Shit is extremely painful up ahead. Just a warning. Have fun!

Hamuko woke up under the bright lights of the dorm with a hiss of irritation. Not a second awake and there was already a dull ache on her heart, from what had happened earlier.

"She's awake…" Fuuka said in relief, hovering over the redhead.

Hamuko propped herself on her elbows and looked away from the stinging lights on the ceiling. She rubbed the itch out of her eyes and glanced around the lounge. "He isn't here…." so that wasn't a nightmare, it was real and Minato was….

"He's not here…" Akihiko said slowly, fearing that Hamuko would go berserk like last time but she just ended up hanging her head low with a depressed sigh. "That…. Thing took him to Tartarus."

That thing…..

The darkened lookalike of Minato who had dragged the broken blunet into Tartarus, seconds before the end of the Dark Hour. He came out of nowhere after Minato's nervous breakdown. Just who was he? Where did he come from and what was he doing to Minato?!

"That thing…." Junpei broke the silence and looked around the place, trying to think of his words. "That came from inside Minato….."

Nobody spoke.

"That demon looks exactly like him," Junpei said. "I could see it; he was forming from all the black mist that was coming off of Minato."

"What are you trying to say?" Hamuko narrowed her eyes.

"Did any of you feel that guy?" Junpei clasped his mouth shut. "I don't have the words to describe him…"

Yukari nodded slowly, agreeing with Junpei. The darkened lookalike was undoubtedly evil but at the same time, it reeked off depression and grief. Yukari was having a hard time even looking at him, and an even harder time trying to control her tears. It was evil and wicked but at the same time, there was a certain aura of depression hovering over him.

"It felt like a crude mixture of grief, despair and hate," Akihiko tried to put the aura into words. "Even Mitsuru was speechless and couldn't describe him…"

"Where is senpai?" Hamuko stood up on her feet.

"She locked herself up in her room," Akihiko sighed. "Her father died as well….. and the Kirijo Group will be in turmoil because of it…"

Hamuko clicked her tongue. "So both of our leaders are broken…."

Junpei rubbed his face, still not convinced of the terrible night. It started off so perfectly, the party was awesome but then they had to go through a hellacious battle against Strega. When that was done, Minato broke down and he was gone.

"Tch, what a fucking night," the capped teen cursed. "Even those two bastards escaped…"

"I really couldn't move," Yukari looked down. "Be honest, could any of you move? I mean, that just wasn't someone…. That was Minato breaking down."

Hamuko cringed upon remembering his screams of horror. Death had finally left him but…. This wasn't what she expected or wanted. Pharos leaving him already did a number on Minato's psyche and the horrible phenomena later just shattered Minato like glass.

"He was always so strong and in control," Yukari said. "He was bawling worse than a baby. I haven't seen anyone so broken down, not ever…."

"I feel you," Akihiko rubbed the back of his neck. "That was hard to watch. Just what happened to him…?"

"The dude who has been with us for so many months….. Was that really Minato?" Junpei wondered and everyone looked at him. "If that thing was really inside him….. all the stuff that he had done…. Was that really him?"

Hamuko bit her lip. She knew way before that a demon was locked up inside Minato but was that really it? She doubted it, that shadow that came out from within Minato looked nothing like the ones in Tartarus, nor did he look like a demon, it was something very different.

"He's been carrying baggage like that all this time….?" Junpei said slowly and rubbed his goatee.

"Screw that," Hamuko finally spoke up and crouched down to pull out a short sword from the under the sofa. "We can worry about that later; we have to rescue Minato first."

"We can't enter until tomorrow," Fuuka spoke up timidly. "There is no way to enter Tartarus right now…"

Hamuko kicked the couch in rage. "We just can't stand here and do nothing! That bastard might even kill him and Minato is in no shape to fight back!"

"You'll have to wait," Akihiko said. "Fuuka's right, we can only pray and wait till tomorrow night. That thing was dreadfully powerful as well….. Attacking him head on means death."

"Are we just going to let Minato die then!?" Hamuko scowled.

Akihiko looked his junior dead in the eye. "No. He's not going to die; I won't allow him to die…." he looked around. "I can't ever repay his debt but I'll try my hardest, I'm going with you, no matter how strong that bastard is."

Junpei stood up from the couch, nodding slowly. "Yeah, you're right. Minato has done a lot of stuff in the past but I…. can't see him like that. He's helped me too…. And I won't let him die, no way."

"I want to know the real Minato," Yukari said. "Even if that thing was controlling him all this while, he's saved us so many times before… I'm going too."

"Me too. Minato-kun will come back like always," Fuuka said through sniffs. "I'll do my best."

"Thank you…" Hamuko rubbed her eyes. Minato did have friends and seeing everyone swearing to save Minato gave her a little respite. "We'll depart the moment the Dark Hour hits."

"Aigis won't come but I'm sure Ken will be willing," Akihiko said. "It will take a few days for her to come back from the mind wash that Jin forced on her."

"What about Mitsuru-senpai?" Yukari said.

"I-I'll be coming as well," said redhead stepped down from the staircase and wiped away the tears from her eyes. She was broken and barely able to hold herself from crying but…. "I won't let another tragedy happen, not when I can stop it…"

Hamuko bowed. "Thank you guys…." she sniffed. After all the horrors, it warmed her heart a little to see that Minato still had friends who were still willing to face something so powerful head on to save him.

They weren't doing this because she asked them to.

Nope.

Hamuko looked up to stare in their eyes and smiled slightly, just a little twitch on her lips. There was genuine concern on their faces, even on Mitsuru, despite the hell she was going through.

"I can't forget his last words," Mitsuru said. "At my weakest, he reached out to me. I will do the same, I promise…"

"Be assured, Hamuko, we will try our hardest to bring him back," Mitsuru said to her junior. "After all we've been through, with or against him, Minato has a place amongst us, no matter his past."

"Hell yeah," Junpei nodded. "We're going to save him!"

"For sure!" Akihiko agreed. "I won't let him go away like Shinjiro. He made me stronger and I'll use that power!"

Hamuko was a little taken aback by the resolutions. Maybe…. If she wasn't enough to reach out to him, maybe they were going to bring Minato back from the puddle, pull him through the blanket of darkness that he was in.

Mitsuru wiped her eyes and moved up the stairs. "You don't have to worry about me. I will fight like I always have, I promise…. Just give me some time…."

Hamuko went up next, after giving one last bow to her team mates. "Thank you….. Let's bring the real Minato back…." with that, she quickly ran up the steps and broke down by the time she reached her room.

"Shit…." Hamuko jerked on her bangs as the horrified screams of Minato blared throughout her brain again and again. She couldn't help but tremble at the pitch, the helpless and horror of his shouts. "Why did this end up like this….?" she wondered.

She remembered Pharos. The child was begging Minato to leave the damn tower, maybe he knew what was going to happen. Hamuko followed his command blindly but never in her wildest dreams had she thought this would happen. Maybe he would grieve for what he did, but that darkened male who formed out from the mist around Minato….

"…."

"Maybe I was too late," Hamuko slid down against the door, thinking back to old times. Minato was never late. He was always there, on time to save her.

Hamuko stared blankly at her fists and thought back to that one night. Minato had taken the burden for her….. from there onwards, it was supposed to be her duty to save him but through all the time, Minato was the one saving her.

He even saved her from her demons, her dark past with his heart barely functioning.

"Maybe I'm just too weak…." she wondered and hugged her knees. "Too late, too weak, too helpless, like always…"

This time, Minato wasn't going to save her.

"So, so weak…" she breathed out as the tears flowed freely. "So, so pathetic…."

Waiting for the next night was going to be utter hell, she was sure. "Stay alive, Minato…. I-I'll try, I promise!"

…

Minato looked up at the ceiling with a vacant stare, his eye merely twitched every time the sword went deep into his already mangled stomach. "F-Forgive me…"

The shadow hovering over the broken teenager dug the blade into his exposed stomach, taking full advantage of the teenager's resilience.

"We are still at a few hundreds," the lookalike said, pulling the blade out to stab Minato on the shoulder but as always, he remained motionless against the cold ground.

The blade twisted and turned deep inside his shoulder, ripping through the bones and muscles.

Minato finally winced in pain for a few seconds.

The shadow saw the flash of pain and stomped on the fresh wound, occasioning a splatter of blood over his leg and Minato's face.

"Such a familiar sight," he leaned down and smeared the fresh blood over Minato's face. "Minato Arisato's face covered in blood. After killing the innocent…" he picked up some of the blood on his face and lapped it up. "You lick off their blood with delight, don't you?"

Minato came alive after the blizzard the memories. "NO!" he screamed out, shaking his head furiously. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

The shadow shook his head and clasped his mouth shut. "You don't get to beg for forgiveness…."

Minato widened his eyes as more tears cascaded his cheeks. That was the same thing he used to say to his victims.

"That wasn't me!" Minato broke free and yelled in his face. "Please, I beg of you! Just forgive me already!"

The shadow laughed in his face cruelly, just like he used to. "Forgive. Did you forgive anyone, answer me that."

"That wasn't me!" Minato opened his mouth again but was slapped to the ground.

The shadow stomped onto his cheek and pressed his face against the ground. "You've talked enough. Judgement time has started again…"

"…"

"You filthy son of a bitch," the shadow cursed, stomping harder on his cheek.

"Ugh," Minato just endured the pain as the blade went through his back this time, opening up another ghastly gash, just like the one on his abdomen.

"We start from one, alright?" the shadow sneered and started his routine of plunging the blade in his body and harshly pulling it outside, only to push it back in seconds later to overwork his neurons and wreck his filthy body.

"All the people you've killed," this time, he flipped the weapon over and plunged the blunt end into the gash, and Minato finally screamed out in pain as his nervous system crashed from the overwhelming pain.

"Scream!" the shadow demanded. "Scream louder, you piece of shit!"

Minato was forcefully flipped over and he started banging his head against the wall as the words induced another memory.

"They're music to your ears, right?" his shadow spat, holding his sword up for a few seconds to take in the scene of Minato sobbing tears of blood. He gave out a short sigh and started stabbing with sickening delight.

The darkened lookalike stabbed Minato all over his arms repeatedly, damaging them beyond repair so that he would never commit a sin again.

Minato was seconds away from slipping to the realm of the dead but his shadow caught that and stopped massacring him. "Hmmm, that time is about to begin again, I suppose…" he grabbed a rough hold around Minato's collar and dragged him away to the shadows.

All was silent in the tower but just as the Dark Hour began, Minato started screaming as the shadow got to work, knowing that his team mates were coming.

…

Hamuko heard a cruel laugh coming from the upper floors and that reminded her of the way that Minato used to laugh during his battles but this one was far colder, if that was possible.

Minato had a little bit of humanity but the shadow lacked even that. Just dwelling on that drained the color from her face, Minato was alone with a monster like that for a past 24 hours, there was a high chance he was dead-

"Hamuko, focus!" Mitsuru snapped her out of the trance and the female fool furiously shook her head to shrug the thought away.

"I'm alright," Hamuko said slowly.

Mitsuru turned towards the access point. "Seems like we'll have to search the entire tower… Yamagishi will guide us when she pinpoints his location."

Akihiko took a deep breath. "Ken, do you really want to go?"

"Yes," Ken nodded confidently. "I want to help Minato-senpai too."

"This would have been a lot easier if we had Aigis," Junpei rubbed his neck, somewhat trembling at the thought of facing the enigma.

"Let's stop talking and head in," Yukari urged. "I'm getting worried."

"Be safe," Fuuka said. "I'll let you guys know as soon as I find him, till then, keep moving up the tower."

Hamuko was the first to step into the access point. She took a deep breath and charged in.

Mitsuru looked at her team and bit her lip. They were still injured from the hellacious battle against Strega but there was no time to rest. She quickly followed Hamuko into the access point and the rest came behind her.

Hamuko quickly looked away from the pools of blood and ran ahead. Who knew, maybe one puddle belonged to Minato-

"I've got to stop thinking like that," the redhead calmed down and looked back to see the rest following them. "He's still alive, I know it!"

Mitsuru stopped when her sight fell on something. "Wait…" she walked over a puddle of blood and crouched down as her team gathered around her. "This one is different…."

"What do you mean?"

Mitsuru picked up some of the crimson liquid on her fingers and nodded. "This belongs to Minato…."

Hamuko groaned. "Shit!"

"He's not dead is he?" Junpei gulped.

"Not enough to kill," Mitsuru stood up. "He was on this floor for sure. The blood is fresh and thicker and the only human before us was him…"

"That means they are on the upper floors, right?" Yukari said.

"I guess so," Mitsuru said. "The tower is one way so they could have only gone up…."

"We need to split up this time," Hamuko said. "Next floor, we split up into groups."

"I agree, we can cover more ground," Akihiko agreed. "We'll only head up once we've search every corner of the floor-" the boxer was cut off mid-sentence with a harsh yell from the upper floors.

The shout rattled the persona users and Hamuko grabbed onto Junpei for support. "That was Minato!" she cried. "I'm sure of it!"

"He's not that far," Fuuka's voice blared. "He's just a few floors up, hurry up!"

"The shout did seem it came from somewhere near," Mitsuru said. "Let's head for the steps, he's not here. Next floor, we'll split up."

The rest nodded shakily and followed Fuuka's directions to the steps.

Upon reaching, the persona users divided into teams and ran off to search for their leader. Akihiko with Ken, Junpei with Yukari and Hamuko went along with Mitsuru.

Hamuko was restless by the silence but she couldn't blame Mitsuru. She sneaked a quick glance at the senior and even though her eyes were focused, it looked like she had no soul.

"I-I appreciate what you're doing," Hamuko said weakly. "I really do- I mean, doing this after what happened…."

Mitsuru kept quiet for a few seconds. "I'm not only doing this for you….. Minato is my junior too." she said. "I'm heart-broken but I won't allow another death to happen on my watch."

"You need a rest too," Mitsuru said, looking at her petite frame. "You haven't slept at all, correct?"

"I can't get his screams out of my head," Hamuko pressed the throbbing vein on her temple. "It's like I'm hallucinating, I can't stop hearing them at the back of my head."

"We'll find him," Mitsuru assured, patting her back. "Do you have any theory about what happened?"

"No," Hamuko said.

"It seems impossible that a shadow was living inside him for but that does account for his supernatural powers and brutality," Mitsuru sighed. "The way he broke down…. It seemed like he never wanted to do any of that…"

"Whatever it is-" another piercing cry flustered the two females and Hamuko lost her footing.

"Tch," Mitsuru caught her junior from falling face-first and held her up. "Get up; he needs you more than he needs us."

Hamuko looked up. It was coming from upstairs, which meant he wasn't on this floor either.

"Everybody, move up!" Mitsuru shouted. "Minato isn't on this floor…." she dragged Hamuko along until the junior stood up on her own feet.

Everyone gathered near the steps and Junpei had a grim look on his face.

"What happened?"

"Um…" Yukari looked away.

"Answer me, dammit!" Hamuko spat.

"There was a puddle of blood on this floor too and it wasn't normal…" Junpei removed his cap. "Yuka-tan thinks that belonged to Minato as well…"

"…" an eerie silenced prevailed for a few seconds. Hamuko was about to shout and scream to break it but Akihiko spoke up earlier.

"Is that insane bastard torturing him on every floor before dragging him higher?" the boxer finished and the suffocating silence returned once again.

"T-There are a number of those puddles on the lower floors," Fuuka informed. "I-I have no idea how long he has been torturing Minato…"

"I'm gonna kill him," Junpei spat. "Let's move on! He's going to pay for this."

Hamuko kept staring at the wall blankly until Yukari grabbed her wrist and dragged her up the steps. Was he really alive?

"Shit," Hamuko bit back on the sobs and hurried up the steps.

Mitsuru took the first step forward and scouted the area until her sight fell on fresh blood prints. "…" she walked over to the foot prints and bit her lip.

"What does this tell us?" Akihiko dared ask.

"The torture is inhumane," Mitsuru started chewing on her bottom lip.

"I-If Fuuka can't sense him…. That means…." Hamuko's eyes were pale white at this point. "H-He's dead…"

"Stop thinking like that," Akihiko cleaned the sweat off his face and panted. "We won't stop until we find him. Maybe he's just knocked out."

Mitsuru followed the footprints of blood and they led to the steps. "We need to head on…" the rest nodded and went up the staircase, onto the next floor.

As soon as they arrived, Fuuka shouted at them.

"He's here!" the support persona user yelled. "I can't pinpoint his exact location but he's here. His life force is extremely weak, you need to hurry!"

"Everyone split up and search for him, no groups," Mitsuru ordered. "As soon as you see him, tell Fuuka and we'll gather up."

"And be warned, if you encounter HIM, do not attack when you're alone," Mitsuru bit her lip. "He's vastly beyond our level; do not risk your lives. Now go!"

Hamuko quickly ran off to search for Minato and the rest did the same.

"Shit," the redhead tripped down a few times and ran into walls because she wasn't focused in the slightest. There was no way she could focus with the uncertainly plaguing her mind. "Damn this all!"

She ended up dropping her sword. "Fuck it!" she cursed and ran off without her weapon. "Minato, where are you!?" she shouted at the top of her lungs, hoping for an answer but she got nothing from the blunet.

The only response was a small, evil chuckle which she barely caught.

Her sight went down to spot another puddle of blood that led to more bloodstained footprints. "Just what did that insane bastard do to him…" she swallowed the lump in her throat and followed the footprints.

She knew she was going to regret doing so, without a sword and all alone but she was past caring at that point. She just needed to see him alive.

Hamuko finally looked up when the iron like stench wafted to her nose. Iron and filth…. "Please…" she prayed to every deity, hoping that she would see Minato grinning like a psycho over the dead body of his darkened lookalike.

But it wasn't that what she saw, not even close.

Hamuko sucked in a deep breath and fell face first into the puddle of blood that splattered over her face and uniform. The redhead quickly picked herself up and tried to scream/yell/sob but nothing came out as the scene in front of her knocked everything out of her system.

"Minato!" she finally yelled out in horror, cowering backwards and screaming out to the skies in pain and grief. "MINATO!" she tried to get up but there was nothing left in her legs; she barely started crawling over to Minato who was knocked out and brutalized in the worst possible way.

"Minato! Open your eyes!" Hamuko begged but the blunet didn't budge, neither did he answer.

Minato was pinned against the ground with several sharp knives sticking into her arms and legs that had him crucified against the wall with his head hanging low with beads of blood continually dripping down his chin.

Hamuko started chewing on her hand to stop herself from screaming. She didn't know where to look, his body was ripped open at various points, his arms, his legs, his stomach were leaking out blood from the ghastly wounds and upon closer inspection, Hamuko could spot chunks of rocks and debris in the holes, like someone had crushed stones inside his wounds.

"What did he do to you, Minato…" Hamuko crawled across the ground and barely got to her knees, still mortified from what she had seen. "Minato, please, open your eyes!"

Minato remained silent, there was nothing coming from him, just shallow breaths that indicated he was still alive, only barely.

Hamuko got to her feet and steeled herself. She just had to pick him up and drag him to safety. She could bawl her eyes out back in the dorm because now was not the time for that.

She took just one step forward and a familiar chuckle rattled her.

"Just so you know, the blood on your face belongs to him," the voice sneered.

Hamuko looked down at her uniform and nearly collapsed to the ground again. "C-Come out!" she demanded, pulling out her evoker. "I'm going to slaughter you! You inhuman bastard!"

"Inhuman bastard…. Hmmm," the enigma stepped away from the darkness and strolled over to the crucified form of Minato with a familiar gait. Hamuko noted that he was walking just like that Minato, same motion and same style. "Do you mean this rotting piece of shit?" he jumped his thumb over to Minato.

"S-Shut your mouth!" Hamuko shouted. "I'm talking to you! Stay the hell away from him, you monster!"

"Monster," the shadow repeated her word. "Inhuman bastard and now monster, excuse me but I feel you're misinformed."

"…"

"I'm doing the good deed," the shadow said. "Is it not good to punish those who are sinners?"

"Y-You…" Hamuko gritted her teeth.

"Every sin in the world has been committed by this piece of shit right here," the shadow said. "From killing people to using girls as his playthings, he has done it all. Beaten down people of all ages, killed whoever looked at him funny, is he not a sinner?"

Hamuko opened her mouth to speak but the shadow interjected.

"Does he not deserve this? I'm just setting this right. He deserves to pay for his sin and God chose me to do so!"

"You're insane!" Hamuko held her evoker with both hands. "You don't know anything!"

"Maybe I don't," the shadow admitted. "But I don't care. All I know, he needs to suffer, for the rest of eternity," he looked over at the broken teenager and grinned. "I mean, I had fun torturing him. He lost his voice by yelling the two words over and over again…"

"Forgive me," the shadow mocked. "Forgive me."

"I'm going to kill you," Hamuko pressed the evoker to his temple.

"Because of him?" the shadow sneered. "You're going to kill me for him? Need I remind you, he spat on your face and slept with a random skank while you waited for him the entire night?"

"Shut your damn mouth!" Hamuko yelled at him again.

"Even you!" the shadow exclaimed. "He grew tired of even you! I'm being honest with you, this sick and twisted individual legit thought of sleeping with you once and then disposing of you like trash."

"You don't know shit!"

"On the contrary," the darkened look alike took a step forward, his silver eyes shining amongst his dark frame. "I do know everything. Every single thought that ran through his rotten mind, every disgusting fetish of his that brought a smile to his face. I know everything and having said that, I know I'm doing the right thing."

Hamuko was seconds away from summoning Hades to blast the asshole to pieces but several brisk footsteps clicking against the floor halted her and made her look over her shoulder to see the rest of the team heading her way.

"Minato!" Junpei saw Minato's limp form from a mile away and shouted. "NO! Fuck no!"

"Minato!" Yukari clasped her mouth as tears glistered in the corner of her eyes.

"Shit," Akihiko cursed and cringed. That was painful to look at, even for him.

Mitsuru looked away from the injured teenager and eyed the being next to him. "So it was him…" she gritted her teeth.

"Minato-senpai…." Ken wiped his eyes clean and glared intensely at the bastard next to him.

"Wow, I am surprised that all of you came for someone like him," the shadow said, now standing directly in front of the wounded blunet. "Are you here to help me punish him for what he did to you?"

Nobody paid any attention to the entity. Everyone was still fixated on the horrors in front of them. Minato was motionless against the wall and his body…. The torture went beyond inhumane like Mitsuru predicted earlier. He was already suffering through diseases for the past few months and they just got healed but now….

"You son of a bitch!" Akihiko cursed at the darkened teen.

"Are you talking to him?" the shadow pointed at Minato. "I agree, his mother was a bitch indeed, for giving birth to someone like him."

"You're going to pay for this…" Yukari loaded an arrow. "I'll dig this into your goddamn skull!"

"Who are you!?" Mitsuru demanded. "Why are you doing this!?"

"I'm taking revenge for you," the shadow whispered, causing the teens to shiver. There was a cold edge to his voice but at the same time, it sounded sad and depressive, although the gleeful completely contradicted that. He was having fun abusing Minato, it was written all over his face.

He had a fetish for torturing.

Just like Minato used to.

"Every wound he has given to you, I'll give it back to him tenfold!" the shadow declared and looked at Junpei who was glaring him down. "Do you want me to spill alcohol down his wounds, just like he did to you?"

Junpei lost it and charged at the bastard, sword in hand.

The shadow merely took a step forward, welcoming Junpei to strike him.

Junpei leaned in and fired off a slash for the shadow's neck which opened up a shower of ichor as the blade shredded through his darkened body and come out from the other side of his neck.

"What the…" Junpei held onto the hilt and stared in the eyes of the shadow who was merely staring back at him, not paying attention to the sword that was still embedded in his neck. He didn't even bat an eye at the attack, did nothing to dodge or defend, he took it head on without even flinching.

"So you've made up your mind, huh?" the shadow curled his hand into a fist punched Junpei on the stomach, making the teen howl in pain before he was sent flying to the other side of the room by the force of the blow.

Akihiko widened his eyes. He literally sent Junpei flying like a ragdoll by a punch.

"What about the rest of you?" the shadow said, holding out his hands. "You can either do the right thing and punish this scum or become a sinner like him."

"Go fuck yourself!" Hamuko spat.

"Pity," the shadow narrowed his eyes, forcing out a gust of wind from his darkened body that pushed the team backwards. "If you are with him then all of you are sinners!"

"Ugh," Mitsuru guarded the next gust of wind by her rapier. She was right all along, that thing was dreadfully powerful.

"His power is overwhelming," Fuuka shouted. "Take Minato and get out of there now!"

"…."

"You can't beat him! Take him and run!"

Akihiko shrugged off the advice and ran for the bastard with his fists clenched. The boxer got into distance, loaded on his right hand and slammed the fist into the cheek of the shadow, snapping his head to the side.

"… Pity," the shadow said, turning his face against the force of the punch, pushing Akihiko's fist away.

"Minato! Wake up!" Hamuko screamed out loud at Minato. He was the only one who could beat his shadow.

Normally, Minato would pick himself up from the death bed and charge into battle to save her but this time, nothing happened as her plea fell on deaf ears for once….

Akihiko clenched his jaw and uncorked his left hand for his face and it connected on the button but it did nothing like before, the enigma never flinched.

"Suffer!" the shadow responded with a straight of his own that broke Akihiko's nose and sent him rolling across the ground.

"We can't win," Mitsuru unsheathed her rapier, eyeing Minato who was still knocked out behind the being.

"But we'll still try," Yukari said, pointing the arrow for the shadow's head.

"Even you, Yukari?" the shadow said. "Remember the times he insulted you? Mocked you? Mocked your father? Are you really forgetting all that?"

"Shut up!" the brunette hissed. "Just shut your mouth!"

The shadow shook his head and held out his hands again, his eyes fixated on the team that was still ready for more. "I will say it right now. There is no way you can win…. Not a chance. You cannot comprehend what I am; therefore, you are powerless against me."

"You cannot even begin to comprehend who I am," the place quaked.

"I don't want to know you!" Hamuko interjected. "Give us back our Minato!"

"Your Minato?" the darkened lookalike snorted in amusement. "He isn't going anywhere. He will suffer for the rest of his life, until his last breath."

"I could have easily killed him but no, that would be too lax," he continued. "I'm going to torture him, I'm going to keep breaking him apart, shatter him and then rebuild him until he's lost everything, his mind, body and spirit. I'll crush him entirely and he will never be the same."

"I won't let you!" Hamuko held the evoker against her temple.

"I'll chase him down to the end of this earth, there is no way you son of bitches are going to stop me! I'll burn anyone who comes between me and that filthy demon."

"Resistance is futile," the shadow finally started moving forward.

"Rush him and attack till he dies!" Mitsuru ordered.

The shadow merely kept walking, not turning his back as a few of them charged at him. Charged at him and punched, slashed and kicked his body, as hard as they could but like before it nothing. They could feel the strikes connecting but the shadow still kept moving forward.

Mitsuru came back and stabbed him through his back.

Junpei cut through his sides.

Akihiko cut through his goddamn mouth with his blade fists.

Ken impaled his stomach with his spear.

Yukari fired an arrow for his brain.

Hamuko was still standing far away from the rest, horrified at what was going on. The damn thing was smiling at her but it wasn't like Minato. He was giving a smile similar to the ones Minato gave before he mauled his enemy.

"My turn," the shadow whispered. He held out his fist and dark mist coiled around him.

"GET OUT! RUN!"

"Minato!" Hamuko shouted at him again but the blunet was still held against the wall, motionless and deaf to everything around him.

"Tch," Akihiko pulled out his evoker and held the device to his temple. The rest quickly followed.

"Persona," the shadow whispered.

A very familiar roar rattled the teenagers and Hamuko took a step back in fear. She knew what was coming but how? This was impossible.

"Oh shit!" Akihiko braced himself.

"It's just like Minato's persona!" Junpei cried. He knew they were in for a painful ride.

Thanatos spawned from the blast mist, hovering over the teenagers that still had their weapons glued to the shadow that looked up and grinned at the darkened version of Thanatos.

"Persona!" the nearby teens shouted in unison and summoned their personae.

"No use," the shadow said as his persona roared out to the skies and got to work within seconds. Nobody could respond or even think of a counterattack as the darkened persona ripped the heads of the other beings, sending the users crashing to the ground in pain.

"H-Hades!" Hamuko finally summoned her own persona but it was too late.

"Megaidoloan!" the shadow ordered, making the persona scream out to the heavens and summon three pulsing balls of energy that spiraled towards the ground.

"Oh shit," Junpei braced himself for the attack. He wasn't able to move. "Dammit Minato, get up, please…"

The three orbs plummeted towards at a furious place and exploded upon colliding against the floor, detonating three massive explosions that burned and bruised the nearby persona-users, cut through their bodies and knocked the breath away from their lungs.

"Everyone!" Fuuka shouted in horror but the attack wasn't done.

The attack blew the roof off the floor and shattered through the walls, completely decimating the floor. Everything crumbled in the wake of the attack which was far more brutal that what they endured so far.

Hamuko glued her eyes to Minato, ignoring the almighty energy that ripped the flesh off her bones. "Minato…" she whispered.

"Scream and suffer!" the shadow yelled out, easily overtaking the shouts of pain of the persona users. "Stand by him and this is what awaits you! Suffer!" he laughed out loud, cackling with sick delight, much like Minato at the screams of pain.

The attack dissipated after a few seconds although it seemed like an eternity to the members of SEES who were spawned across the ground, groaning and hissing in pain.

Everyone except Hamuko…..

The shadow swiftly turned around to see Hamuko shaking Minato who was resting against the ground. "Please, get up!" Hamuko get up. "Get up and save us!"

The shadow growled in hate for the first time. "Get away from him!"

Hamuko looked back and saw a fist flying for her fist. The punch collided against her forehead and sent the redhead rolling to the side.

"He isn't going anywhere!" the shadow spat and impaled Minato's wounded arms against the ground by the knives. "He'll remain here!"

Hamuko launched herself at the shadow and tackled him away from Minato. "Get away from him!"

The darkened lookalike easily countered and sent her to the other side by a kick on her gut.

Hamuko skidded backwards and cried in horror as the shadow ignored her and went back to abusing Minato's body, stomping and kicking his wounds, further worsening the wear and tear.

Hamuko tackled him away again and the two rolled across the ground.

The shadow easily overpowered the female to the ground and scowled at her, hissing in hate. He held up his fist to knock her out but the two male members of SEES ran at him and dragged him away from Hamuko.

"Minato…" Hamuko crawled over to Minato and removed the knife from his bloodied arm. She looked over at his condition and sobbed. "What did he do to you…." was he ever going to be the same? Even now, Minato was knocked out, like he was in a coma which was very possible since he had lost gallons of blood.

Akihiko and Junpei were soon knocked away by the shadow that focused his attention back on Minato. He backhanded the charging Mitsuru without even looking and walked through the arrows that Yukari fired his way.

"No!" Hamuko held out her arms, kneeling right in front of Minato. "You won't touch him!"

"I told you!" the shadow spat, kicking Hamuko right in the face, forcing her away from Minato. He walked over to the blunet and pressed his foot against Minato's face again. "Nothing will come between me and him!"

Another arrow infused with wind shredded through his chest but like always, the shadow shrugged away the pain.

"Guys!" Fuuka broke down. "Please, get out!"

The members of SEES stood up again and charged at the shadow who welcomed them. He shrugged away and laughed at their attempts before replying with his own strikes that broke their bones.

"Please! You'll die!"

"Ugh, shit," Junpei stood up again. He was barely recovered from the battle against Strega and now, he was taking an even bigger beating.

Akihiko pushed himself off the ground and stumbled forward.

Hamuko checked for Minato's pulse and winced. He was still there but faintly and most likely, he would die very soon if the battle kept going.

Hamuko lifted Minato on her shoulders and despite her injuries, tried dragging him away from the battle.

The shadow was onto her. He ripped the redhead away and sent her to the other side with a punch before he pounced on the near dead blunet and started mauling him relentlessly against the ground, opening up new wounds and worsening the old ones.

"Guys!" Fuuka was shivering outside. She couldn't a damn thing. They were all going to die and she would be left alone.

The shadow was pushed away from Minato's frame as Hamuko and Junpei tackled him away, only to get shoved to the side. He stood up again and expelled a wave of dark magic that sent the others reeling.

"Persona…." the shadow called upon the Death God.

"Ugh," Hamuko crawled her way over to Minato and squeezed his hand before looking at his lookalike who was ready to unleash another attack that was surely going to kill them.

"I'm sorry, Minato," Hamuko said. "I couldn't repay the favor…"

The rest tried getting up but the damage was far too great. They were already beaten from their battle against Strega and it didn't help that the enigma punched harder than everyone else, punched harder than Theo, Sho or Takaya. They just weren't prepared for that.

They knew he was going to be strong but they never expected this….

He didn't flinch even once, despite the barrage of attacks and spells they unleashed against him.

"Just what is he…?" Mitsuru wondered. He said that they couldn't comprehend him and maybe he was right, that's why they couldn't damage him at all. He was far beyond them, far beyond even Hamuko who was the strongest persona user, bar Minato.

"Get up!" Fuuka begged. "The next attack is going to kill you!"

Hamuko shielded Minato and hung her head low. This was the end, they had no energy left to grab Minato and run for the access point. "Shit…."

The shadow laughed out loud and the three orbs started plummeting down from above, heating up the surroundings.

Hamuko pulled Minato away, hoping to save him from the blast.

The others didn't move and just accepted their fate. They were completely spent.

"NO!" Fuuka shouted. "Juno!"

The shadow stopped midway during his attack as green light engulfed the wounded teenagers.

"Huh…" Hamuko looked up when she felt a very familiar sensation, like the one she got when she used the access point. Something was pulling them away from Tartarus, but where?

Mitsuru disappeared.

Yukari disappeared.

Ken disappeared.

Junpei looked at Minato and teleported away.

Akihiko cursed at the shadow one last time and followed the rest.

Hamuko held onto Minato tightly and clasped her eyes shut. "Please, bring him along…" she pleaded, trying her best to ignore the shadow that was running towards her.

"Remember this!" the shadow shouted at the top of his lungs. "I will chase this bastard to the end of the world! Nothing will keep him safe away from me! I will show up at your dorm and I will rip him to pieces."

Hamuko finally disappeared from the floor, along with the battered blunet.

"FUCK!" the shadow cursed and went berserk. He summoned his persona and started decimating the floor with repeated almighty attacks, occasioning strong quakes that were felt by the team who were back in the lobby.

Akihiko got up and kicked the access point, breaking the device and shutting the shadow inside the tower for the time being. The boxer panted and collapsed to his knees, not believing they had survived the ordeal.

"Thank heavens…." Fuuka was sweating buckets but there was a small smile on her face. All of them returned alive.

"Thanks Fuuka," Junpei bowed. "You're a lifesaver; I thought we were going to die."

"Minato is going to die if we don't give him medical attention," Yukari said, crouching down next to Minato. She inspected the wounds and cringed.

"Pick him up!" Mitsuru ordered. "Get him to the dorm."

Hamuko watched as Akihiko and Junpei lifted up the blunet and carried him away.

Hamuko ran a hand down her face and smashed her against the ground. They were safe but only for a short while. The shadow knew of the dorm and he was going to come attack Minato again and there was no one who was capable of stopping him.

The redhead lumbered her way out of the tower, not paying attention to two males around her, far away, but still in the vicinity.

Sho eyed Minato's near lifeless body and widened his eyes as his breath hitched inside his throat. "Minato…." he cringed. The strong warrior was hanging limp like a corpse in the arms of his team mates. Just who did that to him!? Who did that to Minato!?

Sho gritted his teeth and punched the ground. "Minato!"

The other one was a somewhat familiar boy standing at the very top of the tower, his foot against the very edge of Tartarus. The black haired male looked down from the skies with a vacant stare, following the redhead who was still in a daze.

Deep inside the tower, the shadow rubbed his cheek. "Tch, that bitch managed to hurt me..." from all the punches, weapons and spells, the one kick that Hamuko landed on his face managed to stung him for some reason.

"Hmmm…" the male on top of the tower looked at his hands and the prominent veins on his pale skin. He was sure that evil was flowing through his body, instead of blood.

"Who am I…?"

Forgive him already! Sorry, not much of a battle here because group besides the group aren't in top condition but even healed... I doubt they'll do anything, hahaha. And fuck yeah, the biggest demon in the story is finally here and pay attention to the last line, he doesn't have blood flowing, he has evil. Like I said before, this isn't the death from p3, this is the death from the greek mythos and he was one of the most hated gods in mythology because he was cruel and ruthless. Ryoji is Death here, nuff said.

And yes, the shadow will attack them again and who knows what will happen? Minato wakes up next chapter and well... more sadness will happen, brace yourself.

Also, I can't believe someone reading BL is asking me to write the cross-over. Y'all know how that will end up, Minato will be more of a wreck then he was here but sure. I promise it will happen soon and before I finish these two stories. I really don't plan on writing anymore after I'm done with fallen messiah and blood lust.

As always, thank you for the support and please keep the feedback coming. This story is really, really close to the end. I think... 15-20 chapters more because the main guy is here. HOLY FUCK! BLOOD LUST IS ACTUALLY GOING TO END! Please, keep up the support, the wheel keeps turning.

Shout out to my co-authors, Steven fucking Cold and Raidou fucking Kuzunoha and of course, to Hoshi (A dog in a fox clothing) This story has only come this far because of them, it's not all me. :P

Shot out to my laptop, the megaten wiki, ps2 for introducing me to p3, ATLUS for making p3 and Saturday for being a holiday!

See you guys soon! Cheers to the maximum effect! o/