AN: Thanks for reading and reviewing, guys. I appreciate it! Now we're onto Arc 1. Things are going to be quite different than the previous Arc 1 - please read, review, etc.

Arc I: Torn Pages

Yet another cog has been added to our machine.

The complete rebirth surely cannot be far from now.

The world beyond these barriers will bear witness to our true might.

Yet this new card is far different than I could ever have imagined.

Although she doesn't realise, her gift is one of many faces.

It may be a dim possibility for now, but there is a chance she could overpower me.

If that were to happen, everything would be for nought.

This land would erode completely. Its remains would be swept up in the tides, and this country would forget these very people.

I must never allow that to happen.

I have no choice but to continue with our complete rebirth. It is my destiny, ever since I lost everything that day...

You wait and see. I will test that you are mine.

Why don't I start by diving into your new friends' past?

Chapter 6: Anguished Memories

|Nakahara Household|7:12 am|

After returning home, everything felt so normal. Shintaro spoke to his parents about his first day back at school, and mentioned Kei, but tried his hardest not to reveal anything about the other world. If his parents got involved, after all, Bythos wouldn't have mercy. He hoped Kohaku and Kei wouldn't tell anyone either. It was strange enough as it was without having to explain it to other people.

Now, refreshed after a good night's sleep, he was in the family kitchen with his beloved parents, Eriko and Takuya.

"Shintaro-kun, did you sleep well last night?" Eriko asked her son, as she served up a nutritious breakfast, that consisted mostly of fresh fruit and scrumptious bread. A dietitian who worked with the local hospital, she fussed over all of her son's meals.

"Yes, mum. Thanks for breakfast." Shintaro said. His Gnosis was carefully hidden in his schoolbag. The less his parents knew about the previous evening, the better.

"It's a shame you missed out on dinner last night. Well, at least you kept Kohaku company." Takuya said. He was reading the news on his own tablet, specifically a story about education reforms. As a teacher himself at the nearby elementary school, he liked to be on top of anything relating to learning. "I hope you're making that transfer student feel welcome, too."

"Oh, Kei-san?" Shintaro said. "She's doing well, I think. She already made three friends in one day."

"That's nice," Eriko said. "Perhaps we should invite Kohaku over for dinner one night. That poor girl, she must never get a home-cooked meal. I've told her mother, working so much can't be good for her, but they never listen."

"Maybe I'll ask her if she can make it this week," Shintaro said. "How about Friday night?"

"Sure thing, son." Takuya. "How long has it been since you two became friends?"

"Since we were six years old." Shintaro said, happily.

Eriko smiled, as she served some fresh orange juice. "It's lovely to see you getting on so well after all these years. Just don't forget to focus on your schoolwork, okay?"

"What are you worried about, Eriko?" Takuya said. "This boy studies for fun. And even when he's not studying, he's reading something. He's going to go far. Trust me."

"I don't doubt that for a moment. I just worry... there are so many distractions for young people these days." Eriko said. "But my son won't fail. Right?"

"Of course. I'll keep going as I always do!" Shintaro said.

Although I never had to worry about 'Shadows' and 'Personas' until last night.

|Kansei High School – Entrance|8:21 am|

Shintaro was walking towards the school gates, his trusty backpack filled to the brim with textbooks, when he saw Kohaku and Akari standing by the bike rack. They were talking animatedly, barely noticing anyone else walking by them.

"I taught Akiko how to sit last night! Took me long enough, but now she can do it every time!" Akari said, giddy with excitement.

"What's all this about?" Shintaro asked, amused.

"Akari's dog, remember?" Kohaku said, grinning.

"Oh, that's great!" Shintaro said, remembering the many pictures of the young Shiba Inu. "She still licking your mum's shoes?"

"Yeah..." Akari said, annoyed. "How can she get so mad at the cutest dog in the world? My parents just don't get animals."

"She's still a puppy. Once she's older, she'll leave your mother's clothes alone." Kohaku said.

"I could probably find you some good books on dog training, actually. By the way, is Kei around?" Shintaro asked.

"Oh, I think that's her over there!" Kohaku said, pointing behind them. True enough, Kei was approaching them.

"Hey, our favourite transfer student!" Akari said, cheerily. "So, how are you getting used to this place?"

"Oh...it's been fun, so far," Kei said. "I've only really explored Totsuka so far. But we'll get there, one step at a time."

"Guess Totsuka is the core of the city, kinda. Best to start from there." Akari said. "Oh yeah, remember I was talking about Suzu in 2-1? Her new homeroom teacher is going to be teaching us Geography, and apparently, he's really hot. Last year, it was some old guy, who barely had any teeth and wore terrible argyle sweaters. And he wore a really nasty looking wig, too."

"What happened to this...teacher?" Kei asked, trying to picture this man.

"No one really knows," Kohaku said. "Before the end of our first year, he just announced he was retiring. That was it...everyone kind of forgot about him."

"Who cares about that old loser?" Akari said dismissively. "This new guy sounds really cute, according to Suzu. Course, she says that about a lot of guys. Even...uh...better not blab."

"Wisely said. Let's head to class." Kei said.

"Oh, okay!" Akari said, running ahead.

"So, do a lot of students harbour affections for many of the teachers here?" Kei asked, bemused.

"N-No! Suzuki-sensei is just...such a good teacher. That's all." Shintaro stammered, embarrassed.

"Who said anything about her?" Kei said, looking sideways at a giggling Kohaku.

"Stop teasing him! It's not just him, after all. Suzuki-sensei is popular with a lot of the boys here. What are we doing about last night, anyway?"

"Ah, that," Kei said. "Well, if it's okay with the two of you, I'd like to return to the Theio Kosmos. But this time, I'd venture outside of the mall. Just far enough to see what else changes in the other Kosmos."

Shintaro looked at her, nervous. "What if there are Shadows worse than that Nox thing?"

"I wouldn't expect the ones around that area to be much stronger. We'll take things slowly, but at the same time, I want to make sure we're getting stronger. Otherwise, Nisa Liat might just get her way."

"We can't let that happen," Kohaku said. "Come on, Akari's probably wondering where we are. Unless she's gotten another part-time job."

"Heh..." Shintaro, laughing slightly, walked into the school with the girls. Yet in the back of his mind, the memories of last night swirled around in his head. Those monsters called Shadows were brutal. But Bythos no doubt had even stronger power than Nox up their sleeves.

|Class 2-1 – Geography|10:54|

The class had finished Biology, taught by Mrs Suzuki. Next was their Geography lesson, and the class were abuzz.

"I hate this subject..." Akari said, slouching back on her seat.

"Really? I thought you liked travelling?" Kei asked.

"I do, but - wait, how did you know that?" Akari asked, confused.

"Oh, uh, Kohaku mentioned it. Something about a trip to Nara." Kei said.

Really? I don't remember her saying that. But then again, last night was kind of crazy.

The door opened right on the dot, and there was their new teacher. He did catch the eye of a few female students, Akari included. Yet for Kohaku and Shintaro, he stood out for a far different reason. In a crisp black suit, complete with a blue tie, was a tall man with red hair, slicked back. Judging from the ring on his finger, he had married since the last time Shintaro and Kohaku had seen him.

"Good morning, class. My name is Hideki Yoshinaga. I'm new to this school, so I'm looking forward to working with you...all." He trailed off, however, as he saw Shintaro and Kohaku sitting next to each other. "Today, we're covering some material on Okinawa, encompassing two-thirds of the Ryukyu Islands. Although this prefecture only covers 0.6% of Japan's total landmass..."

The lesson continued, but while the other students continued, Shintaro barely took any detailed notes. He wasn't usually like this. He loved taking in as much as he could from any subject possible. But this time was different.

Shit! The Yoshinaga family is coming back to haunt us, after all this time? Why?

"Let's see...ah. Kakusa-san, right?" Mr Yoshinaga asked. "What's the capital of Okinawa Prefecture?"

Kei pondered this for a second. "Naha, sir."

"Correct! It's a place I've been to with my own family, many years ago now. It's on the East China coast of the southern part of Okinawa Island. Of course, it was once the commercial city of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which existed until 1879. As far as modern-day Naha goes..."

"So boring, but he's so dreamy..." Akari said quietly.

"Try not to drool over your worksheet." Kei said, with a smirk. Akari blushed, looking down at her desk.

The class continued, covering the basic history of Okinawa and its former identity as the Ryukyu Kingdom. While normally Shintaro would have loved learning about this part of the country, a plague of unpleasant memories was taking hold of him. He barely wrote down anything, instead looking out the window.

"Shintaro..." Kohaku said, gently. "People are starting to look at you. Try to keep it together."

"I...I'll try." Shintaro said. Try as he might, he couldn't lose himself in his studies. Not this time. Finally, the lesson ended, and it was time for lunch.

|Cafeteria|12:05 pm|

"Wow." Kei said, admiring Akari's colourful bento box. "That's the cutest lunch I've ever seen."

"I know, right? It's a shame to eat it, but I'm so hungry!" Akari said. "So, what's going on with you, Shintaro?"

"H-Huh?" Shintaro asked.

"You were acting kinda weird during class. Like you were about to burst into tears." Akari said.

"You could tell that when his back was turned to you?" Kei asked, curious.

"I've got an eye for these things," Akari said. "So, what's up?"

"Um..." Kohaku said, nervously. "Shintaro, should we tell them?"

"Is it about Yoshinaga-sensei?" Kei asked.

"Sort of" Shintaro said. "...Not so much him. He hasn't done anything wrong."

"It's..." Kohaku began. "His family. We...used to go to school with his younger brother and sister. They were twins."

"Oh, really?" Kei asked, intrigued.

"Y-Yeah." Shintaro said. "We first met them in elementary school. We were friends, at least I thought we were..."

He suddenly realised – there were tears around his eyes. Quickly, he wiped them away, but the others had seen him.

"Masato and Natsumi. Those were their names." Kohaku continued. "She always used to give me clothing ideas. I really liked hanging out with her when we were kids. And Shintaro and Masato used to play together all the time."

"So what happened?" Akari said.

"Well, it was in..." Shintaro began, shaking. "I don't...want to talk about it."

Akari and Kei looked at each other, awkwardly, and the four of them continued to eat in silence.

"Oh...um...forget about that for now," Akari said. "Oh, there's this cool card magician from here that's doing some shows. Maybe we should watch him sometime?"

"Card magician?" Kei asked.

"You know, card tricks. Like, 'was your card the Ace of Spades'?" Akari said. She pulled up the performer's social media page and showed the group. Shintaro, desperate for a distraction, took a look. The page was dark and monochrome, but he could see that this was a tall, handsome man with a sharp suit. His long black hair was tied back in a ponytail that one could make out just behind him, with a full fringe. In his hands were four playing cards, the Aces.

Hmm. He's handsome, I suppose, if rather dour-looking for an entertainer. And the moon imagery is a bit hackneyed.

"Keiya Tsukino, host of Cards by Moonlight. How appropriate." Kei read the page carefully. "Looks like he's got a lot of performances on."

"He's certainly popular. Look at all the comments." Shintaro said. The vast majority of them were full of praise, all from a growing number of fangirls. "Looks like he appeals to a specific demographic. Girls like Akari..."

"Obviously! He's so cute! He used to act in Kabuki, apparently. He's so dark and mysterious..." Akari said. "I can't wait to see him live!"

"He does seem intriguing. Where about does he perform?" Kei asked.

"According to this, the Shinuta Hall in Mizuho Ward. It's east from Totsuka." Akari said. "Anyway, it says here that Keiya graduated from the Taho Gakuen College of Drama and Music with honours, and..."

The conversation continued in a similar vein, with Akari gushing over 'Keiya-sama' every so often. Shintaro normally would have sighed in disbelief, but this time he was glad for the distraction.

It kept him from thinking back to that disastrous last day of junior high school.

|School Gates|3:32 pm|

The school day was over, and Shintaro was leaving the building with the other schools. However, he saw two familiar faces waiting outside – and gasped at one of them.

"What's wrong?" Kei asked.

"It's him!" Shintaro said, furious. "Masato Yoshinaga!"

Sure enough, clad in the green blazer of Chieki Academy, was an athletic-looking boy with red messy hair, an inch or two taller than Shintaro. His round face and wide eyes hadn't changed a bit. Next to him, as usual, was a girl, whose hair bore the same vibrant hue, but was much longer, tied up into a large, thick ponytail via a fetching white ribbon.

"You mean Hideki's brother?" Akari said. "...And that girl is his sister?"

"Yeah, that's Natsumi." Kohaku said. It didn't seem like the twins had noticed them, but Shintaro didn't want to get any closer, not after their last meeting.

"...You're terrified of them, aren't you?" Kei asked.

"N-No!" Shintaro snapped. "I just can't bear to deal with him all over again. Especially after what he did..."

"Just what did this Masato guy do to you?" Akari asked. "You can tell us!"

"Akari, if it's too painful for him to talk about it, then -"

"Stop it!" Shintaro said, shutting his eyes, in anguish. "I...I just want to put it all behind me."

"It's okay, Taro-kun." Kohaku said. "Let's wait until they're gone. Oh, there's Hideki...they were probably waiting for him."

The four of them quickly moved over to the bicycle rack, avoiding eye contact with their teacher. He didn't seem to notice them, however, and waved enthusiastically to his twin siblings. Cheerfully, they waved back and ran up to him. Shintaro's heart was pounding. One wrong move and he would have to look this boy in the eye again.

You won't make high school hell for me! I won't let you! Middle school was enough!

"...Looks like they're leaving together." Akari said, looking a little awkward. "Sorry, I've got to get home. I'll see you guys later. Take care, okay?" With that, Akari grabbed her pink bicycle, and left the school.

"I'm sorry, you two." Shintaro said. "I didn't want to see you like that."

"They're at a different school, so you shouldn't have to see him too much. Is this Chieki Academy far from here?" Kei asked.

"No, it's all in the way in Mizuho. Don't think I've been near it. And I'm not going anywhere near it now!" Kohaku said. "How about we head to the Theio Kosmos? Take our mind of things?"

"As much as I enjoyed almost getting killed last night...what the hell."

"With a Persona, you should be able to hold your own against the Shadows." Kei said, firmly. "We know what to expect now. Don't worry, we don't have to go very far."

"Alright. Let's get the bus again." Kohaku said. The three quietly made it to the bus, ready for the second trip to the mall in two days.

|Bella Donna Shopping Centre|16:19 pm|

As with yesterday, the place was bustling with shoppers, some of which were high school students. Standing by the gate were two boys and a tomboyish girl, loudly chatting away. They seemed to be from a school different from Kansei or Chieki, one with a basic black uniform.

"Dude, have you seen the stuff Bythos is coming out with?" A brown haired student said, looking at his phone. "Apparently Mayor Ashikaga isn't as squeaky clean as everyone thought. They're demanding she reveals her secrets."

"This shit again...? What secrets?" said the other boy.

"Something to do with fixing the election results a few years back. Isn't that hilarious?" The more excitable student said. "I knew that woman was too good to be true! So over the top with her big speeches! Y'know, about how this is going to be another capital of Japan!"

"Fascinating, I guess...?" The girl said, mockingly yawning.

"Oh, come on! What about them talking about the big cover-up at Hanashima Hospital?" The eager boy said. "Apparently the Chief of Police didn't have an 'accident' after all...they were trying to silence him cause he 'knew too much'."

"To be honest, I kinda wanna do the same to you." The girl said, looking up at the sky.

"It's nice to see true bonds blossoming in this city," Kei said, deadpan, as they walked away from the trio. "What was that about the Chief of Police?"

"Kazuo Shimomata. He's a good friend of my father, ever since they met at some rally before I was born." Kohaku said. "He's a kind man, and excellent at his job. My family doesn't get together for dinner very often, but he used to come around every weekend. I was planning to visit him after school later this week."

"He got involved in a car accident last month," Shintaro said. "Didn't think it was that serious, though. Bythos seem to think differently."

"Surely this is just slander." Kohaku said. "He's devoted his life to serving this city. The government wouldn't want to just get rid of him!"

"I hope you're right. If these are just rumours, then Bythos is even viler than I thought." Kei said. She pulled out her Gnosis, as they reached the foot of the stairs to the second floor. "Oh, hold on. Another notification."

Shintaro checked his own, which he had stuck in his bag. His parents would be suspicous if he suddenly showed such a sleek looking smartphone off – after all, it had cost them a lot to buy his 'normal' phone. The message said:

Aeon Pathway

Thank you for making use of the Gnosis.

To make sure of the Aeon Pathway, after scanning the QR code of a location, you need not scan it again.

The destination will be saved onto your list of Allowed Places. As long as you are in the vicinity of the location marked via the map displayed on the screen, you can launch the application, and travel back and forth between the Kosmos.

"That's rather useful, actually," Kohaku said. "And it saves us having to stake out that table. We could have dinner after this, though. There's a good burger stand we could try!"

"Aren't your parents going to be annoyed about you missing dinner again?" Kei asked.

"My parents always eat out when they're at work. It's no big deal." Kohaku said.

"My folks don't really complain too much, as long as my grades stay as normal, and I eat sensibly." Shintaro said. "Oh, wanna come round for dinner on Friday? My parents said it's okay!"

"Of course, Taro-kun!" Kohaku said. "I love it when your mother cooks! I'll have to bring a gift, of course. She likes those enka albums, right? I've got a few lying around somewhere."

"Sounds like it'll be a good night." Kei said, smiling. Yet, she looked a little sad as well. Perhaps, Shintaro thought, she was envious.

"Hey, Kei?" Shintaro asked. "Maybe you can come around sometime. I'll ask my folks."

Kei, surprised, looked at him in the eyes. "Really? I don't want to be a bother for your parents..."

"Don't be silly! Shintaro's mum loves cooking for big parties." Kohaku said. "If anything, we should invite everyone we can think of. Akari would love someone else to show pictures of her dog to."

"You're so kind, both of you..." Kei said. "I was so scared I'd never make friends here...I didn't have many back in Yokohama."

"Well, as long as you're in Shinshuto, you can count on us. Right, Haku-chan?" Shintaro asked.

"Right!" Kohaku said. "Let's try this app out. Here...we...go!"

The three of them activated the app and disappeared to the other Kosmos. Despite the shoppers walking in all directions around them, not one seemed to notice them disappear. The Gnosis had the power to alter people's perceptions, it seemed.

Yet, three youths had witnessed them disappear from a distance, hiding in a dark corridor leading to the restrooms. Each of them was dressed in thick red coats and black trousers, and had varying weapons hidden in on their persons.

"Holy shit! Did you see that?!" A boy said. This boy was over six foot tall and muscular, with a shaved head exposing his various tribal tattoos. He also had half of his left ear missing, seemingly bitten off during an altercation.

"Yeah, dude, I did. I didn't know they were part of Bythos too." Another boy said. He was shorter than the other boy, with carefully curled light brown hair. "Wait, they were in Kansei clothes. Did we have anyone in that school?"

"Nope. That geek and the two bitches aren't anywhere in our league, I bet." The girl of the three said, hands on her hips. She wore thick red lipstick and matching eyeshadow, with small stud earrings. Her hair was black, and shiny, although it looked like it needed a good brush. "But let's check them out. The Princess won't have mercy if we fail to investigate."

"Good point. I'd like to live a bit longer than the last guy, thanks." the first boy said, shuddering.

"Then we should hurry." The second boy said, anxious.

"I've been waiting to use these on somebody. They're way sharper than the old ones." The girl said, with an evil grin, looking at the knives in the holsters around her waist. They took out a smartphone each, with a similar design to the Gnosis. However, these were a blood-red model. Via the same app that had been used moments ago, they vanished, and the rest of the civilians wandering through the mall were none the wiser.