Hey there, reader!

37 chapters in, and I still can't believe how many people I got to read my story this year. I started last November and kept at making chapters for nearly half a year. To all the fans who've been keeping up since the beginning, or the readers who decided to drop in in the middle, I just wanted to thank you all for taking the chance to pick up my fanfic. It's not easy for an original story to stand out among the many stories on . The fact that I was able to garner so many viewers is a blessing. Again, I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who's been reading and dropping reviews! Every review counts, so don't stop here!

It's here! The final arcana Shadow's finally shown its face! I made this chapter longer than the others, but long chapters are sort of expected from me, right? We've got a lot happening here, so don't blink! You just might miss the good stuff. Enjoy!

A brief thank you to RubyMoonz, DdotChou, MoldyJellyBean, ShadowDragoon32, Shiro No Kishidan, Pokepia's Haunt,kyoto knight, and CodyGotKilld.

Chapter 37

Hanged Man

CM Academy Main Campus, Outside: 2:45 PM

News spread quickly about the mass breakout. A media circus went about the hordes of Shadows victims sprawled across the city looting and destroying everything in their path. Some spontaneous occurrence allowed for them to become animate outside of the Dark Hour and commit acts of random violence across the city. Thankfully, most of the damage was done to property rather than people. Some perpetrators were caught outside of the Dark Hour and immediately sent to real prison rather than the jailhouse. Despite the police force's best efforts to contain the situation, the damage was severe.

Riot police was ushered in at 12:06 AM to handle all the Shadow victims that it could. While a significant portion of the perpetrators were caught, the majority of the soulless hordes evaded capture. The authorities did their best to find them, but found little leads as to where the group went. They were capable of mass destruction if the situation wasn't put under control. No one on the police force would admit it to the media, but they were looking at a disastrous few nights.

Main Street was a mess the next morning. Broken glass littered the street and burn marks from flaming moltov cocktails stained the concrete walls and ground. Now that news had been made public knowledge, the majority of Colossian commerce avoided crossing the street as the authorities did their best to clean up the mess. Cleanup crews brushed up the debris and garbage men disposed of the barren waste. The news greatly disturbed the members of S.E.E.S. Conan sat with his friends at the tree outside. Lucy and Victor were less than pleased to meet there.

"Did you hear?" asked Conan.

"Yeah," said Lucy. "Everybody in class was talking about last night. How the hell did those Shadow victims pull off a stunt like this?"

"You guys think it was Strega?" asked Victor.

"Who else?" said Lucy.

The jokester cringed. "Damn."

"What the hell do they want with so many inmates?" Conan mused.

Suddenly, the trio's cell phones rang in unison. They checked their messages. To their surprise, it was from a number they didn't recognize. They each read the message.

"I think it's from Alice," said Victor. "I didn't know she had a cell phone."

"I'm surprised she got our numbers," said Lucy.

"'Hey, guys,'" Conan read. "'You heard about the mass breakout? I think I know what they're trying to do. Meet up at the dorms and we'll talk.'"

"What does she mean?" asked Lucy. "Can we really trust her?"

"Sure we can," said Victor. "We checked her out, right? Not to mention we allowed her to say in our dorms."

"Lucy has a point," said Conan. "Alice's input could be false."

The jokester gave a firm glance to his friends. "She could be right," he said. "Just trust her on this one."

Conan and Lucy glanced at each other. They shrugged. "We'll see," said Lucy.

Cm Academy West side, Command Room: 3:12 PM

Alice was waiting for the group in the command room as they came immediately after school. Slade was next to her keeping a watchful eye. When the students and Pierce were all seated, Slade began to speak.

"Thank you all for coming so soon," she said.

"What is it?" asked Lucy.

"It's about the riots," said Alice. "Ghost's behind them."

"Please clarify," said Charlotte.

Alice tensed. "He's managed to get all the Shadow victims to obey him like slaves," she said. "That's why he wanted to get caught so soon, so he could be right next to them when he needed to get the ball rolling."

"Hold up," said Victor. "The Shadow victims obey him? How's that possible? I thought he needed pills to use his Persona."

"Ghost's Persona had this weird ability," said Alice. "It's kinda like mind control, but he could only do it to weak-minded people. We sometimes used it to get folks to hand over money before we killed them. But back then, he could only use this ability on one person at a time. Not to mention I overheard something about Strega not needing pills anymore. Figured it was all BS, so it didn't occur to me until now—"

"You think he's gotten stronger in the last month," said Conan. "Like something's giving him new power?"

"Pretty much," said Alice. "Maybe fusing with his Shadow magnified his abilities tenfold."

Conan tensed. "That can't be good."

"You mentioned that Ghost could exert mind control," said Charlotte. "Please clarify the extent of his abilities."

"Ghost has to be within a certain range to mind control somebody," said Alice. "When you're close enough, he gets his Persona to weed into your head and make you do stuff against your will. Sometimes, he'd get people to off themselves with his gun. Pretty nasty when you think about it."

Lucy cringed. "That's horrible," she said.

"Is it reasonable for him to strike tonight, Miss Alice?" asked Pierce. "Is there anywhere he would go?"

Alice pondered the question. "Nowhere I can think of," she said. "Ghost always hated everything, so I can't say he'll hit one place first."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Ellie. "He's gonna level the city with napalm?"

The artist shook her head and scowled. "No, but something close. God knows what's cooking in his head right now."

"So who's gonna be the next host for the Full Moon Shadow?" asked Lucy. "There was always at least one person possessed by their demon. Lately, it's been members of Strega. If Alice isn't with Strega, or she's not bat crazy anymore, then who's it gonna be?"

"Regardless of who the host will be," said Pierce, "We should be prepared to fight. This will be the toughest battle we've had yet."

Alice waved for everyone's attention. "I want in," she said. "If anybody's gonna help take down Strega, I'm going in too."

"You sure?" asked Victor. "You haven't been keeping up with patrols recently."

"Your current status may prove counterproductive to your combat ability," said Charlotte. "Staying in the dorms is the safest action you may take."

"Don't put me on the sidelines," said Alice. "I want to give Ghost some payback. Just keep me on some support team or whatever. I have a Persona too."

Slade folded her arms in thought. "This is hardly the time to discuss this matter," she said. "Not to mention that your Shadow may emerge and try to possess you tonight."

"Maybe we should keep her in a smaller group," said Conan. "Put her with you and Charlotte. We got more than enough people to afford the usual attack and support team."

Pierce mulled the thought over. "Maybe this time," said the captain. "I'd rather see you active out there than lounging around tonight. Wouldn't you agree, Olivia?"

Slade sighed. "I suppose this will have to do," she said. "But if she sees her Shadow as soon as the Dark Hour emerges, then she's staying in the dorms. Are we clear?"

"She won't let us down," said Victor.

Colossian Slums: 11:58 PM

Last night, Ghost commanded his hordes to retreat as the Dark Hour was ending. The scarred man then gave an unsettling pep talk to the crowd about ascension and the coming of an apocalypse. After the brief speech, the horde retreated to the least-monitored area of Colossus: the slums. Every Shadow victim piled up into narrow alleyways and unattended rooms to wait for the next Dark Hour. Somehow, despite their immense numbers, they were able to obscure themselves from public sight. The members of Strega remembered to rest up as well. Tonight was the night their efforts would all come full circle.

Buck was dreaming about flaming cats and farting rainbows when Cero abruptly woke him up. The former rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and put his mask back on. It was nearly midnight and the Shadow victim hordes were still in their dysfunctional state. Bodies were piled on each other like dysfunctional rats, and had anyone seen these piles, the Shadow victims would have been identical to corpses. Buck disliked the sight of dead bodies, but he needed to deal with it.

"Showtime," said Cero. "Don't mess up."

"Where's Ghost?" asked Buck.

"Doing his zen-thing outside."

Buck and Cero walked outside and saw their leader sitting cross legged and back straight. His eyes were closed and his revolver rested perpendicular to the ground on his lap. Despite his aesthetically creepy appearances, Ghost looked like he was at peace. He escaped his trance and turned about to his subordinates.

"Are we all ready?" he asked whimsically.

"Yeah," said Buck. "So we're really gonna do this? I mean, it'd be cool to set fire to the rain and stuff, but can we handle it?"

"Colossus will be reborn through Death's righteous fire," said Ghost. "It is a destiny every society must endure. Now is not the time for sentiments. The time for action is now."

Buck shrugged. "Yeah, yeah. Don't get preachy on me."

Ghost rose and inhaled deeply. He stood rigidly and faced the dormant Shadow victims lying in waiting. They were his to control now. There must have been at least two hundred souls waiting to be used. None had minds of their own, but their lives would be more than worthy for his ultimate plan. Ghost had a mission, and he intended to succeed.

The Dark Hour struck and the Shadow victims rose from their piles. Their rising was a slow one. Shadow victims piled on tip were the first to emerge while those on the bottom had the worst conditions. It took a good two minutes for every Shadow victim to hustle out of their sleeping piles and out into the street. Ghost waited patiently as they assembled into a somewhat organized fashion on the pavement. The other members of Strega summoned their Personas, which the Shadow victims feared, to keep the hordes in line.

Ghost closed his eyes and summoned Azrael. The mechanical angel appeared behind his master and spread his wings open. Small strings of light stretched from every feather tip and touched the minds of every Shadow victim on the street. In one tremendous swoop, the strings went taut on every target. Rather than pulling the people forward, a black essence was ripped from every person's body like a cowl being torn from its owner. The collective essences were drawn together and clustered to form a massive black cloud above the Shadow victims. Every person under this new shape immediately collapsed and fell on each other. Azrael meanwhile pulled strings to shape the black cloud to his liking.

"Death calls," Ghost muttered, "and I will answer."

Cm Academy West side, Command Room: The Dark Hour

As soon as the Dark Hour struck, Keira summoned Demeter and begun her city-wide scan to find Strega. Alice sat patiently with the group as they waited anxiously for Keira's results. The artist was more than surprised to not face her Shadow tonight. To Slade's dismay, she did not encounter a Shadow as soon as the Dark Hour began.

I found them, said Keira. They're en route to the south end of the Laminar Bridge.

Everyone was familiar with the Laminar Bridge. It was a structure that connected one half of Colossus to another that was divided by a wide river. Chances were that Strega was staying there to mobilize and get ready for the upcoming fight.

"This is it…" said Ellie.

As we expected, there are three Persona-users nearby. It could be me, or it seems like they're moving fast. Like, really fast. I can't see how they're doing that.

"Like the speed of a moving truck?" asked Alice.

Yes. How did you know?

Alice closed her eyes to concentrate. "Theophanes feels something too," said the artist. "It's like those guys are riding something really big, but I can't see what they're riding either."

"They know this is their last chance," said Pierce. "Don't underestimate them."

"At least it saves us the trouble for looking for them," said Lucy.

"Alice," said Conan. "Think you can keep your Persona under control?"

Alice conjured her Persona card and let it hover above her palm. "More or less," she said. "Theophanes wants blood. She doesn't care where it's from. Don't expect too much."

Slade turned to the rest of her group. "You've all done a fine job up to this point," she said. "This will be our last operation. Let's all come back safely."

A unanimous cheer of agreement sent around the room. Without further delay, the members of S.E.E.S. and Alice left the room with equipment in hand and headed for the Laminar Bridge.

Laminar Bridge: the Dark Hour

The team was driven to the location with two hover cars and a scooter. Everyone arrived on a long bridge suspended over a wide river below. The bridge was mostly devoid of cars and pedestrians, so they didn't need to worry as much about collateral damage. Slade suspected that the Shadow victim rioters were still active, so she commanded everyone to stand in a triangle formation for crowd control. As the team stood at the ready, they saw their enemy on the other side of the bridge. The sight was surprising to say the least.

A massive shape lumbered over the horizon. It looked like a parade balloon at first, but Keira quickly identified it to be Strega. When the shape came closer, the team was set aside by what they saw. Ghost, Cero, and Buck were riding on the back of an upside-down man the size of Pierce's Persona hanging from a cross-like chandelier. A mask of an upside-down laughing man was strapped to its face.

"The hell?" said Victor. "What is that?"

"The Hanged Man," said Pierce. "It's the last card of the major arcana."

"Those guys are way too high," said Conan. "Can we hit them from here?"

"A lightning strike will suffice," said Charlotte.

"Pierce, tear it down," said Slade.

Pierce summoned Leviathan, who materialized behind his master. "Ziodyne!" he commanded.

A tower of lightning struck down from the. In an instant, a turquoise barrier engulfed the upside-down man immediately. Just as the lightning was about to strike, the current suddenly turned another direction and flew away from the bridge. All the energized plasma was directed into the metal frame of the bridge and into the water below. The members of S.E.E.S. were stunned to see such a feat.

"Keira," said Ellie. "What's up there?"

Keira conducted a scan with Demeter. It looks like Buck's got his Persona out. Uh, at least I think it's a Persona.

"You think?" asked Alice.

It's the cat/bear thing from last month, just smaller. God, it looks too much like a stuffed animal.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Oh, that thing."

"What about it?" asked Conan.

"Buck called it Teddie," the artist continued. "It can deflect magic attacks. You can't hit it from long range, especially while we're here."

"So we're supposed to run up to that thing?" asked Ellie. "How the hell do we do that if nobody can fly?"

"That's easy," said Pierce. "I'll just jump up there."

All eyes turned to the captain. "Wait, what?" said Ellie.

The captain pointed at the Hanged Man Shadow. "I think Leviathan can jump up there. I'll need a mobile team to keep Strega busy while I hold it down."

"I'm going," said Lucy.

"Yeah, me too," said Victor.

"Agreed," said Slade. "Conan, Ellie, I want you two to come as well. We need as much attack power as we can."

"What are our commands, ma'am?" asked Charlotte.

"You stay down here with Keira and Alice." The homeroom teacher quickly turned to glance at their target. "Provide cover fire with me. We need stopping power from the ground."

Charlotte morphed her arms into her signature magnum guns. "I will comply," she said.

"Think you all can keep up, lady?" said Alice. "They're tougher up there than on the ground."

Slade conjured her Persona card. "Watch and learn," she said sternly.

We can win, said Keira. I know we can!

Pierce commanded Leviathan to pick up the attack team in his massive palms. S.E.E.S. held on to the fingers closest to them for dear life. Leviathan then stood upright. Pierce' Persona was sizable to begin with, but now it was one quarter the height of a skyscraper. They were just one hundred meters away from their target, which was still on trajectory towards them. Without further delay, Leviathan jumped at the Hanged Man.

Pierce's Persona grabbed the Hanged Man by the calves and got another grip on the metal apparatus it hung on. Despite their collective masses, the Shadow and its opponents remained afloat over the bridge below. While Leviathan kept a firm grip, the rest of S.E.E.S. scurried across and ran further along the body of the Shadow. Pierce stayed behind to maintain control of his Persona. Standing at the shoulders of the beast was none other than Strega. Cero and Buck were standing at attention while Ghost was kneeling at the center of the Hanged Man's shoulder blades.

Victor impulsively sent Jester charging. Buck already had his Persona out and ready to parry. When the Persona waved its arms, a turquoise barrier appeared and deflected the attack. At the center of this shield was a cartoonish cat/bear animal with round ears and a tiny nose. One eye was colored a sinister golden shade while the other was missing. In the blank socket was a floating iris in place of the missing eye.

Victor's Persona bounced harmlessly off of the barrier and retreated back to his master. "The hell?" Victor grunted. "I call hacks!"

That barrier's too strong for any of you! said Keira. You have to wait until it's down! Hang on! We're providing cover fire!

On the ground, Charlotte stared firing magnum rounds at her target. The barrier kept the shells from damaging the Hanged Man, but its turquoise surface was starting to flicker like a dying light bulb. The soft rumble of explosions rattled the air and nearly deafened the people riding on top of the Full Moon Shadow. Meanwhile, Pierce commanded Leviathan to do whatever he could to slow the Shadow down. Keira gave words of reassurance to the entire team as they held their ground.

Ghost, who was preoccupied with driving his monster forward, didn't bother to turn around. "You know the significance of today, do you not?" he shouted. The roar of the passing wind allowed his voice to carry across the beast he rode. "You claim you hunt the Shadows to prevent the disaster they bring, yet countless lives are lost each day without their intervention."

"Face us you coward!" Ellie shouted. She charged forward and summoned Morrigan, who also bounced harmlessly off of the barrier.

Ghost laughed sneeringly. "The power we wield is not evil. You cannot deny that! So why don't you just admit it? You do not wish to eliminate the Dark Hour. You are merely deceiving yourselves!"

Lucy fired at Ghost. Every round of ammunition was caught by the barrier as well. "Who cares?" she said. "Why would you do this?"

"Look within and you will see," Ghost continued to rant. "You are all fools! Erasing the Dark Hour is the same as erasing yourselves. Is that so hard to comprehend?"

Hey, Ghost! Another voice appeared in everyone's heads. This time, it sounded like Alice. You're an ass!

Cero turned around and summoned Merlin. A four-armed skeletal figure appeared behind his master. "Forget the brats," he said. "Their crusade ends here!"

The Hanged Man bellowed. Its roar was magnified tenfold as the members of S.E.E.S. and Strega stood on its back. "Very well!" said Ghost. "Farewell, prodigal children!"

Cero commanded his Persona to attack. Merlin chattered with a dry hiss as all four of its arms revolved in different directions. The air around the Hanged Man grew thick with the smell of ozone. Thunder clouds accumulated above the members of S.E.E.S. Ellie realized what was happening and sent Morrigan high above the group. Pillars of lightning came pouring down. Ellie's Persona, who was the highest object in the sky, stuck her spear up and acted as a lightning rod for her team. All the energy from the sky came pouring into her with the light of one hundred suns. Morrigan absorbed the lightning, but her master became very exhausted. Lucy came to her aid and started casting Dia.

Oh God, said Keira. Are you alright?

"He's gotten stronger," Ellie grunted. "Hurry up and take them down!"

The barrier's weakening! said Alice. Get ready to charge!

Buck's barrier flickered. As quickly as it was fortified, the shield dispersed. His magic strained too much of his stamina. Buck keeled over. "Cover me!" he shouted.

S.E.E.S. charged forward. Cero commanded his Persona to charge forward at ramming speed. The team dispersed to avoid taking the hit. Victor ended up within the enemy's trajectory. He reflexively summoned Jester to clash with Merlin. Both Personas rammed each other in mid-air and grappled each other. Their fight forced them to roll onto the side of the Hanged Man and go flying over the edge. The sub-battle continued in the air and out of sight.

They're open! said Keira.

Lucy cast Maragi and sent a wave of fire at Ghost. Buck ran into the fire and sent his Persona to cast another barrier. The fire ate away at the shield and Buck's Persona knelt down to strengthen its fortification. Lucy had Vivian throw a shower of blades from her sleeves. Each projectile further weakened Buck's defenses. Cero pulled pin on one of his grenades and tossed it at the team. Ellie sent Morrigan to toss herself onto the explosive to absorb the damage. A muffled explosion came where the Persona's torso met the back of the Hanged Man. Ellie gasped and fell over. Conan ran to his teammate's aid to keep her from teetering over the edge of the Hanged Man's back.

She's fine, said Alice. Give her a minute to catch her breath!

"Keep going," muttered Ellie. Even though the grenade hadn't physically harmed her, the pain was real enough.

"Just watch," said Conan. He conjured his Persona card. "Black Ace!"

The dark Persona appeared and gave an ear-piercing shriek. Everyone could feel the air cringe at the sound of its cry. Black Ace lunged at the barrier with blade and wings flying. The weapon bounced off the shield harmlessly. In frenzied anger, Black Ace grabbed the surface of the barrier and dug its face into the shield. It opened its hideous mouth and started biting at the thing in its way. To everyone's surprise, the barrier was being ripped apart like skin from a roasted chicken. Black Ace bit away at the shields again and again until a hole big enough to stick its arm through was created.

Buck's Persona was grabbed by the top of its head and yanked through the barrier. Black Ace took no mercy to forcefully squeeze his enemy between his fingers. Conan's Persona stared at the cat/bear with ravenous hunger. The Black Ace opened its jaws once more and bore its carnivorous teeth. He then engorged himself by eating the Persona's heart out. Buck, who was still able to feel his Persona's pain, started screaming and fell onto his side. Fur and fabric went flying as black mist poured out from his Persona like stuffing from an open teddy bear. It squealed until all its insides were bled dry. The Black Ace was left with a tattered sheet of fabric and a deflated face. Teddie dispersed into a mix of stardust and black mist. A maddening glare was in the Black Ace's eyes.

Sheesh, said Alice. And I thought my brother had an appetite.

"More," the Persona growled. "There must be more."

Conan swiftly dismissed him. Only Lucy and Ellie witnessed the scene. If this were another patrol, they might have stopped their teammate and kept him on the bench. The current battle was too chaotic for either Persona-user to consider sidelining such a powerful fighter. At the very least, their toughest obstacle was out of their way.

Now that the barrier was down, Charlotte's artillery fire was making contact with its target. Ghost cringed as he tried to get his flying craft to move faster. Slade joined in on the attack and started hurling chunks of concrete at the Shadow. The Hanged Man started taking the hits along its torso and shoulders. Apparently, collateral damage was negligible at this point.

Meanwhile, Pierce had his Persona continue to wrestle with the Hanged Man. The fight transgressed to the point where Leviathan climbed on top of the chandelier/cross apparatus on the Shadow's back and started hammering away at it with its fists. Every now and then, he would cast Ziodyne to electrify the entire piece continued to beat away with his massive hands. The Hanged Man groaned and lowered its elevation. For the Persona-users fighting on its back, the sudden decrease in elevation staggered everyone and sent those standing to their knees.

At this time, the brawl between Merlin and Jester returned to the Hanged Man's back. Both Personas were burned in multiple places and fighting each other still. Lucy used another Maragi spell to blast fire at Ghost. Merlin broke from the fight and took the hit for Ghost. Cero breathed heavily behind his gas mask. The battle was taking its toll on his senses. The leader of Strega paid no mind to the battle raging behind him.

"Maziodyne!" commanded Cero.

Pillars of lightning came raining down from the sky once more. Lucy, Conan, and Victor went running in different directions to avoid getting hit. The lightning's blast radii were too wide for them to escape entirely. Blasts of wind erupted wherever the lightning struck and the team went flying. Victor and Lucy were downed almost immediately, but Conan found himself dangling near the edge of the Hanged man's arm.

Somebody pick him up! said Alice. To the team's horror, there was not enough time to help Conan climb back up.

Cero laughed. "Game over, brats! Maziodyne!"

More lightning rained down from the sky. Victor desperately sent Jester higher into the air and did as Morrigan did before. The Persona raised its weapon to absorb the lightning and away from his master's friends. Thousands of sparks lit up and converged upon Jester and set him ablaze. Jester remained vigilant and continued to take all of the lightning damage. Victor struggled to stay on his feet as his Persona burned.

Lucy ran to Conan. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him up as high as she could. Her friend meanwhile struggled to get his legs back onto the Hanged Man. Cero casually removed another grenade from his belt, pulled the pin, and tossed the frag. Lucy summoned Vivian to catch the grenade and hold it as fire erupted from the explosive. The blast was minimized to an extent, but the Persona was still damaged from countering the attack. Lucy fell over as her Persona was staggered. She quickly dismissed her other self as Conan helped her down.

Guys! said Keira. You're headed for the Lord's Tower!

Everyone on top of the Hanged Man was so preoccupied with the fight that none realized where they were. The Shadow they rode on had floated past the Luminar Bridge and further into the heart of Colossus. S.E.E.S., Strega, and the Shadow were all on a collision course for the tallest building in the city: the Lord's Tower. Its sheer height trumped those of the surrounding buildings. S.E.E.S. immediately realized what Ghost was trying to do.

"Ghost's gonna ram us into that?" exclaimed Victor. "He's crazy!"

We're doing what we can down here! said Keira. Try harder to stop him!

Buck finally recovered and rose to his feet. "You still got frags?" he grunted to his teammate.

Cero check his belt. He was down to one flash grenade. "Dammit," he muttered.

The young man with thick arms conjured Teddie once more. "Sucks for you. Let's go, Teddie!"

The cat/bear Persona appeared once more, but was still in a weakened state. Due to its last fight against Black Ace, Teddie was a husk of tattered fabric. The Persona was struggling to stay on its feet as it threatened to fly away with the rushing wind. Teddie might have looked sad if it weren't for the sinister glare in its eyes.

Guys! said Keira. Get ready!

"Mabufudyne!" shouted Buck.

A cloud of frost engulfed the air above the members of S.E.E.S. The moisture in that space solidified into a million pieces of frozen shrapnel. When each piece of ice was the size of a hypodermic needle, they all rained down upon their intended targets.

Conan summoned Black Ace once more. "Mabufula!" he commanded.

The dark Persona roared and formed a wall of ice around his master's team. A barrier made of solidified water stretched to cover Conan, Lucy, Victor, and Ellie from the flying projectiles above them. Shrapnel pierced the hasty fortification in a thousand places, but the wall remained intact. Black Ace growled as its wall was weakening. At the very least, Buck's attack was parried successfully.

Meanwhile, Ghost summoned Azrael and began to form a dark sphere around itself. The sphere was just as it appeared last month, but Ghost began doing something different. The sphere grew larger in size, expanding to ten times its initial radius and enlarging further still. The sphere hovered above the Hanged Man like a cannonball ready to blow. A deafening groan came from the Hanged Man. It and everyone riding on it were still headed for the Lord's Tower. A pale skyscraper was zooming in quickly over the horizon. If this beast wasn't stopped before it collided with the building, the collateral damage would be catastrophic. Conan could barely imagine the body count of civilians from the falling debris of the tower. That thought further fueled his Persona's rage.

Black Ace drew his blade and charged. Merlin fired lightning while Teddie conjured more ice. Conan's Persona dodged both these attacks and was at point blank with both his enemies. With a fell swoop, Black Ace swung its blade through Merlin's exposed spine. Cero's supernatural being split in two and crumbled into a pile of bones. Before Merlin had a chance to recover, Black Ace shrieked and started curb stomping the bones. Cero was paralyzed with the sensation that all his bones were being broken at once. When Merlin's body was reduced to crumbling bone dust, Cero passed out.

Buck tried to help, but Teddie was too weak. The cat/bear Persona fell over and flopped like a rag doll on the back of the Hanged Man and disintegrated soon after. The young man with the thick arms was too exhausted from casting barriers to move. Black Ace hovered above Ghost with a ravenous glare.

Ghost finally turned face. "Too late," he said. "Nihil Hand!"

Conan glanced up and realized that the large dark sphere had formed above the Hanged Man. He was very familiar with the damage that could be done with such an attack. As the situation was, Black Ace hadn't the means to repel the attack.

Ghost laughed hysterically. "Death awaits you!" he taunted.

Pierce! said Keira. Stop that ball!

On top of the chandelier/cross, Pierce noticed the dark sphere. He commanded Leviathan to cease its attacks and try to catch the sphere. The massive Persona managed to clasp two hands on the bottom of the sphere, but the burden of holding it was tremendous. Leviathan groaned as the explosive ball of darkness was coming down on his shoulders. Pierce groaned with his Persona.

Ellie recovered enough to rise from her resting place. "Just hang on!" she grunted. "Prayala!"

Morrigan reappeared and fired a spear of air at the sphere of darkness. Ghost's magic was pushed back for a moment and the burden upon Leviathan's shoulders was lessened. The sphere was still prevalent, but its descent was slowed down enough for Leviathan to prop himself up on one knee. By this time, the Hanged Man was just in front of the Lord's Tower. Azrael prepared himself to fire the Nihil Hand attack. The dark sphere above the Hanged Man grew even larger and threatened to flatten Leviathan.

In frustration, Conan commanded Black Ace to charge at the sphere. The Persona flew at breakneck speed and into the heart of the magic. Azrael was still inside, so Black Ace tackled it with the force of a speeding truck. Had the Nihil Hand spell been completed, Conan's Persona might have vaporized on contact with the dark sphere. Instead, Black Ace passed harmlessly through the object and made rough contact with Ghost's Persona inside. Leviathan utilized this moment to shove its burden high into the air. Both supernatural beings within the sphere went flying into the atmosphere.

The Nihil Hand spell detonated prematurely. A massive wave of air washed over everything in the air and the neighboring buildings. Windows rattled dangerously and threatened to shatter. Metal structures and concrete fortifications shook about like grass in a windstorm. The Hanged Man and everything riding on it was sent flying into a low structure. An unfortunate office building was caught in the crash and flattened by an upside-down man from the sky. Everything came down in a tremendous bang and the earth rumbled like an impassioned war drum. The dust settled and all that was left was a defeated Shadow with a misshapen chandelier/cross on top of it. The Hanged Man slowly disintegrated into black mist that dispersed into thin air.

Out of the debris, numerous shapes stumbled out. First came Ellie cradling Victor by the shoulder. The latter was unconscious while the former cursed her current circumstances. Lucy emerged with one hand clutching a massive gash in the upper arm. Those who walked away checked for other survivors. A number of vehicles drove towards their location. Slade, Charlotte, Keira, and Alice rode on hover cars, dismounted, and ran to their teammates' aid.

"Guys!" Keira exclaimed. "Are you alright?"

"Just fine," Ellie grunted. "But this kid needs to lose weight." She set Victor down while the other members of S.E.E.S. attended to the wounded. Slade and Lucy started casting healing spells to whoever needed the help.

"I sense the others still in the dust," said Alice. "Strega's defeated, and the cueball's got your berserk friend."

"'Cueball?'" asked Slade. "Oh, you mean Pierce."

A soft rumble made the earth shake. Leviathan stepped out from the debris cloud carrying Conan and the members of Strega. Pierce stood valiantly on his Persona's shoulders with turtleneck sweatshirt tattered and trousers reduced to crude shorts. The captain said nothing as his Persona set down his student and enemies on the ground. Every Persona-user was unconscious. The rest of the team arrived to tend to the wounded. Slade stepped away and tried to repair as much of the destroyed office building as she could.

"Shall I attend to the fallen?" asked Charlotte. "An exorcism unto the members of Strega will also be in order."

Slade summoned Hecate and began rebuilding the concrete framework of the office building. "Go for it," she said.

Charlotte summoned Papillion and cast Mahamon on the members of Strega. Glyphs of light and runes appeared and cast out the evil within S.E.E.S.'s enemies. As the spell completed, Ghost grunted and opened his eyes.

"So this is the end?" he muttered. Defeat leeched the spirit from his voice. "After all those heists, it ends like this?"

"Yeah," said Alice. "Not to mention the pills won't cut it anymore."

"Pills?" said Keira. "Like the ones that Ellie had?"

"Not anymore," said Ellie. "The meds were for controlling our Personas. Damn pills almost got me killed."

Ghost scoffed. "That is a fate we all share," he said. "Without the Dark Hour, there is no point in living. My body is nothing without its spirit."

Alice squatted down to Ghost's side. "Don't get 'holier-than-thou' on us," she retorted.

"You'll live," said Ellie. "I hit rock bottom, and I'm feeling great."

Charlotte completed her Mahamon spell and the members of Strega were engulfed in light. Every conscious S.E.E.S. member watched as their adversaries were stripped of their unholy power. Ghost felt his consciousness fade away with the last of his strength.

"Another time," he choked. "Another time—" With that last note, the scarred man closed his eyes and did not stir.

The team settled in as Pierce and Ellie lugged away their enemies into Pierce's hover car. Conan was revived by Lucy, who knelt over him with Vivian casting Dia. The former let out a tremendous sigh of relief as he regained his strength.

"Did we do it?" he muttered.

Lucy nodded. Once Conan spoke, her face was filled with relief. "Yeah, it's over," she said. "You diverted Ghost's spell away from the buildings. I think you were knocked out immediately after the blast."

Conan vaguely remembered feeling as if his entire body were being incinerated and split into millions of pieces. Now that he thought about it, he realized that Black Ace was at point blank when the dark spell detonated. No wonder Conan felt as though he were blown to tiny pieces. At least his Persona took the hit rather than him.

A groan came from the right. Victor started to regain consciousness as well. Charlotte was giving her own form of revival magic with Papillion's help. The jokester glanced about to see if everyone made it back.

"Did we do it?" said Victor.

"Operation completed," said Charlotte. "Or should I say, 'Mission Complete.'"

Slade walked back to the rest of the group. She had successfully repaired the damaged office building behind her. "Yes," said the homeroom teacher. "It's finally over."

"Everyone," said Charlotte with a smile. "I believe a celebration is in order. What shall be our victory cheer?"

"I think we're good," said Ellie.

Despite his exhaustion, Victor managed to pump a fist in the air. "Food!" he said feebly.

Charlotte pumped a fist into the air as well. "One, two three, 'Food!'"

Keira unwittingly laughed. "Uh, Charlotte?" said the star student. "You know he was kidding, right?"

Lucy laughed as well. "What kind of victory cry was that?" she said.

Alice and Ellie scoffed in unison. "Idiot," they said together.

Victor sat up. "So, Mrs. Slade?" he said. "We getting a party tomorrow or what?"

At the time, the captain of the police force returned and overheard the conversation. Pierce brushed off some of the dust on his tattered turtleneck. "Of course, Mr. Finn," he said. "I believe a proper celebration is in order. What say another trip to the karaoke bar?"

Slade sighed. "You two never waste any time, do you?" she mused. "I'll arrange the party, and we won't be going to another bar this time. Does anyone have suggestions for cuisine?"

"Barbeque and seafood," said Conan. "Lots and lots of barbeque and seafood."

Ellie's stomach growled. "That sounds good right about now," said the redheaded girl. "Dibs on halibut and salmon!"

"I want the hot dogs!" said Lucy.

"Wait a minute," said Keira. "Save some salmon wrap for me!"

"Oh, come on!" said Victor. "Don't hog it all!"

"I wish to have the ribs, rib eye, octopus, and shrimp," said Charlotte with a smile.

"Do you even eat?" asked Alice.

"This is hardly the time to call dibs," said Slade. The excitement in the air was starting to make her euphoric as well. "You're all juniors and seniors! Show some maturity!"

Pierce tapped Slade's shoulder. "Save the trout for me," he said with a smile.

S.E.E.S. laughed. After a long and hard battle, everyone was tired and excited all at once. The chorus of happy voices was brighter tonight than any night before. Even Ellie and Alice, who were more reserved than the others, couldn't help but join the laughter. Slade waved her hand to call everyone's attention.

"Alright, alright," said the homeroom teacher. "I'll arrange for the finest assortment of roasted meats and fish possible."

Victor cheered. "This is awesome!" he said.

"Good luck getting the good stuff," said Lucy. "I'm leaving you the leftovers."

"Not if I eat it all first," said Conan.

Laughter went around once more. Slade took a longing glance at the team she was part of this past year. She called once more for everyone's attention.

"This is the last time we'll ever experience the Dark Hour," she said with confidence. "As horrible as the Shadows are, I find this time in the night very nostalgic."

"We made it as a team, Olivia," said Pierce. "We've overcome many obstacles to get here, and we deserve to celebrate. Don't dwell on this loss when we have much to look forward to."

Conan got up. Lucy helped him stay on his feet. "At least we saved the world, right?" he said. "Even if we aren't getting credit for it."

"Credit doesn't matter," said Lucy. "What counts is that we got something done. Right, everybody?"

S.E.E.S. agreed in unison. Without further delay, the team retreated back to their vehicles and started to head back to the West side dorms. An air of mirth hung around the team as they reflected upon their last few months of battle. For all their sacrifices, tonight's victory concluded their ultimate mission: to vanquish evil and end the Dark Hour. That knowledge was more than enough to satisfy every junior, senior, and adult that rode home.