Chapter 12: Rivals
Marcus noted an immediate improvement in Junpei's attitude the next day. He also noted that his class size had doubled. He asked why, and one of the new kids answered, interrupting Yukari. He told Marcus that their classes had been combined to improve efficiency in learning, and because they were the only two classes that had awakened to their Persona powers. Marcus immediately felt an intense dislike of this new guy. There were four in the new group, the guy who had interrupted one, two other guys, and one girl. One of the other guys looked like a nerd; the other looked like a muscle head. The girl looked normal, but acted kind of snobby. Yukari introduced the new students. The loud mouth was called Jacob Shinseki. The girl was named Amane Kanzaki. The nerd and the muscle head were called Shunsui Kazudo and Karaki Abarame respectively. Marcus instinctively did not like them, and Ken, Fu, and Mika were in agreement. After class finished Yukari told all eight of them to report to the gym for a new class. Marcus thought it was going to be some kind of testing by Junpei, but when they arrived, they saw no one. Jacob started badmouthing Junpei as a teacher, but was interrupted as a man shaped white thing landed right in front of him, bringing the blade that was its right arm within inches of his face. Amane screamed deafeningly and Shunsui fainted. Jacob collapsed to the floor and Karaki made a mad dash for the door, but found it locked. Marcus, Mika, Ken and Fu, on the other hand, drew their Evokers in unison and attacked with their Personas. Marcus was impressed that Fu's could attack. The white figure jumped gracefully out of the path of the attack, taking Jacob with him. He landed next to Nyx, who was holding back hysterical laughter. Marcus groaned, knowing that Michael had played him, but couldn't hold a grudge. He glanced at Jacob, whose pants were soaking wet. Michael put the boy on his feet. Jacob could only mumble, "I need new pants."
"Yes you do, pee boy. Nyx, could you get Junpei to fetch him a pair?"
"Sure. As long as I don't have to change him too."
"Oh, I think he's big enough to do that on his own." Michael let go of Jacob, who stumbled back to the other three. Amane was still freaking out, but Karaki had woken Shunsui up. Junpei turned up a little while later with a fresh pair of pants and an evil grin. Jacob had regained his composure, and was acting like he was in control, like he had wet himself on purpose. After Jacob had changed Michael introduced himself to the four newcomers. Shunsui immediately began to ask countless questions of Michael. Michael finally shut him up by kicking him in the chest. "This isn't Q&A kids, this is combat training."
"But we already know how to fight, you know that." Marcus shuddered at the thought of learning with Jacob and his group. "Yes, you do know how to fight, which gives you a leg up on these four, but do you know how to fight with a strategy?"
"Yes, go in, kick butt. That's a strategy."
"One that will get you killed if you stick to it. The point of this training is to teach you how to use your abilities to hit your opponents' weak spots. For example, Ken's Persona, Kala-Nemi, is adept with lightning based attacks, so if he were to hit a Shadow with a weakness to lightning, he would strike for a greater amount of damage. At the same time, the Shadow would be stunned, giving him the opportunity to attack again. This is how you win. This is also why you need to keep in contact with you support Persona user. With out them, you'll be shooting blind, you might hit a weak spot, or you might hit the Shadow with something to its advantage. Some of the more powerful Shadows can absorb certain attacks and heal themselves with it, not a good turn of events for you. There are even Shadows that can be healed by being shot, slashed, or smashed. The point is you have to use weaknesses to your advantage, while avoiding the Shadows strengths."
"This is making my head hurt." Marcus glanced at Karaki, who was holding his head. "Hurt or not, these lessons are going to keep you alive, so pay attention. Now, I want all of you to fight me, so you understand how to use your powers to your advantage." Fu automatically summoned her Persona, which had grown and become Rhea. She would hang back as support, to feel out Michael's weaknesses. Shunsui joined her, summoning his Persona, Coeus. Coeus had the form of a giant man holding an equally huge book. Jacob, Amane, and Karaki joined Marcus, Mika, and Ken on the front line to fight. Michael instructed Fu to try and determine his weakness. Fu was surprised when she discovered he had none. Shunsui laughed at her, saying she was too weak to find it out, and tried his luck. He failed miserably. Michael explained that Fu had been correct, he didn't have a weakness, but he didn't have any resistances either. He told them that he had developed the ability in his Shadow form to determine his strengths, but weaknesses would develop in other places when he did. Michael told Fu to try again, and this time she found that he now had a weakness to fire, but strength to ice. He told her to check a third time, she discovered that his fire and ice shift was gone, but that he know had a significant increase in his blade aptitude, but an equal weakness to firearms and other piercing weapons. He shifted his strength yet again, but this time told Fu and Shunsui not to scan for his weaknesses. He then told Marcus to attack with anything he could. With Chaos he fired off a spear of ice, which shattered harmlessly against Michael. Jacob laughed at Marcus, and used his Persona, Epimetheus, to engulf Michael in flame. The flames died and Michael stood untouched. Ken then attacked with a lance of lightning, which did nothing. Amane then attacked Michael with a gale of wind from her Persona, Pandora. Mika, after Amane was done, ran up and punched Michael across the face, and he staggered. Michael chuckled quietly and allowed Fu and Shunsui to scan him. They came to the same conclusion; he had gained immunity to elemental attacks, in exchange for weakness to all physical attacks. Nyx stepped forward, explaining that the eight of them would now have a practice battle with her and Michael as the opposition. Michael told them that it would be up to the six fighting to tell Fu and Shunsui to do any scanning, and when. It was also up to them who would act as the leader, deciding what tactics to use. Jacob began to argue fiercely with Marcus, he wanted to lead, but Marcus wanted Ken to lead because of Ken's experience. Finally it was put to a vote and Ken won by one, Shunsui voted for him. Ken first order was to surround Michael and Nyx. They did so, picking up practice weapons along the way. Marcus took a long sword, Mika took a pair of boxing gloves, Ken took a staff, Amane took a one handed sword, and Jacob took two, one in each hand. Ken then told Fu and Shunsui to scan Michael and Nyx. Marcus decided not to waste time and attacked Michael head on. Michael easily deflected the attack, and punted Marcus back across the gym. Jacob laughed cruelly, and attacked in exactly the same way, and was punted back in the same way. Marcus suppressed a laugh. Mika then attacked Nyx head on in the same way, but was intercepted by Michael. Amane tried to blow Nyx away with a gust of wind, but it did nothing. Finally Fu and Shunsui reported that Michael was immune to physical attacks, and Nyx was immune to elemental attacks. Ken then ordered Jacob, Marcus, and Karaki to attack Nyx with normal attacks, and Mika and Amane to attack Michael with him, using elemental attacks. Marcus and Jacob rushed at Nyx, but were beaten there by a massive man. Marcus looked back and saw that Karaki had his Evoker to his head. The massive man was actually Karaki's persona, Atlas. The three of them attacked Nyx while Michael was preoccupied with the attacks Ken, Mika, and Amane were throwing at him. Before any real harm could be done, however, Michael called for the fight to stop. Marcus and Karaki stopped, as did Ken, Amane, and Mika, but Jacob did not. He rushed at Nyx, and was inches away from dealing a powerful blow, when Michael stepped in his path. Michael took the hit without flinching, and the nearly crushed Jacob's face in with a devastating punch. Blood poured from Jacob's nose, Marcus thought it was almost certainly broken. Michael didn't even stop to see if Jacob was okay, he immediately turned his attention to Nyx, who looked winded despite the fact that it was only a practice fight. Amane ran to Jacob, who had landed a few feet from her. Karaki and Shunsui stayed where they were for a moment, and then drifted toward Ken, Marcus, Mika, and Fu, who were standing between the two pairs. Marcus complimented Karaki's Persona out of the corner of his mouth, and Karaki returned the compliment. Shunsui started asking Ken about his experience with Shadows, and Ken gladly told him all he knew. Michael helped Nyx gently to her feet, and offered to carry her to the school's infirmary, but she told him she could walk. A few minutes after they left, Marcus walked up and offered his hand to Jacob. Jacob batted it away, swearing, and shouted at Karaki to pick him up and carry him to the infirmary. Karaki did as told, and the group of four left, leaving Ken, Marcus, Fu, and Mika alone in the gym. Marcus felt hot anger boiling up from his chest. He looked at Mika, trying to convey his hate of Jacob without yelling. He saw that she was shaking, and immediately his hate dissipated and was replaced with concern for her. He moved to her side, and spoke quietly to her. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah."
"Are you sure, you're shaking like a leaf."
"I'm fine, just really pissed off at that jerk."
"You too?"
"Of course, how could I not be? First he flirts with me in the hall, and when I turn him down he calls me a whore, and then he disrespects you when you try to be nice to him. He's a fucking prick." Marcus felt his hate return in full force, but for different reasons. Marcus wanted to rip Jacob's head off. "That son of a BITCH!"
"What?"
"I'm going to kill him! No one calls my girlfriend names and lives to tell the tale!"
"Marcus don't, he's not worth the trouble."
"She's right, man. That little moron isn't worth the effort to kick his ass. Besides, as pissed off as Michael looked, he'll probably kill Jacob himself."
"No way, Ken, Michael is way to calm to do that."
"I don't know, Fu. Michael looked like he was going to kill something. He was pissed that Jacob didn't stop."
"I don't think it was that Jacob didn't stop that made him angry, I think it was that he was going for Nyx." Marcus looked at Fu, who normally kept out other people's relationships. "I can't be sure, but what I do know for sure is that I detected three life signs when we were fighting Michael and Nyx."
"So? It was probably one of us."
"No, I've gotten very good at blocking out allies signals; I had to if I was going to be of any use in Tartarus. I was focused on those two specifically, and I sensed three beings."
"Maybe it was Shunsui; his information could have been overlapping with yours."
"Perhaps, but then why only three? If it was a double image, then I would have sensed four, but I only sensed three. And another thing, the third was small, miniscule, so small I doubt Shunsui could have detected it."
"Maybe it was a bug, then."
"No, it was too small, even for a bug."
"Okay, I give up, what do you think it is?"
"Yeah, Fu, what do you think?"
"Well, this is just a guess, but I think Nyx might be pregnant." All four of them fell silent. Mika was red in the face, and Ken stared at the ceiling. Marcus looked off into space, not sure what to do.