..and all of them posed, with more firearms than an 80's American action film in their hands. There were nine of them in all; the boys in gray gakuran, the girls in more western-style blazers, also gray, and in assorted styles. They were stacked in a pyramid; five on the bottom, three in the middle, and their leader on top: a pretty young man with slicked, styled black hair, tender brown eyes, and his one distinguishing mark glistening in the light: a single, tiny hoop earring on his left ear.
Sakuya quietly gasped. "What in the...who are they?"
The light lifted, revealing the nine children in full. Just how many guns they had was far more than the light made it seem - machine guns, semi-automatics, TMPs, shotguns, pistols, revolvers, and to top it off, their leader dual-wielding a pair of MAC-10 machine pistols, sans suppressors. Even the two oddballs flanking them - a blindfolded man in a suit and a woman with a massive hairdo and a dress - had guns!
"Who...seriously, who are they!? What the hell!? They're packing in more than...than...holy shit! This is so damn illegal that I can't count how many charges I'd have to press!" Katsuya screamed.
The boy with the earring stepped forth, still posing: "There's no time to talk. We'll keep you all safe."
"All right..." an enthusiastic-looking boy wearing a yellow hat cocked his double-barreled shotgun, grinning like a maniac. "Everyone, CHARGE-!"
With a war cry, the gray-suited school kids charged forth!
With nary a Persona in sight.
It took a solid minute for all nine of them to dramatically cock their guns. It then took a mere sixty nine milliseconds for the bullets to start flying. The cards were dying by the hundreds! Line after line of cards, all reduced to shadowy giblets! All of them crying in fear, screaming and running frantically, only to be shot at, rendered to spatter!
"What in the...what!? What!? What!? Where the fuck did they get all those guns from!?" Junpei shouted, too afraid to pop up.
"Never mind that..." Ulala's eyes bugged, heart bursting. "I can sense it! They're all Persona-users!"
"Seriously!?" Yukari shouted in turn. "But they aren't -"
*rat-a-tat-tat-tat*
"Eeek!" Yukari twisted down, her legs grazed by spent bullet casings. She glanced up and spotted her savior, a tall young woman with cropped ebon hair. As said savior reloaded her Steyr TMP, Yukari's eyebrow raised in confusion - the woman's skirt was far longer than her fellow schoolmates. She looked like a delinquent...rather, a delinquent from over a decade ago. What was up with that?
"If you don't have a gun, get back!" The young woman's voice was surprisingly deep. "Do you have my shotgun, Uesugi!?"
"Right here!" The young man named Uesugi swapped his own firearm with hers, adjusting the goggles on his head as he did so. "You're way better with it than I am, Mayuzumi! All right!" He pointed the TMP at the next wave, preparing to fire. "Your fate...is in the cards-!"
"Did he just knock off Elizabeth's catchphrase?" Sakuya thought to himself, sneering. "He made it sound so cheesy..."
Shinjiro struggled to keep Akihiko from joining in and getting shot like an idiot, with Mitsuru, who herself was sheltering Ken. "Will you just fucking stay back, Aki!?"
"This isn't...fair..." Akihiko struggled against his friend's grasp. He was clearly pained and tired, forehead moist with sweat. "They're fighting...cheap..."
"Be silent and deal with it, Akihiko!" Mitsuru shouted as the former broke free from Shinjiro's grip. "These cards don't care about a fair fight! Are you truly so foolish!?"
"Don't...call me..." He staggered, lifting his Evoker to his forehead. "...foolish!" A shattering shot rang out. Polydeuces flickered to life, but only for a moment. The Persona had no inclination to move. "Dammit, I'm all out of energy...! Ugh! Fine! I'll let my-"
*Bmph*
"-guh!?"
One of the gray-suited students with a shaggy mop of black hair swiftly chopped a nerve in Akihiko's neck, sending him down...again. He unceremoniously scooped up the boy and threw him back behind the wall, lifting his assault rifle back up as he did. Mitsuru and Shinjiro half-gasped, half-gawked at the sight of the x-shaped scar on his forehead and his open uniform top, revealing his toned stomach.
"I won't save your idiot friend next time. If he gets in the way, it's his funeral."
He went off, AK-47 in hand, firing on a slew of cards that were preparing to launch a missile. A pained Akihiko glanced up at his dickhead of a savior, with his mindset wavering between "Who does he think he is?" and "He struck me right in the nerve...he's skilled..."
Speaking of skills, it took Mitsuru a full minute to notice the black-haired, bespectacled youth who snuck right next to her to prep his marksman's rifle. Compared to the others, he had poise and an unusually masculine elegance about him, much like a dashing lead in a period film. His black hair was slicked back, and he wore a large pair of aviator-frame glasses. His uniform was properly worn, save for the not-so-conspicuous teal scarf on his neck, the number one printed on it.
"You..." She sighed out. She inspected him from head to toe, unnerved by how utterly familiar he seemed...
"Please, keep your voice down," the young man said in a gallant tone. "If I can get a good shot..."
*BMPF*
A larger card toting a Gatling gun, fell. "A single enlightened soldier always triumphs over a hundred inept ones!" He let out another shot, the bullet crippling two cards at once. "Of course, a spectacular weapon such as this helps too."
"Y-yes..."
"And I can tell by one look that your fencing blade is...not so spectacular, I'm afraid. Perhaps if you better cared for it - ah! Damn..." He saw a young woman with long hair in a ponytail in trouble, fleeing from safety to cover her.
Steam blew out of Mitsuru's ears. For something as weak of a potshot as a poorly cared-for fencing sword, she was as angry as Akihiko was. "What an arrogant man! I can tell with one look that he thinks that he's superior to others. Look at him, admonishing that young woman!" She frowned, taking a glance at her rapier.
Shinjiro facepalmed. Irony was a bitch.
Within fifteen or so minutes, the entire card army was decimated, save for a few larger ones. The queen's melodramatic antics escalated and escalated, waving her snaking arms about like some sort of crazed gymnast.
"What...how!? How can this be!? You children...you filthy commoners...my army -"
*Pew*
A single, smoking gunshot from a kogal's Walther left a hole in her fan. There it was: the final straw.
"MY PRECIOUS FAN! HOW DARE YOU-!"
With a rapid spin, a massive Mabufula spell shot rapidly from underground, decorating the room with sharp, frozen stalagmites every which way. It nearly struck everyone present, with some rolling and dodging with only seconds to spare. The poor kogal was not so lucky, her left leg partially impaled on an icicle. A girl with a bow in her hair was already at her side, trying to help her out.
"Please hang in there, Ayase!" The brunette shouted as she fished out some odd-looking bottle with a brownish liquid. "This Rattle Drink should help!"
"No way! The stuff in the bottle looks like brains! That's so-mmph!"
"Down the hatch!" The brunette smiled as she pinched the kogal – Ayase's – nose and forced the fishy-smelling bottle down her throat. Even though her wound sewed itself together and the pain dulled, Ayase wanted to, in no particular order, wretch, strangle the brunette with her whip, rip that cutesy red bow out of her hair and eat it, and scream. Setting her on fire was also up there.
"You know…*cough*…Sonomura…if Toudou weren't – *cough* - overseeing us so intently…I'd set that pretty little face of yours on fire with…*cough*….Agilao…*haaaack!*"
"And if Naoya weren't watching, I'd impale you back on the ice, Ayase!" Sonomura's smile was stretched far too wide. "And then I'd use Matsu to revive you and do it aaalll over again!"
Ayase half-gawked, half-shuddered. One minute, Maki Sonomura was kind and tender. The next, she said shit like this.
"Ka-POW!" Maki shouted as she used a Colt Anaconda so lengthy that it would serve as the ultimate phallic symbol for some hapless man, on a massive soldier. It blew into chunks, compared to the previous soldiers. Had it been human, giblets worthy of an FPS would be strewn about the room. "This sure beats using a bow!"
"How is your hand not broken!?" Ayase shouted. "That gun's enormous!" She whipped out her more modest Walther P99 and continued attacking another wayward soldier.
Between the seventeen witness' jaws that were completely nailed into the floor and the flying bullets that continued to decimate the larger card soldiers, Naoya found himself toe to toe with an aggravated Queen, still reeling over her fan. He gracefully rolled to one side as she launched another Mabufula spell, and shot up at a low angle as her left arm tried to choke him. With both MAC-10s in hand, he opened fire at her comically-inflated bosom.
"I…I won't let you…take my treasure…" She huffed, greatly in pain from the extreme amount of bullets pounding into her. "Not even…if…the king…eeeeeeeeek!"
The leader of the gray-clad pack refused to end his relentless assault. With his stance rigid and back muscles taut from shooting two automatics at once – something nigh-impossible to do in real life, as it would render the bones in one's arms into bits – he salivated, drunk on the sheer amount of power the MAC-10s gave him. He bore his teeth, mouth open, and as he hunched forward, he let out an odd-sounding cry, one that sounded like a forced shout heard in many a generic shonen anime.
"Aaaaaah~!"
The gun in his right hand ran out of ammo. Exposed for the world to see were the queen's breasts; so hideous and bizarre they were in their appearance that even Zen's eyes melted into a slithering goop, foam bubbling at his mouth.
"Eeek! Zen, don't die on me!" Rei cried. "J-j-just look at them like they're a big pair of marshmallows! Yeah! Big…floppy…marsh…" She similarly foamed at the mouth and passed out.
The undeterred leader kept firing into the queen, who at that point was on the brink of death. The only ones who hadn't keeled over were Shinjiro and Sakuya. "I…I don't…I don't even…Leader, I just…can't. I don't even know what I can't do, I just…" Shinjiro's grayish-brown eyes were wider than saucers. He was at a loss.
"Well, we'll at least be in good shape for whatever happens afterward," Sakuya sighed. "Actually, I've found this entire experience quite entertaining."
"…Leader, you are fucking weird."
Speaking of weird things, on the left side of the room, even as the boy kept firing away, another group of high school kids appeared – eight of them this time, plus one adult woman in a blue coat.
"Yo! Sorry we kept you - what the fuck!?"
A young man wearing a black gakuran and donning dyed hair completely broke the pose he had planned and staggered, gagging. The seven kids that were beside him also broke character, slack-jawed and completely blown over at how utterly upstaged they were. The sound of rapid gunfire sunk that feeling in further.
The gray-haired leader's shoulders slumped. He ushered his friends back, defeated. "…Well this stinks."
The queen was on her last legs, completely, utterly, pathetically, defeated. Her massive form toppled over, squirming and drowning in a hazy black ooze. "How…vul…gar…ugh…my…"
The boy blew the smoke from both of his guns away, dropping his sixth set of magazines with an effortless snap. "Your reign ends here, Queen of Hearts! The treasure is ours!"
The queen gasped as she writhed in pain. Her arms were slowly disintegrating. "That trea…sure…it's…it's…gaaaah…"
With a final cry, she disappeared.
A collective sigh of relief permeated the room, with the black haired boy in gray realizing that no more soldiers were showing themselves. As his motley crew gathered around him, the bullet casings that were left behind from their firearms clinked and tapped together – a reminder of the surreal spectacle of the slew of high school kids shooting down an entire army of Shadows, Western-style.
"Glad that's over. Why don't we – oh, oh God…" The black-haired boy was as rigid as a statue, staring at his left hand, which was now gushing blood. All he could do was grin through the pain and stutter small noises every so often. His eyes zoned in on it. "I…I don't feel any pain…is that bad…?" The boy chirped quietly.
"All right, all right, I'll help you for once…" The shaggy-haired boy pulled their leader aside to administer first aid, grimacing all the while. "You owe me for this."
"I know, Kido," The boy sighed as Reiji began examining his hand. "And I know you'll hate me for saying this, but thanks for fixing my hand."
"Tch…"
The crew of seventeen slowly climbed out, some struggling more than others, into the bullet-strewn arena. Everybody took care not to trip over the bullets. Ever a good field leader, Sakuya stepped forth towards Reiji and his patient, the patient's back turned to him. "Er…I guess you really didn't need our help after all."
"We had enough firepower to take them out in the end," Reiji replied snappishly. "All of you would've probably died if you tried to help."
"Kido, stop," The black-haired boy curtly responded. "They were here before us. I bet they probably have a better idea about what the treasure chest holds, am I right?"
The black-haired boy craned his neck toward Sakuya, allowing him to get a better view of his face. His features were soft, yet not quite as boyish as the blue-haired boy's. He had a sharp, angular nose and lightly tanned skin. "My name is Naoya Tudou. We're from Mikage-cho. And who might you be?" He asked courteously.
"Sa...Sakuya Shiomi…" The boy responded, still struck at how at ease the gray-clad student seemed to be. "My friends and I are from Iwatodai…"
"Iwatodai…never heard of it," Reiji shrugged, applying bandages to the wound. "How'd you get here anyway?"
"Hey, hey, no need to be rude, Kido," the girl with the long skirt said curtly. "We can do formal introductions later outside this madhouse. Besides, I'm sure we have loads and loads of questions to –"
"Yukki!?"
Maya and Tatsuya trotted to Sakuya's side, the former eagerly approaching the long-skirted girl as she caught up. "It really is you, Yukki! I don't believe it!" Maya held out her hands, conjuring up the image of her dear friend in her head. "Oh, but I thought your hair was long and curly…why are you with these high schoolers, Yukki?"
The girl Maya dubbed "Yukki" was taken aback, tempted to reach for a razor blade that she tucked in her front pocket. "…Who are you to address me so informally? Don't think I won't fight back if you have intentions against my classmates."
"Huh…?" Maya's mouth formed an "o." "But you…we work together at Kismet…you're an assistant photographer, and yet…now that I look at you," she paused, sizing up the girl's delinquent looks. "You look like a delinquent…"
"So what if I were one!?" The girl shouted a little too loudly. "You're starting to annoy me!"
"Yukino, please, calm down…" The kogal grabbed Yukino's arm. "Can we just get out of here first? I'm really tired!"
"Yuka…" She gave a glance to the girl named Yuka, letting out a resigned sigh. "This place is as off as Mikage-cho is anyway. I'm sure we can sort this out later…" She gave one last glare toward Maya, whose own face saddened.
"More to the point…" Mitsuru interjected, giving a somewhat judgmental look toward Yukino and Ayase, "Takeba mentioned that she could sense Personas within you. Is this true?" She folded her arms.
"Personas…can you all use them too?" Naoya said, blinking. "Ah…there…you do have them. I can feel my heart pounding, there's so many."
Akihiko threw up his one good arm up in frustration at Naoya's comment. "Okay, what is it with everyone being able to sense Personas!? I can't feel anything!" He shouted, extremely annoyed. "And Shinji, I still want an answer about your second Persona!"
"Stop it, Aki…" Shinjiro sighed, hand on face.
"Why do you keep ignoring me!?"
"Hey 'Shinji,'" Reiji sneered. "If you know that stupid yapping pigshit, tell him to shut the hell up. He's pissing me off."
"What did you call me!?"
"Control yourself, Akihiko!" Mitsuru shouted, making him back down. "You're a third year, for pity's sake! Carry yourself better!" She turned to Shinjiro with a less harsh stare, but he could still feel the air chilling around her. "Aragaki, could you tell me as to why you have a second Persona…?"
He grimaced, looking away. "Ask Leader. He can explain it better."
She sighed in resignation.
Zen had spent the entire gunfight consoling Rei as best he could. The entire time, the scent and atmosphere of the room had unsettled her to the point that she nearly broke down. All of the Persona-users present turned to him, with the gray-clad students gaping in awe at this wizardly-looking boy. Rei shyly peeked out from underneath her guardian's cloak, wary of the strangers that descended upon them. She gave the massive chest a glance, her fear rising again.
"Zen…you aren't really going to open it, are you…?" She cried out quietly.
"I…" He rubbed his temple. "I cannot explain it in words, Rei. I have to open that box."
"The Queen of Hearts was guarding that thing, right?" Ayase commented. "We don't know a thing about it, so if you like, want to open it…"
Zen nodded. With his cape swirling behind him, he hefted the chest open, with a convalescing silver void trapped inside of it. He hefted his body over it, reaching to its bottom. He felt around for the treasure within, pausing when he found it. As he found himself touching velveteen, he felt something popping in his head: packets of memories, popping like balloons. They were fragments, vague and mostly words, but the familiarity that rooted in his head confirmed that these were, in fact, memories.
A single string of words became coherent in the mass of words that were slowly forming in his head…
He yanked out the "treasure" for his companions to see: a stuffed white rabbit, wearing a little gray vest. A tag was at the bottom, the word "NIKO" written in pen on it.
"This is the treasure…" He said softly. "I've no clue to its significance, but I have gained small fragments of my memory…"
"Really?" Maya said hopefully. "What do you remember?"
Zen glanced upward, his face unreadable. "A task…there was something that I had to do here…"
"Can you be more specific?"
"Specific…all that I can tell you is…this task of mine was like a duty of some sort…yes, that's it…" He clenched his fist.
Junpei raised his arms behind his head. "Well, uh…anything else you can remember?"
"No…wait…I think…" He rubbed his head, which was lightly throbbing. "Wait, yes…there is something else…I have seen this rabbit before, and…"
"Zen…" Rei was afraid.
"Four…no…yes, four…" His head was throbbing harder. "Damn, my thoughts are a muddled mess!"
"Are…are you all right?" Yukino asked, reaching her hands out to him.
"Please lower your voice…I think…" The popping fragments that made his memories were clashing with something more violent, something churning like the sea during a storm. It was only through willpower that he could pick apart his memories from this conflicting mass that threatened to consume them. "Four…places…"
"Places…? Do you mean labyrinths?" Tatsuya asked.
"Labyrinths…" The images popped in his head: four of them, all distinct. They all had their own colors – blue, pink, black, and yellow – and they were all able to shine through the muck. "Yes! Four labyrinths! They are being protected…treasures lie within…one treasure in each…" He inhaled, picking his memories apart and making them more coherent. "There are four labyrinths with treasures inside, and they are being protected by Shadows and demons. And then there's my task..."
"There it is," Sakuya sighed, pondering over his words. "Do you remember your task?"
"That I do not remember."
"And do you remember anything, Rei?"
She turned away, shuddering. "I…I don't know…"
"You don't know?"
"No, I don't!" She shouted suddenly, making Sakuya jump. "That rabbit…Zen, can you keep it with you? It scares me…"
"It…scares you?" He was confused, yet possibly due to the amnesia, his voice remained monotonous and rigid. "If you wish for me to hold it, then I will."
Maya's hand was on her chin, pondering. "So when I said earlier that going here would help you two…looks like I was right. In fact, these labyrinths are certainly connected to the two of you." She smiled.
"Yes," Tatsuya agreed. "That theory of yours on how this place came to be seems to be very likely to be true, Maya."
"However," Mitsuru interjected, pondering herself. "We do not know why we in particular were brought here, nor do we know who bought us. In all likelihood, an unknown party spirited us here. I imagine that our way out of here can be found in Zen and Rei's memories as well, and to fully restore them, we have to traverse three more labyrinths and find their treasures."
Sakuya sighed in relief. "We finally have a coherent game plan now, even if it mostly involves a lot of fighting…but we have no choice in the end. Sanada-senpai was right in that regard."
Shinjiro was relaying all of that back to himself. It made sense, for sure. But the red-eyed girl and his newly found powers were still bothering him…
*BONG….BONG… *
"Aiyah!" Lisa shuddered in shock. "It's that bell again!"
"We heard it too," Naoya gasped, his ears ringing.
The somber bell echoed throughout the labyrinth. Sakuya felt something overwhelming his body, piercing right into his psyche, something foreboding…something that sounded like what Philemon warned him about.
After several minutes, it stopped.
Rather suddenly, Sakuya yelped at the two supernatural presences before him: the woman with the bizarre hairdo and the blindfolded man. The man spoke first: "This is the bell that foreshadowed Naoya-sama's summoning to this place. The bell rang four times hence, in which he and his friends were pulled here some seven minutes, thirty-three seconds, and fifty-five nanoseconds afterward."
"…Nanoseconds?" Who was this bizarre man, Sakuya wondered.
"I sensed all of you. There are five groups in all, if you count the raven-haired woman's and the red-clad boy's groups as separate. Naoya-sama's group was the fourth group to arrive, although due to the flux of space-time in this land, I cannot estimate the amount of time between your arrival and his." The blindfolded man smiled, clearly proud of himself.
"Are you the real Rainman or something?" Junpei asked, eyes bugging. "And I didn't see you guys during the big shootout…ehehe, I always wanted to say that!" He grinned.
"Oh, you mean our guns?" The blindfolded man and the woman awkwardly smiled. "Naoya-sama just gave them to us before heading in here. Neither Belladonna nor I have the slightest clue as to how to operate them!"
Reiji facepalmed. "You gave them semi-automatics and they don't know how to use them!? You're a damn idiot, Todou!" Naoya chuckled nervously.
"Needless to say," The lady said - her sentence was poetic. "The Pianist and my guests seem not to be alone in their plight." She gestured her hands in welcome at Sakuya, Tatsuya, and Maya. "Shall we return to the school?"
"Er..." Sakuya stuttered. Why the hell was this woman talking in iambic tetrameter? It was somewhat annoying, he had to admit.
"Don't you know?" The boy with the spade shirt and goggles popped into the conversation. "She's a poet. And she knows it!"
His fellow classmates groaned.
"Actually," The spade-shirted boy ignored the groans. "There's one more small elephant in the room..." He pointed toward the crew of Persona-users on the other side. They were completely dispirited, and even their own supernatural guide looked put-down.
"If we were in the real world, seventeen minutes, thirteen seconds, and six nanoseconds would have passed between the end of the battle and the moment you finally chose to notice us," the blue-clad woman said flatly. She was stunning to behold: wavy, platinum blonde hair held by a headband, an eerie pair of gold eyes, plump, rouged lips, and a finely tailored blue coat that reached her knees. Completing her look were black tights and a pair of blue heels. "My guest and I have spent some time preparing for our entrance, yet your guest -" she pointed an accusatory finger at Naoya - "upstaged him in the most juvenile, testosterone-poisoning way possible."
Only Margaret could take the words "testosterone-poisoning" and make them sound eloquent, Yu thought.
"M-My apologies...I did not mean to offend a fellow Velvet Room resident..." The blindfolded pianist stuttered.
"Hm...? Oh..." Margaret sized up the pair. "I know of you...my master speaks of you both every so often. You two have created the song that always echoes in the Velvet Room, no matter its shape or location. It is a pleasure to finally meet you both." She held out her hand and shook the pianist's while bowing simultaneously. The pianist, in turn, cast a wary glance at Belladonna. She seemed to know about Margaret: during the split between worlds, Igor decided to train new assistants. She must have been one of them.
"Well..." Yu began, sweat trickling down his head. He was honestly a little afraid of the gray-clad kids, what with the sheer level of ease they handled their firearms. Naoto, who herself used a small revolver, was never that bold. "All of you are Persona-users, and...oh, who am I kidding, I'm kind of pissed off that you upstaged us, even though Margaret's idea of an entrance was pretty damn stupid."
"Um, sorry?" Naoya apologized.
"H...Hold on please!" Fuuka, who had remained quiet this entire time, finally found some backbone to speak. She, like the others, was overwhelmed by the shootout. "Follow the lady in the dress' advice and come back! One of the big locks on the doors is about to come off!"
"Explain, Yamagishi!" Misturu shouted.
"Remember the four doors with all of those locks on them in the Velvet Room? If you look closely, the smaller locks look more identical, while there are four larger locks that all look unique. A lock with a rose engraved on it is clattering. I think it might break off."
"I remember those locks," piped in an intelligent, androgynous young woman from Yu's side. "I had theorized that those doors were an exit."
"So everything that Zen said was true," Mitsuru said. "And Amano-san's theory may not be too far-fetched after all...I still cannot believe it. But those doors probably lead back to our world. It's no coincidence."
"We defeat the four guardians, the locks break off, and we get to go home. Zen and Rei then get their memories back in the process...nice and simple." Akihiko let out a small smile.
Mitsuru stared at him. "You said something normal for once..."
"I'm always normal!" He became angry.
"Uh, no you aren't Aki," Shinjiro retorted. "Besides, we still don't have a clue about the rest of the locks. We don't know how or why one of the little ones broke off...and there's also that girl we found. Something's been bothering me about her..."
Junpei was half tempted to ask Shinjiro if he had a crush on that girl. Through all of the blood and broken bones, she was cute. But then again, Shinjiro Aragaki was not one to be crossed. He'd only ask him if he wanted his skull bashed in. "W-well, hopefully she's better now. We can ask her stuff too."
"Iori..." Mitsuru gasped quietly. "You too? You're more skilled and you've become keen."
"Thanks!" He smiled. He then realized: "Wait...did she think I was dumb before?"
Tatsuya surveyed the area. He and his companions were all injured, and the Mikage-cho kids were roughed up. "It's time for another exodus to the Nurse's Office, everyone. Can we get going?" His cheeks turned pink as a wounded Jun leaned on him - both for support, and a little too suggestively for comfort.
"You're all injured, so you go first," said Yu, scratching the back of his neck. "We'll meet you there."
"See you then," Sakuya said.
The Velvet Room...
*Clck-clck-clck-clck-clck-*
As Fuuka had predicted, one of the larger locks that kept the four massive doors shut was rattling violently. The spastic lock was one made of delicate filigree with roses engraved in sections. It served as the symbol of the Queen of Hearts, her massive rose garden, and the whole of the storybook-themed labyrinth. It rattled and rattled, the hooks breaking apart -
*KRSH*
- until the lock finally flew off, completely vanishing into space. Three locks remained: the heart-shaped lock, the rusted freezer lock, and the massive, circular lock with four mitama on it. Surrounded by them were the eleven other locks, far smaller, and still a mystery to the Persona-users. Their sole defining characteristic was that each one was marked with a Roman numeral. Not even the Velvet Room residents could unwind the mystery surrounding them.
The number II lock was chipped, but not completely broken...
Unknown Location...
The fog that set his domain awash blew away for a moment.
The massive entity sat alone atop of his throne, a massive spire adorned by an all-seeing clock. Through the dark, murky fog that encompassed the land, the clock was gilded and golden, embossed with swirling white marble. A slew of nymphs and lesser gods crafted from golden ore flanked the clock, with one of the primordial rulers of old residing over them. The whirring of gears and chains were the only noises in the entire space, stirring in tandem with the ticking clock. Scuttling upon the god's massive arm was a spider, as alien and mechanical as he. The spider crawled, inch by inch, along the arm till it reached its master's hand. Tenderly the god clutched its precious pet.
"Finally...it begins...
The spider spun in his hand in ecstasy.
"...time resumes..."
The clock stopped.
The fog was murky yet misty, cool to the touch and benign. That benign sensation warped into something far more malevolent, the skies and the fog painting themselves blacker than night. Instead of a haunting yet strangely beautiful silence of a god on his clock, a wicked, cackling laughter completely shattered and bled through it. The infinite sky burst like boils, ugly white faces cackling and swarming the god with their howling. They had voids for eyes and mouths, warping and stretching to their limits as they laughed. So ugly and horrifying was the sight that the spider fled in fear. As the mouths cackled and screeched, a slew of black smoke and primordial ooze bled from behind the god. The ooze was scabby and gory, swirling and slapping itself together with a sickening squelch. Tentacles, all punctured with gash-like faces, all shouting and screaming in agony, rendered the metallic flesh that guarded the god's body. No amount of dignity could hide the god's panic as the faces' mouths sprouted teeth. Below the armor was tender flesh, and below the flesh, gallons and gallons of blood and ichor. The top of the horrific spectacle of a being grew a masculine torso and a head - a head that revealed more bloody gashes and faces, all of them laughing in unison. Blood and black liquid spurted in all directions as the being's mouth frantically ate and gorged on the god's flesh, with the impressions of the god's companions all awash and splattered in gore. As the god softly cried out in pain, his flesh nearly torn asunder completely, the tentacled wraith behind him cocked his head back -
*kreeeeeeeeee*
- a screeching noise emerged from a massive Glasgow grin that ripped into where the being's mouth would be. Razor sharp teeth, bathed in saliva, bore themselves to the half-eaten god. With an ear-piercing, wicked laugh, the black god gnashed his teeth on the mechanical god's head in one fell swoop. A river of blood shot like a geyser from his mouth as the god feasted. Slowly he cranked his head upward, chewing with fervor on his meal. As he finished the savory god, he looked upward and smiled. His laughter seemed to shatter the sound barrier at how unholy it sounded.
"Time...time shall meet its end here..."
The voice was gnarly and scratchy, yet deep all the same. The being arched his shoulders and shot his neck up, spitting out remnants of the mechanical god's head.
Instead of a mechanical edifice, what little was left of the head was organic. The nose and ears were bitten off. His left eyeball dangled on the floor in front of the clock, its green iris the only shred of beauty left on it. Between the curled brown hair were smatterings of gray matter. On his brown skin was a stain - a tear stain. Remains of a spinal chord stuck from his neck.
"This...is the end..."
"NOOOOO-!"
The red-eyed girl shot up from her slumber, gasping and sobbing. Not even the violent pain that shot through her back could get her to calm down. That said, she took in her surroundings through her tears; she was in a nurse's office, albeit in a blocked off room that was plastered with pink wallpaper and Jack Frost memorabilia. She gasped in realization that her clothes were gone, replaced with a small white hospital gown, and that her breasts, arms, and legs were all bandaged. Stitches were sewn into her legs, arms, shoulder and head. Given that her body had already been covered in jagged, line-like scars, she felt that more would join them. Still, her recovery was miraculous, almost as if...
"It's just like when they saved me...one time each..."
She grimaced. That's right. She shouldn't have remembered those...she had no right to remember those. And yet she did.
"I guess I was gonna get caught eventually...especially since someone else's memories are lost here...funny how that works."
Two people lost their memories, and she regained hers, the former having been a question she had finally obtained an answer to. Hopefully her saviors would stay away.
Their voices, their gestures, their figures...all were too familiar to her.
She clutched her arms. Her body began to flush, warm and ebbing with bits of libido she thought had permanently died off.
"Heh...just like old times...first with him, and then with his friend a mere month later..."
She lied back on the mattress and closed her eyes. The warmth that gently glowed and burned within her genitals flared and burst like embers, slithering tenderly across the rest of her body. The burn intensified, old feelings of lust setting her ablaze, her mind briefly going white. This went beyond mere nostalgia. Her cheeks heated up more, remembering the strength of their arms, keeping her safe, keeping her warm...their hands, defiling her body with featherweight touches and vicious slaps and clutches and all of that biting and dirty, dirty words and thrusting -
"What the hell is wrong with me!?" She shook her head rapidly, more tears falling. Her reverie was gone. "I'm the worst..."
The door opened. Her moment of strangled peace came to an end as she clenched her blanket, sniffling. She turned her head at the intruder - her eyes widened, half-afraid, half happy.
Even though he was in service to a higher power, he was always compassionate and kind. Their outings together were among her fondest memories, with his naivete and innocence always making her laugh. Now, his sad eyes and downturn mouth suggested something far from that innocence. The moment that her red eyes met his golden ones, she could sense both his sympathy and his resignations at her situation. She also had a hunch that his ability to help her would be heavily limited, especially with the dark-skinned man's and the blond haired girl's problems being more apparent.
She did not deserve his help, yet her heart yearned for it all the same.
"Theo..."
He shut the door with a soft click. Already the sensation of sadness settled in his stomach.
"You're awake...I am glad...truly glad..."
Daringly, he sat at her bedside, right by her feet. She did not deserve his closeness nor his kindness, and she smiled at him in thanks. He winced, with old feelings he once buried in the depths of his heart clawing their way out. He reached a hand out to her, to which she reciprocated after some hesitation. "My sister did everything in her power to treat you. I will thank her on your behalf."
"I feel so terrible, Theo. She had the kindness to treat a stranger like me...thank you for speaking for me."
For the first time, she actually smiled, even if it was weak. The feelings in Theodore's heart threatened to spill out. It took effort for him to quash them.
"Kotone-sama..."
They spent some time in silence, their hands entwined with one another.
"Kotone-sama...how...how are you feeling?" Theodore already began to fret a little. "Are you feeling any pain? Discomfort? Cold, perhaps? That gown is a bit drafty..."
The red-eyed girl - Kotone - shook her head. A ghost of a smile appeared on her face for the merest second. "I'm all right, Theo. I think I just need some sleep."
"I see..."
Slowly - reluctantly - he let go of her hand. He dug around in a nearby cabinet and procured a bottle of water for Kotone to drink later. As for the girl herself, she slid back down onto the bed. Her hand glided down slowly on her chest. Although she was in a sate of shock, she was semi-aware of Akihiko tearing her shirt open and putting pressure on the brutal cut that Vizaresh inflicted on her. There wasn't a lick of licentiousness in his eyes or his voice. He did what any good person should have done and tried to stop the bleeding. It wasn't the least bit arousing in context, but thinking about it bought those nostalgic, perverse feelings back into her gut. Having to listen to Shinjiro object to Akihiko's obliviousness only made it flare harder.
"They...he looked at me...why did he look at me...?"
A series of rapid pants puffed from her open mouth. Panic melded and sloshed together with feelings of slight arousal. No matter how many times she shook her head, the memories that returned to her wouldn't go away.
"Kotone-sama!"
Kotone couldn't hear Theodore anymore; all that she could hear was the first memory she encountered - a lonely, hollow night, engulfing her childlike body. When she slept, the canvas in her head was black and untouched. When she awoke and found herself in Daena's domain, the canvas was green and slathered in oils. The bridge was a haunt, awash with little black ghosts with red, beady eyes. Her eyes wandered and wandered for miles and miles, too sick and too afraid to interact with this peculiar canvas.
A torrent of red splashed onto the canvas.
Red was the color of blood. It was the color of the ghastly Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan, a painting where a father had murdered his own son. That ghastly, haunting painting embodied how she felt. Much like the father, whose hands were overwrought with blood, his eyes deathly wide and swimming in guilt and fear, she, too, was doused with the blood of her parents. Though the deed had been done by another, the fear was no less potent. She was still, letting the smoke and rubble fall around her, shackled into a trance, only seeing pings and flashes - gold and silver - at the two figures that clashed. On that night, the night that Daena and the Time Count had the gall to show her once more, her innocence was violated, shredded into bits.
This memory, and the catalyst for forming what she would eventually become, had materialized into figures called "Trapezohedrons."
"This, child, be thine Trapezohedron that embodies thine Patience. Thou hast fought well for it. Collect thine Trapezohedrons, confront thine memories, rejuvenate thine heart...atone...go forth...go be forgiven and live. Thy soul hath been corrupted...go, child, and restore it, for a human is defined by his or her actions. If thou wish to live again, go. Prove to we Fiends that you are worthy of life...prove that thou art worthy of life, even after thou hath torn your world apart."
Daena, Fiend of Priestesses, chuckled as she faded away:
"My counterpart Vizaresh, and some of my fellow Fiends, are not as forgiving as I...thou must work even harder to prove your worth to them, child...ohohoho..."
"Ngh...I hate this..."
Kotone furiously rubbed her eyes as more tears spilled out. Theodore came to her, yanked her up, and embraced her, letting her cry.
"Wh...what did she mean, Theo...? I, I know what I did...wh-what did she mean b-by...'torn thy world apart...?' I, I know I was selfish, I know I went back on my word at the t-time...what does she mean, Theo!?"
She cried and cried, grabbing at his coat. Theodore said nothing, rocking her body in a feeble attempt to get her to calm down.
"Theo...I don't know if I can fight them...I don't know if I can do this...Theo...Theo..."
"Kotone-sama...!"
"I'm being a coward, a complete bitch, I know I am, I know...but God, I just...I need time..."
The man holding her stroked her hair. His look was a peculiar one: sadness and a need to protect, yet stern and mild agitation at the same time. "Kotone-sama...I take it that you are aware of the nature of this place."
She nodded her head.
"And...you know of the two people who are influencing it...at least, that is what my sister's guest and his friends have deduced. We have much to research still - we know not of why this place is a culture festival - but after seeing them go through the first labyrinth, their hypothesis makes sense."
Another nod, followed by a shiver.
"Kotone-sama...I have born witness to what you've gone through thus far. Managing the workshop grows dull ever so quickly, so I...*ahem*." He grasped her chin and met her gaze. "...I oversaw you slay the Fiend. I saw space-time warp as you made your journey through that memory of yours. I...I wish not to say it, but I am afraid that your presence is affecting this portion of the Collective Unconsciousness as well. This place, no matter what it is truly made of, is not infinite. I would do anything to hide you from your suffering...but..."
The girl shook her head, tears glimmering off of her face. She was horribly distraught, but the truth was bare for her to see since the beginning. "I am aware of all of this, Theo...you're right. I can't hide forever..."
"Kotone-sama..."
She reluctantly let go of him, taking a sip of water. She choked. It had felt like forever since she had indulged in something so simple like a drink.
"I want to hide...for a little while...rather, I want to rest. The Fiends and the demons who follow them will find me, without a doubt. But I need to rest up...I can't go back all shaken up like this..."
Theodore let his gloved hand linger on her shoulder. He wanted her in his arms again, but had to toss that desire away for the time being. His sisters were looking for him. "I agree. I will do everything in my power to make you feel comfortable."
"Anything, huh...well, I do have one request..."
The man gulped, his face heating up. "Y-Yes...?"
The girl rubbed her head, trying her hardest to push the image of her saviors out of her mind. "Don't let Shinji...er, Aragaki and Sanada in here, please. I can't really face them right now..." She then whispered to herself: "Maybe I never will..."
Theodore nodded his head. "That I can do. I will keep them away from here. You have my word."
He became ballsy. Taking his precious guest's head in his hands, Theodore planted a tender kiss on her forehead.
"Th-Theo - " Kotone stuttered, slinking back down in embarrassment. "Wh-Why did you..."
Theodore blushed. Like a rigid toy soldier, he began to walk out the door. "Surely, someone as...as...wary of others' feelings as you are, Kotone-sama...should know how I..." He stuttered. "A-After all that time we spent together, I-It's only natural for me to...to..."
"Don't say it!"
Theodore jolted. His poor little heart - if he even had one - crumpled. He sighed, resigned to yet another defeat.
"Fate is...cruel..."
The man shook his head. "I apologize. I should have...kept my mouth shut." With that, he found his way out the door, dimming the lights and turning on a bathroom fan for white noise.
"...Do not hesitate to call me...Kotone-sama..."
The door shut with a soft click.
Tears glistened on Kotone's face once more. She fell asleep with a bitter smile on her face, her tears stinging the sides of her mouths.
"Yep, I'm pathetic all right...stupid Theo, why did you have to...why..."
She expunged the memories of those two - and of Theodore - from her mind. Bitterness and sadness intertwined, leaving a metallic aftertaste in her mouth.
Second floor, outside You In Wonderland
Rounding out Yu Narukami's crew was yet another unfamiliar face: Rise Kujikawa, a first-year high schooler with reddish-brown hair tied in high pigtails and a lot of spirit. As it turned out, she was a non-combatant and had analytical powers like Fuuka. Due to the high number of Persona-users now, Margaret was able to divide everyone into their respective groups and leave just enough space in the hall for them to fit. Leading Naoya and the children in gray were Belladonna the singer and the pianist that had no name; leading Tatsuya and Maya's ragtag group was the Demon Painter; leading Sakuya and his straight-laced-in-blazer classmates were Elizabeth and Theodore (who had gone missing); and leading Yu and his black-clad friends was Margaret and another newcomer, Marie, a vaguely teenage-looking girl with horribly mismatched clothes and a foul disposition.
"...I would be lying if I said that I'm not overwhelmed," Margaret said after a moment of silence, her eyes unusually wide. "We all fell here at different times, at different origin points, and now here we are...all thirty-five of you...plus two extras - " She gestured at Zen and Rei, who were with Sakuya's group - "that makes thirty-seven." She sighed in resignation, stress already taking over her. "What are we going to do..."
"There's no other choice, sister dearest," Elizabeth chirped. She seemed to be finally back to her original self, but not without reservations. "In the human world, new acquaintances get to know one another with an 'ice picker!' Now I just have to find one." She raised her hands up, merry.
"Elizabeth, it's called an 'ice breaker.' We do not want anybody dying of shock, nor do we want anyone mass-vomiting at the sight of a dangling eyeball," the Demon Painter sighed. This woman was going to be the death of him, for sure.
From the back of Naoya's group, a hand shot up, belonging to the exuberant boy wearing goggles and the graphic tee with a spade on it. Elizabeth called out to him, to which he responded: "Either way, we're all in the same boat, right? We're all stuck here?"
"That is true," Jun responded. "But my friends and the group led by the boy with blue hair over there have found out a possible key to our escape." He gestured at Zen and Rei, who were standing close to him. Rei nervously shrunk back.
"It'll take a long time, though..." Ulala sighed. "But then again..." She looked around. For the first time, a genuine smile crept up on her face. "...there's so many of us now. That ought to make things easier."
"Much easier," Mitsuru agreed. "But that still begs the question...my team and I know how Suou-san and Amano-san's team came here." She turned to face Yu, who was the leader of his group. "How did you and your team get here?"
Yu rubbed his nose. "How we got here was pretty simple, actually...we stepped into the Velvet Room one day, and...we just found ourselves here. No struggles, no mess, no TV...we were just...here." He looked down. "Now that I think about it, we literally just popped in here with little warning, other than the ringing bell. It's like something out of a shitty film."
"Hm...we came in under similar circumstances." She pondered over his words...something stood out. "Wait, did you just mention a TV?"
"We were here figurin' y'all came through a TV, but I guess that ain't true.." a menacing-looking boy said quietly, rubbing his neck. He was hunched over, much like Shinjiro. "It doesn't make any sense, but hey."
"A TV? Does the Dark Hour - "
Mitsuru cut herself off. No, she asked Tatsuya and Maya that before, and they didn't know of its existence. Instead, they were plagued by supernatural rumors of some sort. Instead, she asked: "Do you know of a phenomenon called the Dark Hour?"
"Dark...Hour?" A young man in a colorful bear costume of all things waddled up to Kanji's side. "One of Inaba's local stations has a horror movie marathon called the 'Hour of Darkness' every Saturday night, but that's probably not what you're referring to, is it, my fair senorita?" The costumed Casanova twirled in place, blushing.
"...senorita?" Mitsuru glared at the bear. So much for that seductive purr he was practicing!
Rise, the analyst for Yu's team, gazed at him, at Mitsuru, and at the boy Tatsuya. "So what you're saying...we have the TV world, you have something called the Dark Hour...what about that guy in the motorcycle suit?"
"He mentioned that his city was plagued by supernatural rumors."
"Rumors?"
"In layman's terms, if you spread a rumor and make it sound believable enough, then the rumor comes true, manifesting as reality. It's quite bizarre, even compared to your claims of a world inside a television."
The menacing boy tensed nervously. "The rumors become...real?" His voice raised its pitch. "S-So, like, if that rumor about me being in a biker gang spread around enough, it would come true!? I'd be in a biker gang!?"
"That would appear to be the case. Of course, I've never witnessed it for myself."
"Th-that's fucked up..."
"We are unsure of what Todou-san's situation is, but it is likely as different as the rest of ours. I t certainly has made me rethink what and how we're fighting things..." Mitsuru sighed, glancing offhandedly at Shinjiro. "Young man...there is no doubt in my mind that we are all Persona-users, but if I may ask, can you summon many Personas, like our field leader?"
"Me?" The gray-haired boy tilted his head. "I can summon many, yes. I have the power of the Wild Card, but..."
"But...? I assume your friends all can summon only one?"
"It was like that before. But now, Kanji and Rise here, and another friend of mine, Naoto-kun, can summon another..." He slapped Kanji's back, making him yelp. "This is Kanji Tatsumi, by the way."
"N-Nice to meet ya..." He halfheartedly bowed.
"I see...Shiomi, our field leader, has what you call the Wild Card. The rest of us only have one Persona, but now we have three people who can summon more. What's more, it seems that Amano-san and Suou-san's group can summon many. And they apparently always could have."
"Always? Seriously?" Rise asked, surprised.
"And that means I have to ask Shiomi, just as Aragaki said..."
Already, millions of questions were brewing...
Margaret clapped her hands, getting everybody's attention. "I imagine that all of you are quite confused and have many things to ask. However, we can make everything easier by introducing ourselves. Shall we begin with my guest and his group?" She gestured Yu and his friends to the front, having them line up like toy soldiers. "This young man is my guest. He has the power of the Wild Card, like that boy over there." She pointed at Sakuya.
"I'm Yu Narukami. I live in Yasoinaba with the rest of these guys, and I'm a second year at Yasogami High. Nice meeting you all." He softly smiled, rubbing his temple. Even that gesture was nicely composed. His mannerisms were very straitlaced.
"You're our age, but you're pretty mature," Yukari mused. He was quite handsome, too. "And you go to Yasogami, you said? But this school is different, right?"
"Yep. We're all Yasogami students, but this place definitely isn't the Yasogami we go to. It looks like our school, definitely, but given that we're kinda trapped in another dimension, it's different." The entire time, Yu's expression never changed.
"Yeah, but...oh, forget it..." Yukari sighed. This Yu was as odd as Sakuya was. So much for that.
Yu's next gesture - hand covering face - enforced that. "All right! Neo Featherman Investigation Team, sound off!"
"Yellow Ranger, Feather Owl: Yosuke Hanamura, second year!" The boy with headphones crossed his arms together and bent backward.
"Green Ranger, Feather Parakeet: Chie Satonaka, second year!" The girl in the green zip-up slid backward and struck her index out.
"Pink Ranger, Feather Argus: Yukiko Amagi, second year!" The girl with long black hair bent her left leg forward and placed her palms in front of her. She snorted.
"Black Ranger, Feather Falcon: Kanji Tatsumi, first year!" Kanji raised his elbows up, thrusting his pelvis forward. "Fuck yeah!"
"B-Blue Ranger, Feather Swan...N-Naoto Shirogane, first year..." The androgynous girl awkwardly raised one arm near her chest and the other near her crotch. She wasn't enjoying it at all.
"Purple Ranger, Feather Shoebill: Rise Kujikawa, first year!" Rise held her left elbow in her right hand and held her face, jutting her right hip out.
"And I'm Teddie, the White Ranger, Feather Horned Owl, the fantabulous mascot of - GAAAAAH!" The bear costume-clad boy tried stretching backward, but fell on his ass for his effort. "Why me..."
"And together," Yu shouted with authority, "we are Inaba's Investigation Team, and with the power of Persona at our side, those who dare tamper with the law will be smote by the hammer of justice! Yu Narukami and friends..."
"...comin' at ya!" The rest of the team shouted in unison. Teddie came after with a small "owie..."
Silence.
Margaret, completely breaking character, eagerly clapped, beaming. "Bravo! That was brilliant! It completely made up for your failure to introduce yourselves in the labyrinth - I dare say, this was superior even to my entrance! You've done justice twofold, Yu-sama! Neo Featherman and my favorite Japanese comic, together!"
Marie gawked, gnashing gum between her teeth. "So that's what you make him get at the bookstore for you!"
"So that lady's a fan of Jojo, is she..." Baofu trailed off. He winced. "Contain yourself, Kaoru...hide your fanboyish love of Jojo...resist...you're thirty-two...it's time that you let go of the fact that you know just about every single pose that each character strikes...you studied to become a public prosecutor and passed the exam on your first try for fuck's sake, you shouldn't be liking boys' manga at your age..."
Tatsuya and Naoya's teams all chuckled, while Maya's team was highly, highly amused. Sakuya's team, on the other hand, were both too shocked to respond (second years), scoffing at them (Mitsuru, Ken), uncaring (Shinjiro) and confused (Akihiko, Koromaru). As for Sakuya himself, something unfamiliar began to brew within him...
"They look so funny together...look at them laughing. Gee, that punkish-looking guy's getting all flustered around that short girl. And those two, Hanamura-san looks like Narukami-san's second-in-command. He seems really charismatic...they're like best friends."
Best friends...
"Yeah, if my companions are my friends, then Elizabeth is freaking Lucifer himself." Sakuya was despondent as he sighed.
The blindfolded pianist smiled. "From what I could hear, I rate that performance a ten out of ten. Well done!" He gestured towards his guests. "Now Naoya-sama, I believe it is your turn to introduce yourself? You and the rest of the guests get on up there now. Have some fun!"
Naoya gestured toward the front as the Yasogami kids all returned to Margaret's side. "Shall we go?" He asked. The rest nodded, and they all made their way to the front. Naoya himself stood in the center, smiling softly.
"My name is Naoya Todou, and I am a second year at St. Hermelin High School in Mikage-cho. The rest of my friends are also second-years. This has easily been the strangest part of our adventure yet, but it's still great to meet you all." He bowed.
"Man," Junpei sighed, "what is it with all these second year students? It's like the laws of the universe demand that seventeen-year old high school students become God's co-pilots and save everything. I mean, I like having others my age here, but we're completely dwarfing everyone else."
"You speak the truth, kid," Baofu sighed. "There are four adults watching over thirty-something of you kids." He rubbed his temples. "This is gonna suck..."
"It certainly will!" Katsuya explained, nervousness building. "I dare not think of all the unsavory things that could happen within the next hour or so..."
Junpei staggered in shock. "Oh c'mon man, we don't think about that a hundred percent of the time! Besides, you were our age once, right!?"
"Well yes, but..." Katsuya sighed. He was backed in a corner this time. "Ugh...foiled again..." To which, he thought to himself: "They don't need to know I'm a virgin..."
Naoya gestured to the rest of his companions, each sounding off more politely and formally, especially compared to the Investigation Team's elaborate intro.
"I am Yukino Mayuzumi. My looks may say otherwise, but I do enjoy school. It's my job to look after these guys, I guess...I keep them in line." She chuckled, folding her arms. "Let's see...I want to take up an art when I graduate...maybe photography. Anyway, it's good to meet you all."
Kanji's cheeks turned pink. "She's so cool...check out how ballsy she looks!"
Yosuke stammered. So much for harassing him about his alleged closet tendencies. "Uh...huh. So that's your type, huh?"
The boy in the graphic tee raised his yellow beanie like some kind of oddball gentleman. "What's up everybody! I'm Masao Inaba of St. Hermelin High. I aim to enter the world of the arts, much like Mayuzumi-san, although I do say that I have an appreciation for the tastes and voices of the masses - that is to say, graffiti! I also -" He shuffled backwards, sharply flashing his finger towards the crowd. " - am a connoisseur of dance, and am the captain of my own dance team, the Tailors! We are the masters -" Another pose. " - of freestyle dancing; so masterful are we that our dancing soothes the souls of even the foulest demons!" He grinned. "Even the demons know how talented we are!"
The bespectacled boy with the scarf scoffed. "Inaba, you're good, but not great. Stop trying to make your 'debut' happen. It's not gonna happen."
Masao's face fell. "I know..." He weakly retorted. "Way to remind me about my dead dancer team members, Nanjo..." He shuffled back to his spot, where the girl with the red bow - Maki - patted his back awkwardly as a means of comfort.
Mitsuru knew absolutely nothing about dancing, but she sighed, pointing an accusatory finger at Kei. "I saw you earlier...you're being awfully cruel to someone with such high aspirations. What gives you the right to talk him down like that?"
Kei turned around, familiar with the voice. He sighed. "So we meet again, huh...you're that woman who had that shoddy fencing foil. Actually, I have to ask why you're using something so impractical. Our own fencer actually uses more practical one-handed swords when engaging in melee combat. Isn't that right, Kirishima?"
The girl with her long hair tied in a ponytail chuckled. "You flatter me, Nanjo."
"We have barely met one another, and already you are thick with your criticisms...why are you not looking me in the eye? The least you can do is look at me if you are so eager to insult," Mitsuru replied coldly. In response, Nanjo turned around in a whirl, his own gaze sharp.
"Very well then..." As he glared, the sparks began to fly. "If I may ask, what is your name?"
"I am Mitsuru Kirijo. And you?"
Kei staggered back. He was gagging. "Wait...Kirijo...I don't..."
He took one good look at her face. She raised a brow, unaware that this young man's destiny had been linked to hers for quite some time...
"YOU!"
Kei Nanjo pointed the most dramatic, epic accusatory finger at Mitsuru that anyone in the entire room had ever seen. So dramatic it was that the Demon Painter's glasses shattered. Poor Mitsuru, on the other hand, was confused.
"...Me?"
"Yes, you! Mitsuru Kirijo, heiress to the Kirijo Group!? The same Kirijo Group whose founder had ties to the Yaukza!?"
Mitsuru snapped, rushing like a bull at the black-haired boy. Several toppled over as she doggedly pursued him. "How dare you! Just who the hell are you!?"
She had taken a cue from Shinjiro, to the shock of everyone in the room, and lifted the boy by his collar. He glared at her, half in anger, half in disbelief. "I am...I am Kei Nanjo...of the Nanjo Conglomerate...and unlike your ilk, we are true businessmen born and bred!" He huffed.
It was Mitsuru's turn to reel in shock. "Kei Nanjo!? The heir to that massive conglomerate - the owner of the store that sold contaminated baby formula and refused to pull it from the market!? And you have the gall to accuse my family of being connected to the Yakuza!?"
"You lie!" He shot back. "Your lie is as elaborate as this guise of yours! The Kirijo heiress is only four years old!"
"Wh...are you mad!?" She screamed, taking in his features - quite handsome. "You should talk! The heir of the Nanjo Conglomerate is almost thirty! He certainly isn't as well-groomed as you are!"
"...I'm not sure whether to be insulted or feel jubilant with praise."
Baofu stepped in with a flourish, glaring at the incredibly hostile duo. "You say you're Nanjo? Why are you dressed like a high schooler? You into that sort of thing?"
"I...I beg your pardon!? I am a high schooler! Keep your sick schoolgirl fetishes to yourself, you ape!" Nanjo shouted. Baofu twitched.
"Schoolgirl!? God, and I thought so highly of you too. Guess you really are just some upper class twat..."
"Twat!?"
"Wait...hold on a moment..." Eriko stepped in, face contorted in surprise. "You claim to know Nanjo, mister? Surely either he, or I, or anyone in this room would be able to remember someone as distinct in appearance as you..." Her nose crinkled. A look of displeasure crossed her face. "Distinct...and smelly too..."
"Oh COME ON! I don't smell that bad, dammit!" Baofu shouted, angry. "Serizawa gives me enough shit as it is! I don't need you to - wait..." He gave the girl a hard look. Sure, her hair was far longer, but she had the same single-edged eyes that gently sloped downward, the same plump lips, drawn in that Cheshire grin, the same skinny figure...that was Eriko Kirishima all right - a fairly famous model with aspirations for fashion design and a deep love for the occult and all things strange. She even had that odd little habit of peppering English words in her sentences. He glanced at her, confusion brewing in his mind like the rest.
"Kirishima?"
"Excuse me?" She tilted her head, speaking in English. "Do I know you?"
Sakuya and Yu glanced at one another. Maya shot her gaze toward Yukino, and she gazed back, mouth agape. Tatsuya was grimacing, mind awash in thought. Maki shot an uncomfortable look at Naoya, who felt similarly. Chatter brewed among the rest, amidst the confusion.
"Nanjo..." Shinjiro mouthed. "Isn't that the name of the big-ass conglomerate that the Kirijo Group broke off from?"
"I don't know," Akihiko said, rubbing his chin. "I knew how important Mitsuru's name was when we met in junior high, but she never mentioned the Kirijo group being an offshoot of another company." He shot a small glare at Kei - he and Mitsuru were stuck mid-throttling each other when the chatter began to grow.
"I wonder..." Shinjiro trailed off. "Seeing this guy is making me curious..."
"Hey now," Akihiko cut him off. "If she knows him, it's not really our business. We know enough about her already, the things she's been through...besides, it's not like you to snoop around and stick your nose in, Shinji."
"That's pretty odd coming from you. You're on a first name basis with her, after all. Don't you know how deep that implication goes? People say a lot of things about you two."
"Huh?" Akihiko raised a brow, completely clueless. "What are you talking about? What implications? I call Junpei by his first name. We're all friends, aren't we?"
"You're a dumbass..." He raised a hand on his brow, sighing. No cure for cluelessness.
"Hey!"
Aigis, surprisingly, attempted to diffuse the air. "It would appear that a slew of contradictions has caused this...first and foremost, Kirijo-san claims that Nanjo-san is thirty years of age, yet Nanjo-san claims that Kirijo-san is a child...is this yet another side effect of this place being in a state of flux?"
Margaret sighed, shaking her head. "I'm honestly surprised it took you all this long to figure out..."
As Margaret led everyone outside to gaze at the clock tower that proved as the source of the tolling bell, she gave a lengthy exposition about the cold hard fact that each group of Persona-users were from different periods of time...
"What...what...what...what...WHAAAAAAAAT!?"
Thirty-five Persona-users, in all shapes and sizes - and even species - were standing agape at Margaret, still steely and frosty. She had to ask herself every other day if humans, especially those nearing the end of their compulsory education, were truly as dense as many of the students in front of her were. The clashes were obvious: Yukino Mayuzumi's delinquent looks were aligned with what was a trend in the '90's, whereas sukeban of her guest's era had shorter skirts or were of the kogal subset, like Yuka Ayase. Katsuya Suou's three-piece suit was of a make that was trendy in the very early stages of the 21st century, as was Maya Amano's casual jacket-skirt combo. The blazers (or lack thereof, for no adequately explained reason) that SEES wore were a common trend in 2009, and though her guest's own group wore gakuran and sailor uniforms, courtesy of being in the countryside, they were far more unusual in looks (both were completely black with white stitches, for one) compared to any prior uniforms of that sort. The skirts that the St. Hermelin girls and Lisa Silverman wore were longer than those of the Gekkoukan and Yasogami girls. The cellular phones of SEES and the Investigation team were far sleeker and more advanced than Maya Amano's portable phone. And that was all before taking all of the personal contradictions (Kirijo and Nanjo, Maya knowing Mayuzumi, etc. etc.) into consideration.
"If you pay attention to all of my personal notes," said Margaret, flourishing a meticulously-written wad of notes noting every last intricate detail of each group's differences, "the fact that you all come from different times is quite obvious. And these are merely from your clothing and behaviors. You do not need to be a commander of higher powers like I to sense this truth."
Aigis finally broke the ice. "Her argument is compelling. When observed, our differences are quite noticeable. In fact, you could chalk up the argument that I, myself, represent the year 2009 A.D in many other ways."
"Like how?" Ken asked.
"Although I am a robot designed with the intent of slaying Shadows, if you look at me, my limbs, figure, and doe-eyed appearance are evocative of both anime character designs made within the last five years - often made to cater to the tastes of the anime otaku demographic - and of female robots designed to pleasure hopeless, perverted salarymen who ignore their wives and children. In fact," she added with her usual mischievous/clueless smile, "Word through the grapevine at Ergo Research claims that I am a model for an erotic robot that they plan to tentatively release in 2012. They will sell it under the Kirijo Electronics name and it can be purchased from vending machines - the 'mistress in a vending machine,' if you will."
Everyone's jaws hit the ground. Mitsuru was stammering, her face the color of her hair, while Kei let out a wicked chuckle. Ken blankly stared at the smiling robot, his mind brewing with a thousand and one questions, which included, but were not limited to the practicality of selling robots in vending machines, and general curiosity about that vibrating object that Fuuka got in the mail. Sakuya, meanwhile, was blushing, trying his darndest not to think about the implications behind Aigis' use as a model for what was basically a glorified sex toy.
Eriko's expression was a mixture of shock and sick curiosity. "My goodness! This robot is a model for a sex toy? I'd say that Miss Kirijo's company is employed by true blue perverts! What do you have to say, Nanjo?"
Nanjo was at a slight distance, still suffering from his fit of evil giggles. "I think that Nanjo's going to be exploiting that fact for a loooong time," Naoya sighed. "And I also think that I sense a clash of wealth and egos brewing between him and Kirijo."
This was the second time that her company had been accused of perversion. Mitsuru was humiliated to the point that she actually hid behind Shinjiro's frame, pushing him in the spine to have him stand tall. Akihiko, meanwhile, kept pelting them both with questions as to what a mistress actually was...and the juniors all looked at them awkwardly.
"Er, Elizabeth-san," the girl in the red cardigan - Yukiko - asked, "Is Yuuki-kun's team always like that? They look so...stern and serious."
Elizabeth raised a brow. "I would not know for sure. I have only known my guest until this entire incident began. Honestly, though? I do not have much interest in getting to know his friends from what I've seen from then, but alas, I must assist. 'Tis my sad burden."
Naoto was rather surprised at Elizabeth's display of brutal honesty. As frosty as Margaret was, she seemed more open to helping her, Kanji, and Rise adjust to their new powers in summoning more Personas. She even elicited a chuckle or two from the three of them. That being said, with all of the clues they discovered, a more pressing matter was on her mind.
"In any case, please tell Margaret that we should begin our examination of this clock tower," said Naoto in her usual tone of voice. "There are many things about it that pique my curiosity."
"Very well." Elizabeth went to Margaret's side and made note of Naoto's request. With her announcement, the four groups examined the behemoth tower before them. The tower itself was made of shale and turbidite stones, showing faint signs of erosion near the top. The clock was gilded with sterling silver, as was the bell hoisted at the tower's top. Several steel strips were carved into the tower to flaunt the bell, and that same steel was forged into the clock's looping decor and hands. Chie, the Yasogami student in the green zip-up, remembered upon arrival that the minute hand was stuck at the fifty-five minute mark.
"It's been 11:55 since we came here," she mused. "And there's something really off about it..."
"More than one, Satonaka-senpai," said Naoto. "For one thing, there's no entrance into the tower at all. That begs the question on how it can possibly be maintained."
"Perhaps the time's incorrect due to that lack of maintenance?" Katsuya asked, inspecting the damaged exterior. "The stones are showing signs of erosion and the bell is slightly rusted. In fact, if professionally inspected, it could be found hazardous and would likely be demolished."
"That could be an explanation," said Yosuke, the boy with the large headphones, "But we never had anything like this at Yasogami."
"Is that right," said Lisa. "Seven Sisters High School is pretty famous due to its own clock tower, but it's attached to the school itself. It's pretty big too. I'd imagine that if it were separated from the building, it'd take up over half of the land that the school sits on."
"Hmm..." Naoto struck her usual pose: hand on chin, lost in thought. "Now that I think about it, I remember the principal telling me that we had an old clock tower years ago, but I've never seen it. Do any of you guys know about it?"
"Years ago...oh!" Yukiko had a thought. "I remember from when I was little, Yasogami High did have a clock tower! But it resembled a small monument. It looked nothing like this, and it was demolished before I was in elementary school. I think...it was 1999 when that happened?"
"1999?" Junpei questioned. Once again, the gears in his head whirred. "If you say that, and if we consider that we're all from different points in time, then..." He clasped his hands together, smiling. "...does this mean maybe, just maybe, we've traveled through time to the year 1999!?"
Naoto kept moving through her motions of logic: "Perhaps."
"What!? You're not ridiculing me? You're supposed to be ridiculing me, you know. That's kinda how it goes with my group."
"We're in a place - this 'Collective Unconsciousness,' as Margaret calls it - where Shadows and other odd creatures are roaming about, and how we all came here was by supernatural means. And you heard Margaret - we are all from different periods in time. If we are in a place where thoughts have a degree of influence, then the idea of time travel is not so absurd."
"T-True..."
Chie glanced around at the scenery around them. The sky was clear and blue, and she could hear the faint chirping of birds. It resembled Inaba quite a bit, what with the silence and the birds and the breezes that made the trees sway, but it was still unsettling. "This place is strange...you're right, Naoto-kun. We didn't go in a TV, and we don't need our glasses either. Yu-kun said it perfectly: we came here like something out of a bad movie."
"Wait..." Junpei raised a brow, eying Chie. "I heard your leader mentioning that earlier. Is that how you get to Tartarus during the Dark Hour?"
"And I heard your friend mention the Dark Hour too. I think we oughtta explain ourselves to everyone..."
"Yes, I hear you!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "We could all use a little more exposition in our lives!"
Mitsuru opted to explain for her group. "We live normal lives by day, but at night, when midnight comes, the Dark Hour begins. The Dark Hour is a distortion in the time-space continuum that only those with the 'potential' - the power to summon a Persona - can detect and experience. It manifests as a twenty-fifth hour, simply put. When the Dark Hour strikes, creatures called Shadows appear in a tower called Tartarus. When the moon is full, an especially large one of these Shadows appears..."
"What makes these bigger Shadows so special?" Jun asked. He and his once-amnesiac friends listened raptly.
"There are twelve of them in all. The man who oversees us has research proving that these twelve Shadows are the cause of the Dark Hour. Should we defeat them all, the Dark Hour should disappear."
"Interesting..." Tatsuya said quietly. "I know you mentioned it briefly to us before, but I have to ask...do these Shadows come out during daylight hours at all? Even remotely?"
Mitsuru shook her head. "Never. It takes a considerable effort to even summon a Persona during regular hours. Virtually no one is aware of the Dark Hour or Shadows, save for those who study both of them. My father's company runs several research teams. It's been over a decade, and the concept of Persona in particular is still a mystery to us..."
"Your daily lives seem like they're worlds away compared to when you go to battle...that's pretty convenient, now that I think about it," said Eikichi. "From...from what I recall, when my friends and I fought, a lot of demons and wackjobs ran rampant in public. Some of said wackjobs had Personas too. It became absolute chaos as time went on."
Yosuke jumped a little. "Wait...demons? And Persona-users too!? Out in the open!?"
"Out in the open indeed," said Tatsuya solemnly. "When powerful, cult-like groups want to use all-powerful rumors to their advantage, that's what they did. Of course, when one is dealing with something like that, it's inevitable that those who want to abuse power go public."
"Rumors...?" Chie asked. "What do you mean by 'all-powerful rumors?'"
"It is exactly as my brother said," Katsuya replied. "In our city - Sumaru City - a spell was cast (I can't believe I said that...), and now, whenever a rumor is spread, it has a chance to manifest in reality. Of course, skepticism and the outlet for where the rumor is spread can be obstacles...it's human nature, after all. The rumor can be anything. One minute, that lady at your local ramen shop is now selling guns and other weapons. The next, a mummy can be raised from the dead. This dreadful curse has spiraled out of control in our city, and is starting to affect the country as a whole - I wouldn't be surprised if the rest of the world caught the curse too. My brother, my companions and I, with our Persona-summoning powers, are trying to combat the New World Order, a fanatic group that has fallen under the thrall of the rumor spell. It's run by the Prime Minister - the Prime Minister in the year 2000, Tatsuzou Sudou."
"Tatsuzou Sudou..." Naoto mouthed. "Word through the grapevine is that he died in a fire but I'd be willing to bet that's not true..."
"Is that right? Well, since the rumor spell doesn't seem to work here..." Katsuya gulped. "Before we were dragged here, we were pursuing him. I guess we'll at least witness his death, then..."
"Don't assume anything, Suou," said Baofu. "If this kid can't really say how he died, then we'll just have to wait until we return."
"You're right..."
Kanji's eyes were tiny with shock . "This whole rumor thing is scarier hearing it a second time...and...and...you said demons? These demons fuckin' talk, right? We have it easy compared to you guys...ow!"
Rise stomped Kanji's foot, veins popping. "You have a lot of balls saying that, Moronji!"
"How do you mean?" Baofu asked, brows down turned.
Yu decided to speak this time. "We're pursuing a killer."
"A murderer!?" Katsuya exclaimed. "And...I take it you children, with your Persona abilities, have taken the law into your own hands?" He hated to think that, but he resigned himself given how things have gone for him and his group.
"There's been a serial murder case in the town of Inaba, where we live," said Yosuke, arms folded. "And yes, officer, there's a reason we can't rely on the cops...it's because the killer tosses his victims inside TVs."
"...Pardon?" Tatsuya asked with a mock French accent.
"Stay with me on this: inside the TVs is a sprawling world that's filled with Shadows. Teddie over there's actually from the TV World."
The endearing-looking bear-clad boy trotted to Yosuke's side with a bright smile. "I used to live all by myself in the TV World. I t was too lonely an existence for me to bear...but Sensei and the others found me, and after some consideration, I decided to follow them into the real world!"
"You live in a world full of Shadows?" Maya said, surprised. "So you were in the same situation as Zen and Rei..."
Rei smiled gently. For a moment, her shyness melted away. "I'm like Teddie...?" Her hands balled into fists. "If I'm like Teddie, then I can go into the real world and find a home with the others...!"
"You betcha, Rei-chan!" Teddie fluttered in the air with a grin. "I didn't even consider what could be beyond my world until Yosuke and the others came to it. For the past month, I've come to live on Earth, and I wish I had done it sooner!"
"Can it, Teddie!" Yosuke shouted, all too aware that Teddie had spent said month drunk on Earthly pleasures. "As I was saying, the weather in the real world affects the TV World too. When it gets foggy in Inaba, and someone's trapped inside, their own Shadow will manifest and try to kill them. People with Personas are usually the only ones allowed to travel between worlds, but ordinary people can be put in there by those with Personas...well, that's what Naoto-kun theorized."
"So the culprit is using their powers to murder others...I'm not surprised," Baofu mused. "And this Inaba...I take it that no one is aware of Personas or anything supernatural, like Kirijo's situation?"
"Not at all," Yosuke said, shaking his head.
"With a power like Persona, your killer can get away with whatever he or she is doing." He gazed off at the horizon, daunting memories returning to him. "You kids have a long road ahead of you...don't get in over your heads."
"Um...thanks?" Yosuke certainly was not expecting encouragement from the shady looking man in the yellow coat.
"Shadows..." Tatsuya mused, eyes wide. "Did you say that your own Shadows attack you in that world, Hanamura-san?"
"Er...yeah. These Shadows, they're - "
" - what you hide from others. They're the worst aspects of you that you don't want others to see..."
"...Yeah," Yosuke breathed, casting his gaze on the older boy. "Yeah, that's right! We all...I mean, when we fought our Shadows, we admitted to our weaknesses, and that's how we got our Personas..."
"Hm...you awakened to your Personas by fighting your Shadows? That's very poetic, actually...sensible too. I t's kind of like Jung's theory on Shadows in action," Jun said with an enigmatic smile. "I suppose that anyone can take on their own Shadow at different stages in life..."
"Y-you know about Shadows...?" Kanji exclaimed.
"The Shadows you speak of, yes. Not the creatures that you've fought though." Tatsuya glanced down, his voice grave. "According to Carl Jung, a famous psychologist, all humans contain a Shadow buried deep within their minds. Overcoming the Shadow, a person's hidden desires and foulest thoughts, is considered to be the first step toward a more enlightened mindset. When Jung was alive, confronting the Shadow was the first step in his psychotherapy treatments."
"And confronting the Shadow gives a person resolve...and it melds into your 'persona,' or your public face," said Naoya. "When I met Philemon and Igor, they made a mention that Jung was one of the most powerful Persona-users to have ever lived because his school of psychology unearthed many truths about both the power of Persona and the appearances of demons."
Kanji's eyes were out of their sockets. Slowly, the gears in his head turned. He wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but what he said surprised his friends: "So, this Jung dude, like, saw how all this stuff works? And he made a 'psychocology' school based on it?"
"Yep."
"And...when we fought our Shadows, it was like one epic therapy session!?"
"In a way, yes."
Kanji flexed his bicep with a grin. "Therapy is awesome!"
The Mikage-cho, Sumaru, and Yasogami groups began to mutter when Junpei spoke up. "Uh, hello? You people in gray didn't tell us your story yet. Can we get that before we talk about the miracles of Carl whatshisface please?"
"Oh, right!" Naoya exclaimed, fist in hand. "Well, um, we're from the city of Mikage-cho, and one day, something terrible happened as we went to visit Sonomura-san-" He gestured to Maki, who was shying away - "in the hospital. An earthquake happened, and the next thing we knew, horrid demons attacked us. We awakened to our Personas in the hospital."
"I see..."
"Our city had been warped beyond recognition. Demons flooded the city, the hospital ceased to exist, and half of it was bathed in darkness. We soon came to discover that one Takahisa Kandori, branch president of the SEBEC corporation, was responsible for the mess we were in. It was through a massive device - the DEVA System - that he caused our city to warp. Through our journey we endured, and we fought him and won...we found ourselves here after we defeated him."
The leaders of the other groups glanced at one another. Naoya's account of the journey seemed rather...basic.
"What's the DEVA System?" asked Sakuya.
"It is a device that can take the inner machinations of a person's mind and make them reality," Kei explained. "The city had changed because of the person connected to the DEVA System. The state of Mikage-cho reflected this person's own mindset." He pushed the bridge of his glasses up, gazing downward as if he were pondering. "Our trials were like something out of a film...I'd compare it to either a thriller or a horror story."
"A film?" Yukari tilted her head.
"We have visited locales ranging from a gingerbread house to an elaborate palace run by a queen with a harem. Each place tested our will and fortitude, and we have won all of them." He fixed his glasses again.
"Okay...well, what were you doing before you got here?" asked Lisa. "And who was the person in the DEVA System that created your warped city? You said that a god didn't do it, so..."
The entire group fell silent, unwilling to answer. Naoya cast his glance at Maki, who tried to act as naturally (that is, confused and unsure) as she could.
"We haven't found out yet," Reiji, the boy with the shaggy black hair, finally said, his voice laced with affirmation. "We were going to do that, but we're stuck here now. We'll probably not know for a long time."
Naoto could tell from his forced tone that he was lying, but it was clearly a sensitive subject. She nodded her head in confirmation, convincing the others to do the same.
"Well, it's quite clear that all of our reasons for fighting are very different indeed," said Jun, "but just about all of them have a similar theme in common: all of the places we traveled to are connected to the human mind. The creatures we fight, too, are connected to it. Maya - Amano-san theorized that this place is similar. With Zen-san's memories returning after the fall of the Queen of Hearts, it is definitely true. The painter had said that we are somewhere in the Collective Unconsciousness. In this place, what we are experiencing now is tied to Zen and Rei's minds."
Teddie turned to the handsome young man, his beady eyes and delicate mouth slanted down in sadness. "Shadows are born from humans...in the TV, when there's no fog around, they go berserk. A strong-willed Shadow calls other Shadows over, and it kills whatever human hosts it...unless the host confronts their Shadow, they're doomed..." He cast his sad face at Rei. "If there are Shadows here, then...oh, poor Rei-chan..."
Rei tilted her head, munching quietly on a dango ball. It was tough to pick up on what everyone was theorizing about. When Jun began speaking about the human mind, and where this school might have been, she completely zoned out, focusing on her food. Whatever joy she had expressed had vanished. "What is it, Teddie? I feel fine. The Shadows don't scare me."
"But the Shadows are...well, they're monsters born from people, Rei-chan!" Teddie became fired up. "I have taken it upon myself to be the protector of all womankind! As said protector, I will be your knight, Rei-chan, and protect you from the foulest of human thoughts!" He pumped his fists and cheered. "Who knows what kind of icky things those Shadows are made of? I bet Yosuke's dirty thoughts make up half of them!" S o happy Teddie was that he completely ignored Yosuke throwing a large rock at his head.
Rei was unmoved. "I have Zen with me. No matter what those Shadows are made of, he'll take them out just fine." There was not an ounce of enthusiasm or life in her voice. Even her food offering was monotone: "Would you like some dango?"
Teddie sighed, his frail little heart bursting aflame. "Three strikes in one swing..."
Fuuka appeared to Teddie's side, tapping his head. The perverted bear recovered in record time to appeal to the lovely, demure young lady who now stood before him. "Um, Teddie? May I ask you something?"
"Anything, my sweet Fuuka-chan!"
"During the Dark Hour, it is possible for normal people to be consumed by Shadows. What you said interested me: that the Shadows that consume humans in your TV world tend to be attracted to their Shadows...this is something that SEES has been questioning for months."
"'Tis quite true, my dear! I have seen it for myself!" Teddie spun in place, his dimples red.
"So, going by what everyone else says, then I guess it's likely that...the Shadows we've been fighting are born from other people...it seems so surreal..." Fuuka looked down sadly, musing on the many Shadows she had seen and analyzed. "I wonder if this means that the large Shadows that we've been fighting each month...were they born from people's thoughts too? They're so cruel and can do so many things..."
"Fear not, my darling! Take to heart that you are harming no one in slaying the Shadows!" Teddie took her hand in his paw, kissing it. "But surely you must feel better in knowing that your enemies are not some wicked aliens or parasites from an unknown planet! This knowledge will surely help you in your quest!"
Fuuka smiled. "I think it will...hearing it from you makes me feel a bit better about it."
"Oh, oh-!" Teddie hopped, giddy. "I'm so happy to hear that, Fuuka-chan! May I score with you!?"
"What!?"
*SMACK*
Yosuke threw an even bigger rock this time around. Teddie was out cold, his little bear nose bleeding into the dirt.
Mitsuru sighed. "To think, that all this time, the creatures that my grandfather and his fellow researchers had been studying were something so ridiculous...human thoughts, in physical form? Shadows as a fragment of the human mind...? And this place is..."
She thought back to her childhood, something that had been cruelly wasted among researchers and probes. The first time she had been to Tartarus was when she was in elementary school. One of the bodyguards had been consumed by the Shadows...and when he nearly struck her father, Penthesilea had come to her aid. It seemed too cruel to think that Penthesilea could be a Shadow in and of herself, or that someone's thoughts had literally appeared to kill another.
The proof was overwhelming, yet denial rooted itself in her mind. "It seems so foolish for something like that to be true. All of those years spent under the knife, under the eyes of those men...for human thoughts!? I don't know what to say..."
Something dark bubbled in the recesses of Mitsuru's mind.
The tension in the air settled. Naoto decided to take charge this time: "This has been quite fascinating...it seems that we have no answers on this clock tower for the time being. However, we know where we are now, we have a lead to our escape - and an escape route on top of that, albeit one that's sealed off - and we have learned a little bit about each other. Our reasons for fighting all differ, but we seem to be united in helping Zen-kun and Rei-chan." Naoto folded her arms in satisfaction. "Though we are in a fluctuating dimension in the Collective Unconsciousness, we still do not know all of the 'rules' of this world." She glanced at Kanji and Rise, her features softening. "I myself have gone through a few 'game changers'...this is proof that we must reconsider whatever we've learned up until now."
"Game changers...can you summon multiple Personas now, Shirogane-san?" Sakuya asked, tilting his head. She nodded her head.
"Did you and your friends play the Persona game?"
"The game based off of the urban legend? Yes. Kanji-kun, Rise-chan, Narukami-senpai, and I played the game a day before we arrived here. The three of us awakened to our newfound powers in You in Wonderland."
"So did I..." Sakuya's eyes widened. "Aragaki-senpai, Aigis, and Koromaru, the three of us...Narukami, did somebody appear to you in a dream and tell you to play the game!?"
Yu himself was shocked. "Yes...a man named Philemon came to me...he told me about the game, and gave me a warning about something dangerous..."
The pianist came to the two of them in a whirl, his blindfold swishing about. "Master Philemon came to you, you say? But you say it as if it is a rare event...the children of Mikage-cho have been guided by him since their journey began. Master Philemon is the one who grants the power of Persona to human beings."
The Gekkoukan and Yasogami kids all quietly gasped. Before anybody could potentially riot, Margaret stepped in.
"It is true that Master Philemon is the one who bestows Personas to people...but in the year 2011 A.D, he is silent. He manifests as a specter who oversees others, never directly interfering. Igor has told me that Master Philemon prefers to leave matters in the hands of those who dwell in the Velvet Room. Of course," she stopped, pondering. "You are from 1996 A.D. instead. I was not around in the Velvet Room during that time. I take it that he directed into human affairs more frequently?"
"You can say that..." The pianist gazed downward. "We are not like you, though. Belladonna and I cannot fight, and it is nigh impossible for us to leave the Velvet Room. The music that Belladonna and I provide come from the Sea of Souls. The thoughts of the people become our music, and our music's purpose is to open the doors to the human heart...in layman's terms, the aria that you hear in the Velvet Room ad nauseum is meant to soothe the souls of Persona-users who come to it. It is comparable to the real-world phenomenon known as meditation. These are the 'services' that Belladonna and I provide...we have done these services for exactly two-hundred and forty seven years, minus about two months when considering leap years."
Margaret listened intently, genuinely surprised for a change. "So therein lies the reason for that song..."
"I have sang and he has played for that long," said Belladonna. "Neither of us can remember how or why we began serving Master Philemon. He has been our guiding hand for nearly two and a half centuries. Frankly, I struggle picturing him leaving us to our own devices."
Everyone staggered, Yosuke in particular. "Two hundred and fifty YEARS!? The fuck!? Hearing about this Phil dude is weird enough!" He rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't even wanna think how long Margaret's been around..."
"Elizabeth's probably seen the dinosaurs die for all we know," said Junpei. He sighed in acceptance. Adjusting his hat, he shrugged his shoulders and slumped to the ground. "Ah, well. Somebody let me know when some matador with a big ass red Capote shows up and starts whacking everybody around here."
This new development left a somber air among everyone. Maya herself had a memory of the pianist requesting help when the Other Side still existed. "There were "rests" in his music that he had no control over...I see why he can't leave the Velvet Room..."
But now was not the time to dwell on something so sad. There were still questions that needed answering, and steam that desperately needed to be blown off. "Everyone!" She gestured at herself. "We've made great progress on finding our way home! Now, we've got some more things to clear up, but our magical adventures in Wonderland have me pretty beat. I bet y'all feel the same, right?"
The kids all glanced at one another, most nodding in agreement.
"Well then, why don't we just hold off on exploring the next labyrinth for the time being and have a little fun, huh? Let's all indulge in the culture festival!" Maya flashed her signature grin, one that won over many.
The children were ragged and worn, yet there was a surprising amount that objected to the idea. They were drowned out b those who were far more eager to indulge, however. Yukari in particular sighed, rubbing her irritated eye.
"Should we really be wasting time at the festival? We're trapped. I just want to get this over with..." The debacle with the FOEs and the Queen of Hearts left her weary, yet with Mitsuru icier than ever and the rift between them growing, she had enough. Fuuka clenched her hands together, wanting to object.
"Yukari-chan, there are three more labyrinths that Zen-kun mentioned...we ought to pace ourselves. If we go right away, one or more of us could get seriously hurt, or..."
Before she could say the dreaded words, Rise popped up from nowhere and grasped her hands. "You're absolutely right, Fuuka-chan! There's no need to run ourselves ragged like this! Besides, the festival should be a lot more fun with all these new faces, right?" She grinned, pulling Fuuka aside. "And you're a navigator like me! We have so much to talk about."
"Ah!?"
"C'mon, please? I mean it."
Fuuka's face heated up as the idol gripped her hands tighter. I t was a little surreal, what with this poppy starlet-looking girl taking a shine to someone as shy as Fuuka Yamagishi. Perhaps she could make yet another friend...like Yukari, she was aware of the rift that permeated SEES. Yukari was far braver than she, however, and Fuuka did not have the will to address that rift, content with their coexisting outside of battle. Perhaps this new friendship could keep her growing feelings of hurt - hurt due to their senpai - from growing. After all, this girl was a fellow non-combatant!
"W-Well, our own school festival was cancelled...you're right, Kujikawa-san." Fuuka smiled.
"Hey now! It's Rise! You're a year above me, but...well...call me Rise-chan!"
"O-Okay!"
Already, many of the more eager participants began filing back into the school: Teddie and Junpei took the lead, taking great strides, with a childlike Ken and a curious Aigis hot on their heels. A happy Rise and Fuuka went next, with Chie and Yukiko, friends since childhood, behind them. Maya dragged a reluctant Ulala and a flustered Katsuya by their hands. Masao and Hidehiko high-fived one another as they waltzed off together, with a cheerful Yuka and a pleased Yukino following. Kanji spotted Koromaru frolicking after them and was in hot pursuit of the adorable dog, with Yosuke chasing him. Yukari gave in, needing a much-deserved break.
"Ta-chan...?" Jun whispered to his love. "Can we -would you like to...?"
Eikichi and Lisa imploringly gazed at him. To their surprise - and joy - Tatsuya said nothing, and smiled. He gestured them over and together, they ran back to the school, eager to soak in the festival and celebrate their reborn bonds.
Baofu shrugged, lighting one up with a sigh. "Geez...they're gonna get me all riled up too..." He followed Tatsuya, keeping his eye on him.
Kei Nanjo, scion of the Nanjo Corporation and affluent progeny extraordinaire, fidgeted uncomfortably. "They're like little kids, I swear...Inaba looks even more like an idiot than before..." Before he could object, Naoya gave Yu a look - an affirming look - and walked off with him! Kei sighed, resigned to remember the promise he gave to himself when he first stepped into St. Hermelin High: to "rule" over the "masses," you needed to live with them. Aspects of the Nanjo Conglomerate suffered because his father (or, in his opinion, his glorified sperm donor) in particular did not see beyond his station. Annoyingly, he could hear Yamaoka objecting to his resignations in his head:
"Oh, Young Master! Why are you ignoring your friends!? A festival is something to be cherished! A festival celebrates our country's heritage, you know! Why, in my day..."
He surrendered and followed his leader, letting out a massive sigh.
Mitsuru and Reiji Kido from Mikage-cho stayed behind; the former rubbed her eyes in annoyance, while the latter grunted and brooded. "Honestly, I told them before that we don't have time for frivolous things like this...!"
Shinjiro rumpled his hat, gazing at the others. "Yeah, but..." He was surprised at his next choice of words. "Your Persona's your 'strength of heart.' We're beat, Kirijo. You don't even have to participate in anything. The atmosphere'll keep everyone's spirits high. Don't forget, we haven't really eaten anything in a while either..."
"Eaten..." Akihiko mouthed. He shot up with a grin, dragging Shinjiro by the hand. "I saw a stand that was selling takoyaki!" The nanosecond she heard the sacred word, Elizabeth rocketed into the school, eager to steal the goods for herself! "I challenge you to an eating contest, Shinji!"
"Wha - hey!"
Reiji hissed in frustration, adjusting his gloves. "Well," he began, facing Mitsuru, "if you're planning on hiding out somewhere, I'll gladly join you." With a wave, he shambled off, seeking a hiding spot. That young man looked to have a horrid temper, but Mitsuru, uneager to participate in the festival, followed him.
Sakuya was the only one left alongside Zen and Rei; the pianist, Belladonna, Marie and Margaret went off to find Elizabeth in her octopus hunt. The blue-haired boy gazed at Rei, who was still in her odd funk from earlier. What was it about the Shadows that made her that way? It wasn't just fright; her expression was a blank slate, her green eyes having lost their sparkle. Despite his status as her defender, Zen only grasped her hand, saying little.
"Rei...the others are attending the festival. Surely you wish to go back and join them?" Zen lightly tugged on her arm. No response. Despite her severe look, his expression and tone did not change.
"Let me try..." Sakuya came to Rei's side and pulled a piece of gum from his pocket. "Rei-chan...hey, Rei-chan. Want some gum?" He waved it in front of her face. "It's meat flavored gum..."
"Wh..." Rei breathed. "M...meat...?"
"Yes...it's...pink flavored meat." Sakuya winced at the lie. "I sound like an asshat right now..."
"Pink...meat? Pink like azuki beans and nikuman?" Rei's eagerness slowly returned. The thought of the two buns - a meat-filled bun and a bun filled with a sweet bean paste - restored her vitality and sense of joy. "I love those! I can mix manju and nikuman together! I'll call it...manjunikuman!" Given that a manju bun was usually a reddish-brown color, Sakuya nearly hurled at the thought of mixing beef with red beans. He stuck his tongue out in disgust. Rei was surprised. "C'mon Sakuya-kun! It's combining sweet and savory flavors! Every chef knows that those are the best two flavors, so it's only natural that you combine them to make them better!" She smiled, taking Sakuya away to the school. He glanced at Zen - he was expecting the boy to be up on the attack, but instead, he passively followed the two, relieved to see that Rei was back to normal.
It was normal for the traumatized to go in a trance. Given Rei's reaction to the rabbit in You in Wonderland, it was safe for Sakuya to assume that it, and the other three presumable treasures, was as tied to her memories as it was Zen's. Was her trance really fright? Something terrible had likely happened to her. He couldn't put his finger on just what Zen's story could be, though.
Much of the information you see involving the cast of the older games come from art books (namely Baofu passing the test to become a public prosecutor in one go). In Persona 2: Innocent Sin, if you talk to Nameless (the pianist), he will mention the amount of days he has spent in the Velvet Room; when converted, it becomes around 247 years. In Persona 1, Carl Jung, whose influence on psychology serves as the foundation of the series as a whole, is mentioned to be a Persona-user.
In Innocent Sin, Lisa, as a form of rebellion against her Japanophile parents, injected Cantonese words into her sentences. Naturally, due to the nature of Eternal Punishment, she doesn't do this. You can find a list of the words she most frequently uses on her page on the Megami Tensei wiki. Eriko Kirishima is similar in that she injects English into her sentences (noted in italics here), as she had been raised in America prior to the events of Persona 1.
