. There are also a lot of compartments that are labelled by numbers. I take the stack of paper and go back to the front desk. I start reading through the recipes, while greeting the few customers that show up. Good thing it's a weekday… not as busy as weekends. I only make a few drinks, considering almost no one drinks this early. They're not too complicated, since the instructions are actually pretty clear, telling me which cupboards have the necessary ingredients.
At 9PM sharp, the person who's supposed to work the night shift comes and greets me. This time it's an older looking man.
"You can go now, girly. I'll take it from here. You new?"
"Yeah, thank you."
I leave and head to the dorm. As soon as I get to command room, I find Mitsuru, Akihiko, Yukari, and… Junpei?!
"Welcome back."
Mitsuru says to me. Akihiko then looks at me.
"What took you so long? I was getting a bit worked up."
"Anyway, I'm sure you know who this young man is, so let's skip the introductions."
Mitsuru points casually at Junpei.
"Why is Junpei-kun here?"
I'm genuinely confused about why he's here… Yukari seems a bit exasperated at the whole situation. I bet they already explained everything to her before i came back. Akihiko then clears his throat.
"I bumped into him the other night. He has the potential, but he just awakened to it recently… I told him about us, and he agreed to help."
"The potential…?"
Does this mean that he can also summon a Persona? Junpei chuckled.
"He found me cryin' like a baby at the convenience store, surrounded by a bunch of coffins. I don't remember much, but man… that was embarrassing! He said that's, ya know, completely normal… in the beginning. Like, bein' confused and not remembering anything. Did ya guys know that?"
The confused part, I felt it. But, the forgetting part…
"I actually remember everything that happened the first time I went through that…"
Everyone pauses a bit and then Junpei starts talking again.
"Oh, you're so special now, aren't ya? ...But man, I was shocked to find out about you guys. I had no idea. I'm glad I'm not the only one. It could get kinda lonely, ya know. I bet you're stoked too, right!? Havin' me join… It'd be nice to have a guy around too, wouldn't it?"
I was about to say that we had Akihiko around, and that that was enough for me, but I stopped myself. It would've sounded weird if I did say that…
Yukari sighs.
"So anyway, glad to join the team."
I then nod at Junpei.
"Let's do our best."
"You can count on good ol' Junpei!"
Akihiko then speaks up.
"Well, enough with the introductions. I think we're about ready…"
The door to the command room then opens, and the Chairman comes in.
"Okay, everybody's here. I'd like your undivided attention. For a long time, Mitsuru and Akihiko were the only Persona-users we had. But that number recently jumped to five. Therefore, starting tonight at 12:00AM, I'd like to commence the exploration of Tartarus."
Junpei scratches his goatee.
"Tartarus...? What's that? Sounds like toothpaste."
"You haven't seen it, Junpei?"
Yukari replies to his remark. The Chairman then proceeds to explain.
"It's no surprise… since it only appears during the Dark Hour."
"Just like the Shadows… Interesting, huh? And it's the perfect place for us to train. You can think of it as a Shadow nest."
Akihiko sounds so enthusiastic about this.
"But… what about you injury, Akihiko-senpai?"
I ask him, worried about his well-being. He looks at me and his shoulders sink in defeat. Mitsuru then doesn't let that opportunity go.
"Since Akihiko hasn't fully recovered yet, he'll only come as far as the entrance."
Akihiko looks annoyed. He really wanted to go didn't he…
"It's almost time for the Dark Hour, let's go."
Mitsuru says in an authoritative tone.
We all then head to where Tartarus is. Wait, isn't that the road to the school?
When we reach Gekkoukan High school.
"This is it? THIS is the place? Why HERE?"
Junpei is in disbelief. To be honest, so am I. I'm more confused, though. Akihiko chuckles at our confusion.
"Just wait a few minutes… It's almost midnight."
Sure enough, right in front of our eyes, when the clock strikes midnight, the school building gets enveloped in mist. When the mist clears, a giant distorted tower is standing in the place of Gekkoukan High.
"This is Tartarus: the labyrinth that reveals itself during the Dark Hour."
Mitsuru's explanation doesn't erase the shock I'm feeling from the sight that I'm beholding.
"Labyrinth…? What are you talking about!? What happened to our school!?"
Junpei just asked all the questions that I'm internally asking myself.
"Once the Dark Hour passes, everything returns to normal."
Mitsuru simply replies. That doesn't answer anything, though!
"This is the "nest" you were talking about!? But, why!? Why'd our school turn into a giant tower!?"
Again, Junpei's ahead of me when it comes to expressing his questions vocally. Mitsuru, however, stays silent.
"You don't know, either?"
Junpei asks her, wondering about her silence.
"…No."
"I'm sure it's complicated."
Yukari says. Do I detect a hint of sarcasm in her voice or am I just imagining things? Akihiko's voice then snaps me out of my thoughts.
"Well, maybe now we'll find out. Mitsuru and I have only gone in to take a peek; this will be our first time exploring it. Exciting, isn't it? There has to be some sort of clue in here about the Dark Hour…"
"Akihiko. I respect your enthusiasm, but you won't be accompanying us today."
Mitsuru never fails to deflate Akihiko's bubble.
"I know… You don't have to remind me."
We then all enter the tower. The inside is almost like it's a different realm. In front of us is a giant staircase leading to an entrance.
"Whoa… It's just as cool on the inside…"
Junpei exclaims.
"But, it sure is creepy…"
Yukari mumbles.
"This is only the entrance. The labyrinth lies beyond the doorway at the top of the stairs."
Mitsuru points at the top of the staircase. Akihiko then comes and stands next to me.
"To tell you the truth… I'm a little worried about letting you go there alone. But, we'll have you three get a feel for this place."
Yukari then, after hearing that, gets worked up.
"What!? By ourselves!?"
Mitsuru then tries to calm her.
"We're not asking you to go very far, and I'll be feeding you information from here."
"We're also going to appoint a leader to make any necessary decisions."
Akihiko says while walking ahead and then turning to face us. A leader, huh…
"For real? One of us? Oh! Oh! Me me me! Pick me!"
Junpei enthusiastically raises his hand. I look at Akihiko and find him staring right at me.
"You… You're in charge."
His voice is trembling a bit. He's more worried than he shows.
"Wha…? B-But she's a girl!"
Junpei protests. I am a bit worried about taking the role of leader, but not because I'm a girl. At least, I'm the most experienced in terms of fighting Shadows. Yukari confirms that point to Junpei.
"Well, she HAS fought them before…"
"Seriously?"
Junpei looks at me with wide eyes. I nod.
"That's true, but there's another reason. You two… Can you summon your Persona without any difficulties, like she can?"
Akihiko glares at Junpei. I feel like he's taking my side on this, even though he's just being reasonable. I can't help but smile internally.
"Y-Yeah, of course I can!"
Junpei tries to withstand Akihiko's glare.
"I think so…"
Yukari mumbles. I hope they can, since it'll be much more helpful in there if they did. They can't go in there all defenceless.
"These are Shadows we're talking about here. Without your Persona, you're screwed."
Akihiko says in a serious tone.
"I'm aware of that."
Yukari responds to him.
"Alright, you guys ready to head inside?"
"I think we are."
I say to him. He nods at me and goes to stand next to Mitsuru who's already started setting up the communication devices. When I turn to the staircase, I feel a weird warmth in my skirt pocket. I reach in there and pull out the Velvet Key that's shining. It seems like I'm the only one who's seeing that, since no one even comments on the strange glow. I then turn my head to my left and find a door that wasn't there before. It's a blue door. Is that… the Velvet Room door? I walk towards it, ignoring everyone's voices asking me where I'm heading. They probably can't see the door either.
When I reach the door, I insert the Key in the door's lock. It's like the lock is sucking the Key in. As soon as it fully sinks in the lock, the door opens on its own. I enter and find myself in the familiar blue room from my dream. Igor is sitting on a chair, and motions for me to sit on the chair facing him. I do as he wishes and, when I do, he starts talking to me.
"I've been waiting for you. The time has come for you to wield your power. The tower that you are about to venture into… How did it come to be? For what purpose does it exist? Regrettably, you are not yet capable of answering these questions. That is why you must be made aware of the nature of your power."
"The nature of my power?"
"Your power is unique. It's like the number zero… It's empty, but at the same time holds infinite possibilities. You are able to possess multiple Personas and summon them as needed. And when you have defeated your enemies, you will see the faces of possibility before you. There may be times when they are difficult to grasp… But, do not fear. Seize what you have earned. Your power will grow accordingly… Be sure to keep that in mind. My spare time will soon be scarce. But, please come again of your own accord. I'll tell you then about my true role… the manner in which I can best assist you. Ah, but before I forget… Do you recall when I mentioned another resident of this room…? Tell me… When you think of this person, what do you see?"
What do I think? I don't know… What is he getting at? I've never met him… Him? Why did I decide that the resident is a male? Is that what Igor is talking about?
"Is it… a man?"
"I see… Then let's bring him out for a proper introduction."
I then feel a presence behind me. I turn my head around and find a man with white hair, pale skin, and golden eyes. He's wearing a blue outfit that makes him look like an elegant butler. The man walks and stands beside Igor. He then looks at me.
"My name is Theodore, but please, feel free to call me Theo. It's a pleasure to meet you."
He has an air of elegance about him when he talks and when walks.
"My assistant will aid you as well. Until then… Farewell."
After Igor says that, I find myself back to the entrance of Tartarus, standing in front of the Velvet Room's Door, the key back in my hand. I put it back in my pocket.
"Hey, are you alright?"
Yukari's voice is the first thing I hear when I get back.
"Yeah, what's up? You look like a zombie."
I look at Junpei.
"Really? A zombie?"
I touch my face. I feel normal, why would he say that?
"That's what you pick to dwell on!? Oh, I get it. You're trying to yank my chain here. Don't worry, though! I got you covered whenever you need it!"
I don't really get what Junpei's on about… They really can't see the door.
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. C'mon, let's go."
Yukari drags us to the staircase. We climb it and go inside. Around us, there are walls and different branching paths. This really is a labyrinth… The floor looks like it's made of black and white ceramic tiles. There were occasional circular decorative patterned tiles. The eerie greenish glow was more prominent here than outside.
"So, this is it, huh…?"
Junpei's voice echoes.
"I hope I don't get lost…"
Yukari voices her worries. A static sound comes from our headsets.
"Can you all hear me?"
It's Mitsuru.
"Whoa! Is that you, senpai?"
Junpei jumps at the unexpected voice in his ear.
"I'll be providing audio backup from here on out."
"Wait… Ya mean, you can see inside here?"
Junpei says, astonished by how that is possible.
"It's my Persona's ability. I'd like to join you, but the structure of Tartarus changes from day to day. That's why outside support is imperative."
Well that's not convenient at all… It's as if all progress of exploration we do one day, is completely useless the second day.
"Well, THAT makes me feel a whole lot better…"
Yukari is definitely sarcastic this time. Is it at Mitsuru or at the fact that the layout of Tartarus changes every day?
"Now, based on your current location, you can expect to encounter enemies at any minute. They shouldn't be too tough, but proceed with caution. Practice makes perfect."
"Right!"
Junpei exclaims enthusiastically. The static then cuts off.
"Why is she always like that…?"
Yukari mutters under her breath. I don't think anyone other than me heard that. There's something definitely going on between those two.
"Alright everyone, follow me."
It's time to explore this tower.
I hate cutting it there... I wanted to write more :(
Tell me what you guys think about this in the reviews. Thanks for reading, you're the best :)
