The fourth floor was just as off putting as the third floor, but with way more candles and spiderwebs. However, they didn't see any insects or bugs. Yukiko stayed close to Chie, not liking the idea of a spider swarm attacking them "This floor looks like a haunted house!" She yelped, walking quietly as Yu looked around for anyone. Each movement they made felt like walking through water; slow and dangerous. They didn't know what they would attract if they continued, but it was the only thing they could do. Each step could have landed on a trap, every breath inhaling a toxic agent, the heat of their bodies acting as targets for some unseen assault on them. There was danger everywhere, but they went on.
"Keep your eyes peeled. We don't want to encounter anyone we don't know." Yu warned, his voice strained from the yelling fit downstairs. Everyone's throat felt shredded, despite their argument not lasting longer than 10 minutes. But that's what comes with age, a body that can't take as much as it used to, even if it believes it can. This situation was similar to CIPA (Congenital insensitivity to pain and anhydrosis), where they couldn't feel pain, despite their leg possibly being broken, or their tongue burnt. It was important that they were aware of their changing bodies, but they weren't aware; they were out of the loop.
A loop that spun, a loop that spun faster than anything they could've known. So fast, that not even their minds could register the changes. Their senses tricked, their eyes now covered in an invisible fog, and their bodys suffering the downsides that come with age, with the optimism of a 16 year old boy. Their bodies showed how they looked, with every morsel of their being crying out to be known, to be recognized for what it had become now; old, borderline senile Persona users. But nobody could see it, nobody could feel it, nobody could hear it, nobody could smell it, nobody could taste it, nobody knew.
Yu Narukami, the leader of the group, was now a forgetful grandfather who had gained quite a bit of weight. His memory faded like breath on a mirror, there for a moment, but gone the next. He felt a sense of duty when leading his friends, even if they didn't respect him as much as Yu would've liked. But he learned to deal with it, often coming up with quips. Though, he may not retain the jokes he had created for himself. Not when the tower seemingly erased all sense of what was and what is. Yu was no longer the leader, he was a withering old man.
Yosuke Hanamura, the group jokester. He was always being a wise ass towards his friends and enemies alike. He was known for his flirtatious nature and carefree attitude. But he had now become an overweight, clumsy slob who didn't fit in his own clothes. He lumbered like a giant, breathing heavily as he scratched his gray hairs. Just like everyone else in the group, he was in desperate need of some glasses. His head had bald spots and his skin was far rougher than it was when he got here, littered with warts and uncleaned, scruffy hair. While he wasn't as forgetful as his friend, he now was far less adaptable in situations that he might've thrived in.
Chie Satonaka was even larger than Yosuke, now clocking in at nearly 200 pounds. Her weight would normally warrant a walking cane, though since she didn't have one, she was forced to walk on her tree trunk sized legs, shuffling rather slowly. Her once athletic body had been changed for the worse, making her chest tighten and her stomach growl, demanding food constantly. She normally wouldn't have to deal with such things, but since she looked as if she had 3 stomachs, she was most certainly bothered by the noise her guts her making. "Why didn't I eat more…" She muttered angrily, her thighs rubbing together rather rapidly.
Yukiko Amagi was like a fun grandmother, giggling to herself while her heavy, wrinkly bottom wobbled with each movement. She would've given Chie more food if she could, finding a new need to feed everyone constantly. Sad? Have some food. Angry? Have some food! Happy? Why, have some food to keep up that giddiness! She may not have been able to cook very well before, but she felt like a master at making dishes. She was doing a lot better than her friends, but she was no means out of harm's way; her happy go lucky demeanor was a downside when entering enemy territory, especially at their age.
Kanji Tatsumi, the "badass" of the group. He was now a sweet, gentle old man, who couldn't hurt a fly (even if he wanted to.) His secret passtime now became his only passtime; knitting sweaters and scarfs. His belly was large and his thighs even more so. His jeans were on the verge of being ripped apart, and his tank top did nothing but show off his excessive armpit hair and a poor excuse for muscles. His hair was all but gone, leaving a shiny, gleaming, bald head in its place. Everystep was slow and calculated, it wasn't as painful as it was for his other friends, but he wasn't getting anywhere fast.
Rise Kujikawa, the popular girl. Her fall from grace could be called many things, with sad being the top answer. She was as flirty as before, but with none of the charm that came with being young, now looking like a 70 year old cougar. Her breasts sagged, swinging from side to side rather pathetically. She needed a walker, but had none; her need for a skinny body left you looking rather weak and seemingly incapable of fighting. Her ponytails were still thee, though they weren't as silky as they once used to be, now rough and prone to knots.
Teddie, the child of the group, now had a dad bod. He was the far more innocent person among the group, though his old form made him occasionally curse. He would blurt out insults towards anything, even if he didn't mean it. His quips had bite and his viperous tongue didn't know the difference between friend or foe. Their eyes only saw each other as their young and nubile selves, so his crush towards Chie Satonaka and Yukiko Amagi still resonates in his heart, along with his undying respect for Yu Narukami, even if his silver haired friend had forgotten about it.
Naoto Shirogane, the mysterious girl. She was as unfamiliar with relationships as ever, unsure of how to react to it. She wasn't given much, but Teddie and Yosuke were rather flexible with their compliments to her. Now she had a habit of wanting to take naps, keeping her gun close at hand if she ever needed to defend someone. Her serious act now had a black mark, since she was by far the most likely to ramble on the most. She would complain and tell stories all the time, with half of them not even happening, much less making any sort of sense.
They were victims, all eight of them. Each suffering to their age. They shuffled on, finally having the staircase in sight. They would've run if their hips weren't actively against them, but they were stopped mid-walk, a blinding blue light appearing before them "Ah! My eyes!" Teddie cried, covering his face in pain. There in front of them stood the old woman! She didn't change a bit, her eyes just as distinctive as ever, piercing into their souls as a thin smile formed on her old lips. "Well, isn't this a surprise." She said, feinting a serendipitous voice "I would've thought you eight scwabbled amongst yourself to death! I'm glad you haven't gone senile quite yet. Unlike my husband." She muttered under her breath. "Anyways, I hope you don't have any harsh feelings towards me."
"Oh I got a few bones to pick with you." Teddie pointed at her "We have you surrounded, if you couldn't figure that out. But then again, you only got one brain cell in that head of yours, yet it's still fighting for dominance." Yukiko laughed harder than she probably should have, nearly falling over in a giggling fit. The old woman merely looked at the old man, her smile not moving from her face. "Well, I've met my fair share of pricks in my time, but I seem to have met a cactus." Everyone froze and Yukiko stopped, looking at the woman to appreciate her burn.
"Now, how about you stand up dear, before you hurt yourself." She gestured to Yukiko, "You have awfully small breasts for such a big girl." Now two out of the eight were insulted. Yu didn't feel like waiting for his turn "Tell us what we're doing here before I remove you!" he yelled, his Persona appearing before him, proud and tall. The old woman was unflinchingly cold, her calm and motherly character was instead replaced with something inhuman in nature. "You brought your friends here, so this is your fault." She stated, making Yu recoil "What! No I...wait, no I...hold on."
She shook her head in disappointment "I feel sorry for you, incapable of seeing yourself for what you've become. All of you." No one understood what she meant, with a few of them not even hearing what she said "What was that?" Kanji asked. The old woman merely held up her hand, forming a mirror in her grasp as she handed it over to Yu "Take a long look. I think it's been long enough." he looked at himself and nearly dropped the mirror. His body had changed before his eyes, his fingers shrinking in size and his hair growing white as snow. Now he saw what he looked like "Oh my god!" He yelled, looking around to see everyone else experiencing the exact same thing happening to them.
"No, no, no! This can't be happening-" He turned around to see the old woman shaking, her eyes blood red and her smile was far more unnerving. Her nails grew sharp, her limbs long, and her clothes fell off her body, showing her heavily scarred form. She now stood over 15 feet tall, her body was thin but agile, now a pale shade of white. Everyone started activating their Persona's bewildered by what was happening in front of them "What is she!" Yosuke screamed, standing back in fear as Naoto aimed her gun at the beast, pulling back the hammer as she aimed with a shaky hand.
There were no other creatures there, no swarms of fire, no attacks from sand, just the stark white thing that used to be a woman. It raised its hand and swiped down, missing the senior citizens and slashing the ground. They fell onto their backs and struggled like turtles, attempting to get away from her as fast as possible. The stairway was right behind her, but she was far more alert than them, making them easy prey. Yu used his katana to deflect her dagger-like nails, having Izanagi attack on his behalf. The embodiment of his inner self was far weaker, struggling to battle against the old looking creature. It's eyes seemed to have a wide range of sight, seeing everyone and what they were doing with total accuracy. She walked over Izanagi and began to attack Kanji, sensing his far kinder nature.
He held up his arms, his Persona doing very little to keep him safe from the monster's wrath. Naoto took quick successive shots at her, the recoil causing her hand to be in pain. Yu's blade was having very little effect on her, bouncing off rather harmlessly. Everyone wasn't themselves, but that made sense, the revelation of their true age was enough to make them far less efficient than they normally were, then the life or death situation they faced wasn't the most optimal place to be dealing with such volatile emotions. "Watch out Yosuke, behind you!" Rise yelled out, neatly tripping over herself as her friend squatted down, making a loud pop in his hip "Oh fuck!" He yelped in pain "M-My hip! I popped my hip!"
Chie wobbled over for support, remembering that if she tried bending over, she could bash her face into the ground. "I, uh…I don't see any bones, so you're fine!" She said, panicked and afraid. Yosuke rolled on the ground in discomfort, ignoring the long limbs mere feet away from him. Thankfully, Teddie took this opportunity to surprise the woman, using his claw shaped weapon to cut at her achilles heel. She shrieked loudly, attempting to kick him, only for his Persona to freeze her other leg and break it. Naoto helped with a final shot, shattering the woman's long thin leg as she fell to the ground. Then Yu took his Katana and stabbed her wrist, keeping to the ground as the ground joined in to beat her to death, using their own super natural powers to eventually kill her.
She laid there, unmoving and now dead. The staircase in their grasp and with no one to stop them. Yu took out his sword and placed it back in its sheath, upset with what he had to do. Any strength they had was fading, but there were 6 more floors left. "Come on guys. Let's…let's go." He turned around, leading them to the stairs. They were covered in grey carpeting and had a railing that allowed for the larger group members to go in without any trouble. Each step was heavy, and weighed on their conscience. They knew they didn't have much time left, so they had to focus on their task ahead, and not on their aging. For they didn't know if they would remember why they were here for much longer.