He just had to pull the trigger. That's all it would take. Five pounds of pressure is all it would take.
Makoto wasn't sure about what model the gun was, his best guess would be a Ruger Mark III. But what type of ammo was used? It was completely different than any other gun he had ever seen before, even in the magazines. Was it a 9mm or .45 caliber? He didn't know, nor did he care. If he could just aim the damn thing, he might just stand a chance. Aim it at whatever was in front of him. If his assumptions about the gun's model were correct, a bullet traveling at over three hundred and forty meters per second directly into the face of that thing is all it would take to stop it. All it would take to end this... Dark Hour.
The creatures were closing in. The same one's which rendered his classmate unconscious. But they weren't coming for him. Strangely enough, they didn't even notice his presence. He didn't know why, but a part of him was thankful that he was spared.
No, they just came to finish their job. To finish what they started. In an instant, they already covered the distance between him and Yukari before he could finish blinking. The concrete beneath the creature's feet crumbled, creating a crater.
Makoto unconsciously recognized the intense air pressure even a few meters away, in front of the roof's door. His body tensed up as he recalled a similar scene, a scene from over a decade ago.
"Nngh…" He could vaguely hear someone groaning. He looked over to Yukari and realized that her period of the unconscious wouldn't last much longer.
If that monster were to suddenly attack her like before, even if she had her guard up, she had no chance at winning. What would lie ahead for her was a concept that Makoto was vaguely familiar with.
"Death," the words left his mouse before his mind had even registered the movement of his lips. Yes, he was all too familiar with the concept of death. "Mom, dad." He felt a shiver go down his spine.
He rarely ever thought about his deceased parents, and it was rare for him to even speak of their existence, but something about his current situation made him remember the things he tried so desperately to forget.
The mangled flesh, the blood dripping down the driver's seat of the car. The smell of iron and gas filling up his nostrils. The feeling of dread increasing after he realized his mommy and daddy wouldn't be waking up, permanently.
His breathing increased to the point that he began to hyperventilate. With the blood drumming in his ears, time seemed to slow down and dial back before him, as he realized, that in just a few seconds another life that he cared for, would be taken away from him.
Makoto Yuki hardly knew a damn thing about Yukari Taekaba. The two had only known each other for a day at most, and while he wasn't very sociable with the people among his age range, he considered him and Yukari close enough to call each other acquaintances.
As a human being, he cared for her wellbeing, just as any person would for someone who appeared to be a great person. But no matter how great you'd be in this world, no matter what you did, everyone eventually met their end. It was a natural part of life, and Makoto could accept that.
But not this time. Not when he could do something to at least help. To save his friend. No one would be dying tonight. Not over his dead body.
He clenched his teeth, and gripped the gun tightly, preparing to press his finger against the gun's trigger once his aim lined up with his target. Luckily for him, his aim wasn't as bad as he thought it'd be.
The only problem was that nothing came out of the gun.
"What the hell?!" Makoto panicked., and in his stammer dropped the seemingly 'useless' gun on the cracked concrete floor, shattering it into pieces. Was it some sort of toy gun? He pondered. But if that's the case, why was she trying to-
It took only a fraction of a second, but Makoto finally registered the pain that he felt in his arm, as a giant hand knocked him into the roof's wall. Shit, it must've finally sensed my presence. How or why it took so long didn't matter to Makoto, he just needed to get back up and save Yukari-
"Agh!" He gasped, as he felt his body protesting against the shattered remains of some of his rib cage. The bastard broke nearly all of my ribs in one swoop…! He could barely feel his arms or legs after realizing that. The only thing he could control was his breathing. "Well, not that I'm afraid of dying in of itself. It's just a shame that I couldn't save her."
There was nothing he could do but sit and watch as the monster approached Yukari. At this point, Yukari was already wide awake, and even despite the growing spots in his vision, he could clearly recognize the look of horror on her face, as the large monster towered over her, preparing to execute her with his many swords.
As if on cue, as if some higher power had forsaken all of their mercy onto him alone, the time came to a screeching halt, as his vision began to darken, but not because of unconsciousness. Far from it.
Your chances of succeeding are next to none. A voice echoed in his head. He recognized that voice from somewhere, from that room he saw in his dreams. He could remember it so clearly now. The long-nosed man and his assistant. If his memory served him correctly, her name was Elizebeth.
It seems that this is the fate that you were always destined to have. Well, that was alarming. Taking into consideration the state of his rib cage, there might've been some merit to her words.
There is no denying that what lies ahead of you is certain death, but perhaps fate is not as black and white as humanity treats it as, isn't that true, my trickster?
The voice subsided and time seemed to return to normal again. The monster's sword was inches away from Yukari's face, and yet it didn't budge, not one bit. Not even a millimeter. And Makoto was pretty confident in the accuracy of his vision too.
Ah, so you've finally headed my calling? Pain exploded within Makoto's head. It felt several times worse than a migraine. Ignoring the tingling sensation in his ribs, he cried out in pain and got on all fours. He could barely think. "It hurts! It hurts too much!"
The voice in his head growled. Unfortunately, no one is coming to help you, boy. You've been digging yourself a grave for over a decade, and yet you refuse to take responsibility? Is that what you've led yourself to believe up until this point? That in the end, living life is pointless? Is that the mask you've held onto for so long?!
The pain didn't stop, only getting worst. His head was going to split, he was sure of it.
But that isn't the real you, isn't it, Makoto? You've spent all this time as a living corpse, simply because you don't fear death? That can't be it. That can't be what the inner you think, this isn't a facade that you're being forced to wear. That isn't what she would want.
"W-What?" Makoto could barely comprehend what the voice was saying, let alone the context behind what it was saying. Was this 'voice' something that originated from himself?
That right boy! I am a shadow, the one's true self! Born from the see of your unconsciousness. Call upon thou's own will and let thy break the chains that entangled thy in his own fate!
Makoto didn't know when, but he suddenly found the strength to stand up, despite most of his ribs being broken. He didn't even care about the migraine which was on steroids at the moment. He simply grinned.
Let thy prove the fates wrong and be free of thy's own captivity. Makoto's grin deepened into a crazed smile.
You're me. His inner conscious howled.
"And I'm you!"
The arcana is by which all is revealed. Accept it and preserve through anything, even thy's own fate. A new gun appeared in Makoto's hands. It crackled with energy, which seemed not to be of mind nor matter. I believe we have come to an agreement. Please, never lose sight of your purpose for existing again.
With the gun in his hand, Makoto could only think of one thing. He knew exactly what he wanted from there on out as he pointed the gun towards his head. He knew exactly what awaited him the moment he went down this path, and he was going to embrace it.
His breathing became erratic. His heart rate sped up, with blood beginning to once again thump against his ears. And yet the crazed smile remained on his face.
Only one thought was coursing through his mind at that moment, and he knew what to say.
"Per…" His finger gripped the trigger. "So…" His hand began to shake at a rapid pace, as he struggled to steel his resolve. "Na!" Five pounds of pressure was all it took.
Once he pulled the trigger, glass shards and a blue mist sprayed out of his head. Soon, he was enveloped in a circle of flames. But they were harmless.
Makoto's gun was left smoking as a being began to form over the type of his head, surrounded in chains and plumes of blue fire. "I am thou, and thou art I!" The being said. "I have been summoned from the sea of thy's own heart. I am the master of strings, Orpheus!"
The sheer presence of the being seemed to shake the foundation of the building, as it roared in protests of the shadow. The being was unlike anything Makoto had ever seen. With the only organic part of its body seemingly being its face, most of its body was seemingly artificial.
Yet Makoto felt like the being was a part of him. Like it was him.
Makoto blinked. "So, this is a Persona?" Makoto stared up at the creature, or rather, his 'Persona.' Orpheus. And accurate to the Greek myth, it did indeed carry a harp on its back. But Makoto quickly grimaced as he felt his Persona disappear into nothing but mist as he recoiled from his injuries.
"So, it disappears once I lose concentration?" He grimaced. "Alright, I can work with that." He sighed. "Taekaba-san,." Makoto glanced towards Yukari, who looked at him in amazement. "None of us are dying tonight. I'll make sure of it!"
He frowned and pressed his gun against his head again. "Come forth, Orpheus!" Once again, his Persona heeded his call. "We have work to care of. Let's see if this bastard of a monster can really keep up with us!"
And with an intense roar, Orpheus launched itself straight at the monster that nearly took both his and Yukari's life only but a few seconds ago.
And there we go! My first attempt at a Persona fic. I hope everyone who reads this was satisfied. I had a lot of fun writing this one-shot, simply because I always enjoy mostly anything P3-related. This time? It's in the form of fanfiction.
I really wanted to make this a multi-chapter story retelling the events of P3 from a different perspective, but I don't have the time nor creativity necessary to do so. As I've only played a few hours of the game along with watched all of the movies. I don't know enough about the characters like I do in the sequels; P4G and P5R. So I just wrote about a possible scene I had stored in my mind that I imagined would be written in such a retelling of the P3 story. Of course, I plan on creating an actual multi-chapter fic as a sort of retelling of P3, but that will come later down the line. Maybe when I'm halfway finished with the game?
I am open to criticism and reviews and as always, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed what you found. Have a good day!