Kotone looked at the page from Elizabeth's book that was resting in Akihiko's hand. While she and Shouko didn't exactly know what it was or what it meant, everyone else seemed to know.
"What's so important about that page?" Shouko inquired, while Akihiko continued to hold onto the page that was neatly folded into a smaller square.
"Jeez, did you two catch them up to speed at all? Well, it's fine, I don't mind explaining it. Basically, Elizabeth has been able to use various Personas because she uses a compendium, which in her case is her grimoire. Each filled page in her grimoire is a Persona that she can summon or use. While we don't know the exact rules or limitations, it seems that she can't freely swap between various Personas at once, and the amount of time she can keep using the Personas is shortened by how many she has out at once." While the information was rather confusing, Kotone felt as though she understood it somewhat.
"So, what can we do with this page that you have?" Shouko inquired.
"Nothing, as of right now. None of us possess the ability to wield any other Persona other than our own, so the page is unusable. However, it is still one less Persona for Elizabeth to use, so we'll take that as a win," Yukari stated.
"On top of that, the writing on the page is ineligible, so it's not like we know what's written on here." Unfolding the page before holding it up for the others to see, sure enough, it seemed to be filled with gibberish.
"Well, let's keep it somewhere safe for now. You all are probably very tired, so we should get some rest," Yukari stated, while Kotone cast a worried glance towards the door.
"Wait, what if Elizabeth finds us?" Kotone inquired.
"Ah, you won't need to worry about that. Since we are essentially in a large extension of Tartarus, that means that the city around us is constantly changing. While it may not seem like it, you could take one wrong turn and become lost entirely," Yukari explained. "That's why whenever the Dark Hour occurs, we always have someone inside to make sure we don't lose the building. They also run communications. In this case, I was in charge of that, since Junpei was sleeping in."
"H-Hey, stop making me seem lazy, I was tired from fighting all day yesterday!" Junpei exclaimed. As the two began to banter with each other, Akihiko walked over to where Kotone and Shouko were standing around idly.
"You two, are you able to summon a Persona?" Akihiko asked while Kotone and Shouko looked at each other before shaking their heads.
"We haven't tried, nor do we know how," Shouko said. Kotone nodded in agreement, before watching as Akihiko took out a worn-out pistol before raising it to his head. Kotone could only watch in yet another wave of shock and fear, fully believing that the gun was real.
"If I asked you two to shoot yourselves with this gun right here and now, could you do it?" Akihiko asked, a rather dark smile on his face as he spoke. "Because in this reality we live in, we face death and danger. These guns, or what we call Evokers, are a constant reminder of that. By accepting that this fate is inevitable and conquering the fear that many others face, you can summon your Persona. So, I want the two of you to give it a try."
"Wait, so you want us to shoot ourselves with this?" Shouko asked, disbelief visible on her face as she spoke. The firm nod Akihiko gave them made it clear that he was being serious. After a moment, Shouko reached out and took the gun from his hand. Raising it up to her head, Kotone watched in silence as the fear in her eyes seemed to begin to fade. Letting out a small breath, Shouko then closed her eyes before pressing the trigger.
A long moment passed, and then another. But in the end, nothing happened.
"I see, so you can't summon a Persona," Akihiko murmured, scratching the bottom of his chin as he spoke. "That's not too big of an issue. There aren't many Awakened left, anyways."
"Um, excuse me? What do you mean by the Awakened? Also, can certain people not summon Personas?" Kotone asked, wanting to divert the attention off Shouko, whose face seemed to have paled slightly after using the Evoker.
"While we don't know the set requirements to summon a Persona, more people often than not can't summon a Persona. Those who can, we call the Awakened. However, there are people like Shouko who are able to remain sentient during the Dark Hour, even without a Persona." Despite Akihiko seemingly explaining things in detail, Shouko wasn't able to grasp a single thing that had left his mouth.
"You noticed how you two were the only ones in the city, besides Elizabeth and me, right? That's because, for the duration of the Dark Hour, normal people are transformed into tall coffins, where they sleep through it all. People like us are left to fend for themselves. There are beings called Shadows that overrun the city, and it's our job to clear them out using our Personas."
"And what happens to people like me, who can't use a Persona?" Shouko asked while Akihiko accepted the Evoker from her, before handing it over to Kotone.
"Without a Persona of your own to fight the shadows, you're as good as dead. However, as long as you stay in here or have at least one of us with you, then you'll be fine. Now, I want you to give it a try, Kotone." Glancing at the Evoker that Akihiko was handing out towards her, Kotone hesitantly reached out before taking it out of his hand. Holding the gun, she slowly raised it to the side of her head, her body beginning to tremble slightly. She wasn't sure why, but there was something in her that was beginning to feel a little bit afraid. Then, as she placed her finger on the trigger, everything went white.
"Huh?" Kotone blinked, finding herself standing in some sort of empty, white space. Where was she? Looking around, she found herself staring at two people sitting across from each other at a table, playing cards. One appeared to be a blue-haired boy wearing headphones, while the other was a pale woman with black hair, wearing a dress of a matching color. She clearly didn't know these people, but with everything that had happened, this wasn't as surprising as she thought it would be.
"Um, hello?" Kotone asked softly, as she came to a stop in front of the two. The boy glanced over in her direction, while the woman seemed to pay her no mind.
"Wait there for a second, we're almost finished this round," The boy instructed, before taking a card and placing it down on the table, causing the woman to let out a frustrated groan before slamming her hand of cards on the table.
"This is why I hate playing these games that you stupid humans deem fun! The only way you can win is by using these silly tricks. Isn't that right, boy?"
"That's the point of the game, and my name isn't boy, it's Makoto." Kotone froze upon hearing him say his name. Makoto?
"Wait, Makoto as in Makoto Yuki?" Kotone asked, butting into their scuffle, prompting both of them to look over at her.
"Who were you again?" Makoto asked, his voice monotone as always while he neatly compiled the cards into a deck before beginning to shuffle them.
"I'm Kotone, Kotone Shione." The longer this went on, the more questions Kotone began to have. Yet, these two seemed unfazed by everything that was around them, as if they either accepted it or knew about much more than she herself could ever comprehend.
"So, she's your familiar, huh? It's a shame we couldn't have gone to Miss Blondie since robots can't have souls. But, that's alright. I guess you'll have to do." Kotone watched as the woman slowly rose from her seat, before taking slow steps towards Kotone. The dark and dangerous glimmer in her eyes was rather frightening. What was she going to do? Glancing at Makoto, silently asking for help, he either seemed to not care or was too busy shuffling cards for the next game.
"Kotone Shione, how interesting. In many other worlds, you would be sitting where Makoto is right now, yet here you are. An unpredicted outcome leads to unpredicted circumstances." An excited gleam seemed to appear in her eyes before the woman held out her hand. A dark blue light began to emit in her palm, as an unsettling smile began to grow on her face.
"Since we are now connected by the threads of fate that remain alive, I shall grant you a fraction of my power. Do provide me an entertaining show, will you? It's been getting boring dealing with this boy who talks once in a blue moon." Kotone looked back and forth between the boy and the woman, starting to become overwhelmed. They clearly weren't in the lobby, meaning her Evoker had probably caused this. After a moment, Kotone managed to speak in a small and trembling voice.
"May I ask who you are?" The woman lets out a low and dark chuckle, before the corners of Kotone's vision begin to grow dark.
"Nyx."
Kotone could hear an ear-piercing scream fill her ears, the sound loud and unpleasant. It took several moments before she realized that she, in fact, was the one who was screaming. She couldn't open her eyes, but she could feel a strange heat beginning to spread throughout her body, uncomfortably warm.
"I am bound to you, as you are bound to me. Let us spin these threads of fate together, to see what the final result will be. Call my name, and I will be there, to smite down anyone who dare stand in our way." Nyx's voice rang throughout the room, loud enough to shake the floor. Then, all at once, Kotone's eyes snapped open and the feeling from before was gone entirely. Breathing heavily for air, Kotone slowly managed to sit up, before seeing everyone's faces were as pale as could be.
"W-What the hell was that?" Shouko asked, looking more terrified than Kotone had ever seen her. Glancing down at her palm, Kotone had a feeling that the power she awakened to wasn't normal whatsoever. That being said, was this going to be a brilliant power or a dark curse?