Imma be honest but 4 reviews are really... painful but eh, this was a promise to someone who wanted this so... hopefully they're reading, you know who you are, happy belated birthday once again and cheers!
I'm such a nice guy, right, right, RIGHT?
...
*crickets*
No?
Fuck me, I guess.
Just to... you know, focus back on the story. This is not a crossover, a blue haired psycho prick is not going to magically appear and beat the shit out of everyone. This is Blood lust and Minato here is the strongest... till now.
I'm gonna get buried alive for this but folks, the show must go on and it must be painful because this is persona 3.
Hamuko yawned softly when she woke up. She checked the clock and it was nearly 11 in the morning. "I needed this…" she muttered. After the last few weeks, she badly needed a long sleep like this, a few nightmares woke her up but she slept through them and now, she was finally refreshed.
Minato was still snoring, for the first time in a long while he wasn't grunting and panting in his sleep. Hamuko poked his forehead and thought back to the 'date' last night. She thought she was a goner when they jumped off the bridge but they made it back alive, broke the dorm and crashed her room but they made it back.
"Ha ha…" she sighed. "That's what I get for dating a psychopath, I guess."
Hamuko poked his cheek once and then stopped. "Yeah, this is creepy…." she mumbled to herself. "This is something that Sho would do…"
A mental image of Sho watching over Minato and chanting 'I'm watching you sleep' made her shudder. She stopped tugging his hair and gulped, pulling back a little. "I can wait till he wakes up, yup-"
She was just about ready to hop off him until she felt something in his hood's pocket. She blinked and her mind numbed a bit, the mask flashing across her eyes. "Huh…" her fingers trailed over the mask sticking out against his hood. Just touching it a little made her shudder. A small whisper trailed in the back of her mind and Hamuko reached for his pocket, listening to the voice in the back of her mind-
"Good morning!"
Hamuko sucked in a deep breath and blinked, looking up to see Minato smiling at her. Her senses quickly returned and she had no idea about what she was doing before.
"Oh! Morning Minato!" Hamuko greeted, poking and pinching his cheek with both hands. "Did you sleep well?"
"I did," Minato said. "Can you uh… make me breakfast please?"
"Sure!" Hamuko hopped off his bed and saluted. "Get down in 10 minutes, okay?"
"Alright," Minato said and Hamuko walked out of his room and soon as he closed the door, Minato collapsed down and sighed out in relief. She looked like a girl possessed for few seconds and that genuinely terrified him.
Minato pulled the mask out and glared at it as it still reeked off the nauseating evil energy. The vibe was definitely different than Ryoji and now it made sense why Ryoji hailed Nyx as something even beyond him.
After glancing at the mask for a few more seconds, Minato curled his hand into a fist and punched the damn thing as hard as he could-
"Ugh!"
His knuckles throbbed due to the impact but the mask did not shatter, break or even get a single scratch despite Minato punching at full force. "What on earth…." he mumbled and then threw the mask down to the floor, promptly jumping and stomping as hard as he could but like before, not a dent happened.
He breathed out and then picked it up again. The obvious to do was tossing the mask far away, burying it deep into the ground but he knew the zombies would dig it out sooner or later. He felt sick and disgusted when he looked at the mask but Hamuko looked like she was under a spell and that was terrifying.
"I can't break it," Minato said. "I can't throw it away. I can't bury it… I have to…" he shuddered at the thought of Hamuko or anyone getting possessed by the mask. "I have to…. Keep it safe."
"Safe," Minato mumbled and grabbed a few spare clothes. He bundled the mask in a bunch of them, threw it inside the drawer in his closet, locked it, crushed the key in his grip and then slammed his closet shut with a sigh. "I have to keep THEM safe…"
"Scared the hard on offa me," he massaged his temples, thinking back to Hamuko whispering about Nyx in her sleep last night. "Just need to keep it away…. I can do that."
…
Hamuko slid down the steps and greeted everyone. "Morning guys!"
"Can you explain the two holes in the dorm?" Mitsuru scowled from the table.
"I mean, me and Minato do that kinda stuff. Wreck shit when we get into it," Sho said. "Who the hell did that? You?"
"I was awake for the whole night after that!" Yukari said. "What on earth was that!?"
"Nothing can piss me off today, nothing!" Hamuko sang, bouncing towards the kitchen. "Now keep it quiet, gotta make breakfast for Minato aka the psychopath who whoops all kinds of asses!"
"What is your obsession with psychopaths?" Junpei sighed. "You scare me with that sorta stuff, Hamu-tan."
Hamuko poked her head out and pointed at Mitsuru. "Imagine her with that smirk and attitude!"
"What!?" Mitsuru growled. She felt a pair of eyes on her and looked back to see Junpei staring at her. "Look away or I will execute you!"
Junpei snapped back to reality and nodded. "You know…. I kinda get it…"
Akihiko spoke up before Mitsuru could bury Junpei six feet under the ground. "Let's just wait till Minato comes down, alright?" he chuckled nervously. "I mean, he MUST have a good reason for that…. I hope…"
"Oh, we went to get the mask," Hamuko said from the kitchen. "Like a date in Tartarus."
"I don't get that," Junpei mumbled. "Are you serious?"
"Oh yeah," Hamuko shouted. "We went in all stealthy and careful, walked through shadows and zombies and flew back to the dorm."
"Flew!?" Fuuka yelped. "H-How?"
"Persona," Hamuko shrugged. "We jumped off the top and Minato summoned a persona."
Reached the top…
Jumped off the top…
Walked through zombies and shadows…
Flew back to the dorm…
The teenagers were busy processing the rather large volume of information and to think all of this happened just last night. A few of them were praising the flawless teamwork and trust between the two, some of them were angry about the reckless behavior and one of them was feeling betrayed.
"How….?" Junpei asked outloud-
"Morning," Minato greeted as he got down. "How ya guys doing-"
"You fucking Judas!"
Minato blinked and sidestepped the incoming charge, holding out his feet to trip Sho against the steps. The redhead landed with a thud and got back up, glaring harshly Minato's direction for the betrayal.
"How could you do that to me!?" Sho growled. "Why did you go out with her?"
"What do you mean?" Minato frowned.
"You reached the top of the tour, wrecked shadows and zombies, wrecked the dorm and you did it with her!?" he pointed towards the kitchen where Hamuko was humming happily. "Why!? Why her!?"
"Well, she's better to look at," Minato said, counting on his hand. "She's my girlfriend and well, she kicked your ass and is stronger than you so…"
Sho widened his eyes. "Oh fuck you…"
"And please, let go off the joke," Minato breathed out. "It got old 2 chapters ago!"
"Chapters?" Fuuka blinked.
"Chapters!?" Yukari followed.
"I mean days," Minato yawned. "Tired from last night so excuse me…." he took a seat next to Junpei and sighed, not sure where to start.
"Where is the mask, bro?" Junpei asked.
"Well," Minato scratched the back of his neck. "I hid it."
"Why?" Akihiko asked.
"Reasons," Minato replied. "Look, it's nothing serious. I just don't feel safe with the mask in the hands of the lost so I took it back. Just focus on your work and forget about the mask, I'll take care of that."
Mitsuru frowned. Minato looked a little too anxious about the whole thing. Why did he look so ruffled? The mask looked normal to her, of course she was wary of it because Ryoji of all people had dropped it but the thing was hardly worth getting anxious over.
"Are you hiding something?" Mitsuru asked.
"No," Minato said, biting his lip. "Really, just focus on your training. I've got the mask, no zombie or shadow will get it, simple as that."
Hamuko dropped the tray of food in front of Minato and rubbed the back of her neck. She couldn't even remember the moments when she got close to the mask, her memory failed her completely during those times and that was a cause for concern.
"I agree with him," Hamuko said. "We need to forget about the mask and let Minato take care of it."
"Dude, what if the Lost come around again?" Junpei asked.
"We'll take care of that. I mean, Mitsuru has already fortified the windows and doors so I doubt they'll get in," he shrugged. "When is Aigis coming back, any news?"
"Any day now," Mitsuru informed. "Ryoji damaged her pretty badly so repairing her took longer than expected."
"Good," Minato nodded. "One of us has to play guard duty at night, we'll alternate on days and I'll be doing it today, alright?"
The team exchange glances. Minato was already sweating and looked way too concerned despite telling them not to worry but they did not argue and listened to him, he was obviously thinking for the best of them.
"What's the worst that could happen?" Minato laughed and started eating his breakfast. "I mean really, nothing to worry about."
"What's the worst that could happen," Sho repeated. He swallowed the lump in his throat, obviously concerned for his friend because he was out of character. For his sake, Sho hoped that nothing bad would happen.
There was a sense of doom when the teens left the table and went back to their rooms. As soon as Minato stepped inside his, he inhaled sharply, noting the sudden increase in temperature and the obvious decrease in oxygen. He chalked it up to anxiety and sleep deprivation but the mask locked inside his closet was whispering, calling out the shadows and the minions.
The haunting had just begun…
As they had agreed, Minato was on guard duty for the night and he came down when everyone else went to sleep. He took in as much oxygen he could and made his way over to the couch-
Whispers.
Quiet, faint and chilly whispers from the shadows-
"Huh…" Minato looked around the darkened lounge, hearing faint voices in the back of his head but at the same time, it was as if someone was holding him and whispering just next to his ear. "No, just my psychopathy…"
He came to a stop in the middle of the lounge and exhaled, his mind definitely aware that something odd was lurking in the shadows but he shrugged it off because he did not want to imagine what would happen to Hamuko and his friends if-
"Nah!" Minato sat down on the couch. He wasn't afraid, after going toe to toe with someone like Ryoji nothing really intimidated him but-
Something moved towards the kitchen and he saw the murky shadow from the corner of his eye. It looked like a fast moving shadow and Minato slowly turned around, taking a few steps towards the kitchen to check if everything was okay.
"No, I've got to stop thinking like that," he said to himself. "My anxiety is just playing tricks on me."
He was aware that the team was obviously concerned for him and he did not want to worry them more talking about retarded shit like hauntings and ghosts.
The whispers turned into laughing momentarily but the blue haired fool stopped giving a shit and just kept his focus on the door, alert and ready to throw out any shadow or zombie who'd come near the dorm. He was aware that keeping the mask meant inviting more of them but he was willing to take the risk.
"What's the worst that could happen….?"
As soon as Mitsuru came walking down the steps, Minato wished her a good morning and then ran up the steps, falling asleep as soon as his head was on the pillow.
Mitsuru walked into the kitchen and frowned.
Minato had left all the cabinet doors open.
"Or did he….?" she wondered and came back to the lounge, sniffing and almost heaving when she caught the disgusting stench of rotting flesh coming from…. She had no idea but it was definitely there.
"What on earth?" Mitsuru hissed, putting a hand against her mouth. She definitely did not want to give guard duty anytime soon.
Junpei spend the night in the lounge the next day and unlike Minato he did get ruffled by the noises, smells and overall vibe at night time. Every little sound or movement made the capped teen jump up in fear because as long as he was there, he swore that someone or something was watching over him.
"Damn," Junpei said, rubbing his arm to calm himself down. "I've got Goosebumps!"
Junpei ran up the moment came down the next morning.
"Well, we lost another guard," the blunet sighed and frowned. The layout of the couches was definitely different than the last time he saw it, someone had moved them a bit backwards.
"Fuck!" the disgusting smelt wafted to his nose and the blue haired psychopath hissed in disgust. "Nasty."
"Woof Woof!"
Minato looked over to Koromaru and he looked angry just like the last few days. He didn't calm down when Minato ruffled his head and kept looking around with a growl, hissing and barking at something invisible.
"Calm down boy," Minato said, ruffling his head but that little to calm him down.
"Oh well," Minato said, looking at the calendar. Tomorrow was 8th, the first day of the new semester. "Hopefully that will help."
…
"Be careful, alright?" Minato said as he stood in the doorway, looking at Sho who was lounging on the large couch. "No funny shit."
"I'm not like Yukari," Sho hissed back. "I'm not scared of ghosts and shit."
"Hey!" Yukari cried. "Take that back!"
"Well, that is true," Hamuko giggled. "Take care, Sho."
"Yeah," Sho nodded and waved them off. "Later idiots, excluding Minato of course."
"You know, I'd be really worried and terrified if he was actually gay," Hamuko sighed.
"Yeah, you'd get into battles daily with him," Minato chuckled.
"Worried for you," Hamuko said and walked past him, leaving him in stunned silence.
"…"
"You actually think that!?" Minato yelled at her back. "I am dominant dammit! Don't make me prove it when we get back!"
Hamuko giggled mockingly. "Nice joke, Minato. HA HA HA!" she stuck her tongue out, trying to sound as seductive as possible. "Prove it when we get back."
"I was talking about Sho," Minato said and walked past her, leaving her in stunned silence.
Hamuko stopped next to a nearby bin and puked.
…
It was a new day for Minato because the last time he stepped foot into the campus he was a mess, all stitched up and still bleeding all over the place but this time, he didn't need Mitsuru or Akihiko to guide him to his classroom. He walked casually, not paying attention to the whispers from the nearby students.
"That's right," Junpei said. "He's back!"
"How did he get healed?"
"He looks scarier than usual,"
"You don't think he remembers, right? RIGHT!?"
Minato chuckled and just kept following his friends. He was willing to forget and forgive because hate was just love disguised by jealousy-
"Hey ugly!"
He stopped.
"Y-You don't deserve Hamuko!"
"Oh boy," Junpei sighed. Who was this brave and foolish soul?
Minato shrugged and walked over to the boy who had his fists up, ready to fight even though he was shaking. He took a step back when Minato come to a stop next to him, staring into his soul with a bored expression on his face.
He edged closer and stood up on his toes so he could reach the guy to whisper.
"The inevitable happened months," the blunet whispered, shattering and destroying the guy from inside out. "No virgin fantasies for you."
Minato pulled back, turned around and walked off while the student was still frozen in shock, like he had seen Ryoji yelling at him or something.
"He's still paralyzed," Junpei said, looking back. "What did you say to him, man?"
"Nothing," Minato shrugged. "No more fanclubs after today."
"Thank God!" Hamuko cried.
…
Back in the dorm, Sho was busy reading some gory comics with a guy named Guts just slaughtering unfortunate souls. He wasn't bothered by ghosts or spirits because they sounded like training partners to him.
"Yeah, gouge his eyes out!" Sho cackled. "Oh shit, what a maneuver! I might try this on Minato someday. Oh, oh holy shit-"
The whispering started again.
The scent of rotting flesh even made someone like Sho hiss in disgust.
"Who the fuck is having a cannibal party-" he stood up and froze in his tracks, pupils dilating when the cold voices called out to him, making him strain his ears but that did nothing because the voice was coming from the back of his mind.
"Do you want to get stronger….?"
Sho turned, facing the stairs because the voice was definitely coming from upstairs-
"Strong like him…?"
Sho started moving forward, stumbling and bumbling like he was a zombie and with every step, the voice got louder and clearer as if he was getting close to it.
"Strong like….. Minato?"
Sho moved up the steps and kept dragging himself towards his room, following the voice that kept talking to him and step by step, he could feel himself getting closer and closer-
The door to Minato's door was slammed open and Sho moved towards the closet, ripping the doors off and looking around for a bit until his sight fell on the locked drawer. "Huh…" the voice was now directly blaring into his ear which meant he was really close now.
Sho tried to push it open but the drawer was locked.
"Break it…."
Sho hadn't blinked even once during the whole ordeal. He was strong enough to shatter the entire closet and that was what he was going to do, SHE demanded it after all. His right hand removed the sword from its resting place and he held it up, quickly sending the blade down to cleave the drawer-
In-
Half-
And-
Get-
Power-
"WOOF!"
Sho snapped out of the trace when someone bumped into his leg. He came to his sense when he heard loud and aggressive barking and when he come to, he had no idea what was going on-
"Shit!" Sho pulled back and fell on his ass, looking around the place because he had no idea where he was. "Minato's room!?"
"How did I…!?" Sho stood up and saw Koromaru growling in the direction of the closet, shivering slightly as well because the evil energy coming from inside was massive, evil enough that even Sho got ruffled. "Holy shit…"
"No way…" Sho gulped. "So the mask is…" he had no doubt this whole zombie episode had happened because the cursed thing was calling out to him and he was completely out of it and would have done something stupid if not for Koromaru. "How the hell can it even do that!?"
And why the fuck was Minato keeping such a blasted thing in his goddamn room!?
Sho got up and quickly raced down the steps, landing on the lounge and-
"What….?"
He was sure he hadn't done any lifting during his episode because his muscles weren't all jacket up but yet…
"Who did….?"
The lounge looked nothing like he had left it as the furniture was thrown all over the place like someone had knocked it down during a rampage because the couch was currently resting in the entrance to the kitchen and that made no sense at all.
"This!?" Sho took a step back, gulping because this was not normal. The whole shake up had happened in a couple of seconds and he knew not even him or Minato could throw around furniture like that. This was the work of something far more sinister.
Sho was busy collecting his sense when the door was slammed open-
"Home sweet home-"
Minato stopped and took a step back, bumping into Junpei who was behind him. It took a while for the whole scene to sink in and when did it; Minato looked directly at Sho because there was no way Koromaru could have done something like this.
"What did you do…?" Minato said slowly, shaking his head. If Sho did this then he was more powerful than he could ever imagine-
"I didn't do it!" Sho spat. The others pushed past Minato and stepped in, going silent much like their leader because the lounge was wrecked, like a war had happened while they were gone.
"Then…?" Mitsuru frowned, looking up where the ceiling fan SHOULD have been and yet it was smashed into the television. "Do not pin the blame on Koromaru."
"I had no idea this happened!" Sho said. "I just found about it now!"
"You missed all this!?" Hamuko blinked. "It's worse than an earthquake, how could you miss this?"
"Don't look at me like that!" Sho hissed at the others, getting pissed off by the suspicious glances. "It's not my fault. I was just sitting here and the next thing I know I was about to remove the mask from Minato's closet!"
"You what!?" Minato growled. "What did you do to it? Tell me!"
"I didn't do anything," Sho replied. "I just woke up in front of your closet!"
"Moron!" Minato brushed past him and ran up the steps and seconds later, the rest heard the door to his room slamming shut.
"Man…" Junpei gulped. Sho was possessed by the mask? The creepy feeling, those paranormal voices and smells coming from the shadows made it clear that the mask was haunted and yet Minato was keeping it inside his room. The whole team was ruffled and didn't know where to begin.
"Did you really…?" Hamuko looked at Sho. "What happened, really?"
"Just what I said," Sho hissed and looked up. He could hear Minato rummaging through his closet and cursing him from above. "I was possessed by the damn thing; I'm just as confused as you."
"Get to work then," Mitsuru sighed, ordering Akihiko and Junpei to fix the lounge.
Sho gritted his teeth. He had a bad feeling about the mask….. As well as Minato because something was not right with him...
"Better talk to him," Sho said to Hamuko. "The sooner he gets rid of it the better."
"Get rid of it?" Hamuko bit her lip. She knew he had tried and there was a reason why he kept the mask locked up. "Damn you Ryoji…"
After putting the couches and tables back in place, the teenagers sat down when it was dark outside and suddenly, the lounge got a lot colder for some reason. A dull pressure settled down on them too, unnerving everyone because it felt as if someone was watching them, just behind their shoulders.
"This is creepy…" Yukari murmured, shivering on the couch. "It's like someone is breathing down my neck."
"What is this agitation?" Mitsuru growled, unable to shake the feeling off. They were not alone in the lounge, someone else was with them but she couldn't see anything.
Akihiko gulped.
Fuuka kept her eyes shut.
Hamuko kept looking around at her friends, trying to calm down because she felt the pressure too.
After a short while, Minato came back down to the lounge with his knuckles wrapped up. He sighed and walked over to the group, trying to ignore the glare that Sho sent his way.
"Well," Minato scratched back of his neck. "That's taken care of. Try to stay away from my room, okay?"
"Not my fault," Sho hissed. "Told you that before."
"Never said it was," Minato shrugged. "Telling this to everyone, stay away from my room."
"Why don't you just throw it out, huh?" Sho said as he stood up. "If you're THAT worried, just throw the damn mask out and keep it away from the dorm."
"Y-Yeah," Junpei agreed. "I have a feeling that everything that has been happening is because of the mask."
"No," Minato shook his head. "Just listen to me and stay back-"
"WHY!?" Sho spat, glaring at the blue haired fool. "This makes no sense! If you're so worried then throw it out, do you think I like what happened to me!?"
"I can't just throw it out," Minato explained.
"Why can't you, huh?" Sho said, walking closer.
"I agree with Sho," Junpei said. "Just toss it away so we can get rid of this…"
"Negative vibe," Mitsuru added. "None of us have slept properly for days. It is as if someone else is in the dorm with us."
Hamuko remained quiet, unsure of what to say.
"Do it now," Sho continued.
"I'm not doing that," Minato shook his head once more.
"You're showing weakness again," Sho said slowly. "Remember what happened last time you showed weakness?"
"The only one who showed weakness was you today," Minato shot back. "I'm not the one who got possessed and had no memory of what happened."
"DO IT!" Sho yelled. "Or should I go ahead and do it myself? Your choice."
"You come into my room and I'll throw YOU out," Minato hissed.
"Why you…" Sho growled.
"Guys calm down," Junpei said and the rest stood up because a brawl looked very likely. "M-Minato, just do what he says and-"
By that point, Minato was already up on the steps. He stopped after another yell from Sho and looked back, almost glaring at the rest. "DO NOT come into my room…." he fixed his gaze on even Hamuko, telling her to stay away. "Or else…."
"Why is he doing this….?" Ken wondered.
"Possessed, pft!" Sho blew a raspberry. "Looks who is talking…."
Hamuko was still confused. He even ordered HER to stay away. What had happened to him? Did he not even trust her now?
"Is he… alright?" Hamuko exhaled and looked at her team mates. Maybe Sho had a point….
…
"FUCK!" Minato held up the broken hammer, just the hilt in his grip and the metal scattered on the floor. Even with a dozen or so hits, the hammer gave out first and not the mask. "What on earth are you!?"
Minato picked it up and even tried biting it but had to stop as his teeth started cracking. The thing was so cursed he couldn't even put into words. His room was fucking freezing, even below the temperature outside and the oxygen was barely present now.
"Gotta keep it away," Minato chanted, widening his eyes when he saw a small smile forming on the mask. "From them and the lost…"
In the next few days, the vibe of the dorm just got worse as the creepy sounds and shadows never faded and only got worse. Nobody slept because foul odors, demonic whispers and constant clacking started as soon as the sun went down and became unbearable during the Dark Hour.
Hamuko had pleaded Minato to let her stay in his room but to her surprise, he said no and told her to sleep in her own room. That further proved that what Sho said was right, something was wrong with Minato…
Mitsuru couldn't stand the stench as the days passed on, despite having professionals clean and spray the dorm over and over again, the odor never left. Despite having brought more lights that worked in the Dark Hour, the whispering never quieted down and the shadows, those lurking shadows that she saw from the corner of her eyes never disappeared.
And now, the team felt as if their uninvited guest was slowly squeezing their throats every second they spent in the dorm.
Worst of all, the team was dividing yet again. Mitsuru was pissed, Akihiko and Junpei were pissed, Sho wanted to beat the shit out of Minato and the rest were just confused and terrified. They trusted Minato and all but they wanted an end to a nightmare. It was hard even breathing in the dorm!
Hamuko watched on helplessly as the team work, the unity and friendship they displayed began to deteriorate slowly but surely. First it was Sho arguing with Minato and then it was Mitsuru, Junpei, even Yukari because she was terrified of ghosts.
She could understand what they were feeling.
The furniture moved almost daily, the cabinets, doors and windows opened and closed all damn night and according to Yukari and Fuuka, it felt as if someone was touching them as they slept.
She also had no idea what to do with Minato. The last thing she wanted was to have a spat and argue but simple pleading was just not working and no matter what she tried, Minato told her to stay away and snapped at anyone who tried to enter his room.
To Minato, living in his room was utter hell. Unlike Sho and Hamuko, he was not really drawn to the mask but he did suffer from the negative energy which got worse day by day. Of course, he tried all he could do, drilled swords, spears, smashed hammers and rocks, punched as hard as he could, even unleashed fusion spells but the mask was unbreakable and after failed attempt, the smirk only grew.
Minato just slept on the floor, the mask in his grip because he was exhausted. Hamuko knocked and knocked and knocked but the door was locked from the inside. After a while, she gave up, kicked it in frustration before storming off.
"Why am I getting so pissed…?" Hamuko wondered, rubbing her face. In fact, everyone was getting pissed, maybe it was due to the anxiety and stress but even the cool and calm Mitsuru lashed out at the smallest things.
"I told you," Sho said as he leaned against the wall. "Slap some sense into him before I do."
"Tch," Hamuko clicked her tongue. Slap sense into Minato. He was the guy who stood up to Ryoji; the God of Death so there had to be a reason why he was being like this. There was no way he was weak enough to be under the control of the mask but…. At the same time, all the signs pointed to him and that he was indeed not the usual Minato.
And one night, one dreadful night when frost began to form in the dorm, all of the pent up tension and terror reached the limit and SEES stood at crossroads.
The dorm quake, almost as if it was going to collapse into a pile of debris and rubble. Minato landed on the floor and was aware that something was very, very wrong. He got up but as soon as he took one step forward, his desk, bed and other small belongings just exploded backwards, crashing into the wall by an invisible force. Minato stumbled back momentarily and immediately ran out of the room-
The doors to the boy's rooms were blown off their hinges as soon as he stepped out and a roar of demonic laughter followed and never stopped.
"What the fuck!?" Junpei came out, looking scared and shaken because the laughing was not stopping. Soon, Akihiko came out, looking as confused as Junpei.
"It's coming from downstairs," Sho hissed, stepping out as well-
"Why is this happening!?" Ken whimpered, obviously scared out of his mind.
"I know why," Sho spat, looking at Minato again. "You know why don't you, you selfish son of a bitch-"
"Hey!"
The females came running down the steps, stumbling as the quaking got worse. Hamuko landed on the second floor and looked around in horror because it felt like the dorm was going to collapse any second now-
"Make it stop!" Yukari screeched in horror. "I can't take this anymore!"
"Hey!" Junpei yelled at Minato. "Do something! Think about your team!"
"Screw this," Minato brushed past the rest and went down to the first floor, widening in eyes as the furniture was levitating in mid-air, shaking back and forth as if someone was swinging on it and the laughter was much louder on the first floor, as if someone was blaring into his ear-
"Holy…" Akihiko widened his eyes as he came down. Soon enough, the others came down as well and watched in stunned silence and horror as the horror show unfolded before their eyes.
The lights that worked even during the Dark Hour flickered.
The furniture kept swirling around as if it was made out of paper.
The doors, cabinets and windows slammed shut over and over again.
The whispering was now full blown, demonic laughter as if several thousand demons were laughing in unison and it was plain torture to the ears.
The sounds, screeches and the overall insanity of the situation was too much for the teenagers and now they were at the limit.
"Make this stop!" Mitsuru snapped, glaring at the blue haired fool. "Right. NOW!"
"It'll settle down," Minato said, panting slightly. "Just shut up-"
"I refuse," Yukari hissed. "Come on Minato, I can't sleep properly because I feel hands on my body every time I even try to! You can't tell me to calm down about that!"
"She's not the only one," Hamuko added.
"Hamuko…" Minato blinked. Someone was touching her too….? "Y-You…"
"She couldn't tell you because-" Sho nearly tripped down due to another earthquake but he continued. "Because you're locked up in your room like a bitch!"
"Watch your mouth-" Minato blinked and the looked at the right side, the plates, utensils and food just exploding out from the kitchen right before his eyes, as if a bomb had detonated inside the kitchen. "Shit!"
"You're not obsessed with the mask," Sho hissed. "You're the one possessed!"
"I'm not weak like you," Minato fired back, returning the glare that Sho sent him. "My name is Minato Arisato and I am aware of my actions but you weren't."
"HAHAHAHAH!" Sho cackled. "Maybe, when I saved you from the sea, I should taken out my sword and ripped your stupid face right off your shoulders!"
The pitch of the laughter turned ungodly but that little to deter the two psychopaths because Sho had touched a nerve but so did Minato. The blue haired fool took a step forward and got in Sho's face, not blinking but the look on his face reminded Sho of the countless battles that they had and it looked like another one was just around the corner.
"Why don't you rip it off right now?" Minato dared.
"Screw you," Sho hissed and shoved Minato to the side, running up the steps and towards his room-
"NO-" Minato was about to give chase but to his surprise, Akihiko, Junpei and Mitsuru grabbed onto him, holding him down. "Let go off me!"
"Just wait," Yukari said. "Let Sho destroy the mask and end this."
"You don't think I've fucking tried!?" Minato roared back. "LET GO OR ELSE!"
"Hamuko, stop him!" Yukari said but Hamuko just stood there, unsure of what to do. She took a step back and shook her head, not wanting to pick a side-
Minato powered his way out of the hold and tossed the three to the side. After that, he ran up the steps and followed Sho who was just about to enter his room.
"Stop!" Minato ordered. "As your leader, I order you to stop!"
"Fuck you," Sho snapped and ran into his room.
"Dammit," Minato widened his eyes and ran after him, ignoring the cries of his friends to stop. He flipped them the birds and bolted towards his room, finding Sho just reaching for the drawer-
"Get away!" Minato shoved Sho against the wall but the redhead came right back, grappling with his leader who easily pushed him back and ordered. "I don't want to fucking fight, stay down!"
"You're possessed!" Sho yelled in his face, pushing him back slightly. The shockwaves running through the dorm only made him more pissed and he tried harder, looking to drag Minato away from the closet and destroy the stupid mask. "Just shut your mouth!"
As soon as the others came running into the room, Minato widened his eye and sent Sho crashing into the wall. He quickly dug the mask out of the closet, dodged Akihiko and Junpei and then ran through the window, landing outside the dorm and then immediately running away-
"HAH!" Mitsuru blinked because as soon as Minato disappeared, the laughter stopped, the pressure went away and the evil energy just disappeared from the dorm, finally giving them a breather. "It's over…"
The team took in the fresh air for the first time in days but-
"It's not over," Hamuko hissed. Minato was probably suffering the consequences of the mask all alone now and as well as he she knew him; he was not going to return to the dorm. "I'm going after him. Fuck it, I trust him and not you!" she spat and ran off.
"What on earth happened to me….?" Sho rubbed his head, genuinely ashamed of what he had done. He was pissed, confused but most of all he was scared, just like he was scared or Ryoji, only worse this time but this was not his usual personality, he had changed….
"Happened to all of us…." Junpei gritted his teeth. As soon as the mask left them, the hatred and doubt, the paranoid feelings boiling inside of them left as well. They had grown paranoid of Minato, paranoid of each other too. "Dammit."
…
Minato panted and stopped when he was sure that he was several miles away from the dorm. Sighing, he removed the mask from his chest and growled at the full smirk that was mocking him.
"Damn you," Minato hissed, throwing and stomping on the mask as hard as he could but like before, it had no effect. "Ruined my life yet again…"
"Minato!"
He heard the call and quickly hid the mask behind his back because he was sure Hamuko was coming. Her voice was soft and unlike the others, he was not paranoid and was sure Hamuko followed him to calm him down and not start another fight.
Hamuko groaned because as soon as she got too close, the pressure and cold attacked her again, almost making her trip. "H-Hey, come back…" she dragged herself forward. "You're not staying out till the promised day."
"I am," Minato replied. "I'm not as affected by the mask as the rest. It sucks but I can handle it. Go back to the dorm and get some sleep because all of you need it."
"I'm sorry I didn't support you," Hamuko apologized. "That mask is something terrible, please do something and come back!"
"I've tried," Minato said. "And there is no other way, leave me and this mask alone, I'm sure if we beat Nyx, this thing will go away-"
The mask escaped his grip and Minato hissed at the burn on his hands. He quickly turned around and his eyes widened.
"Fuck no…"
The Lost and shadows were approaching from every direction and there were hundreds of them coming for the two of them and worst of all, the mask was…
Minato looked back and the mask was several yards away from his, blown away by the spell.
Hamuko stared at Minato and then at the mask….
"Get the mask-" he ordered but his enemies swarmed him and Hamuko, making the two teenagers screamed out loud as the shadows and zombies attacked because they were waiting for this moment.
…
"They're under attack!" Fuuka yelled suddenly. "Hundreds of them—"
Sho was already out the door….
…
Minato moved backwards to dodge the incoming attacks. He looked over his shoulder to see the mask still at the same place. He couldn't even ask Hamuko to get it back because he didn't forget what happened the last time she touched it.
"Tch," Minato hissed. "Hamuko, handle the shadows."
Hamuk was having trouble because not only was she without a weapon or her evoker, the shadows and the zombies swarmed on her so she could barely find the range to kick them off but she nodded and did what Minato said, keeping the shadows away so Minato could get the mask-
Minato threw a ball of flames at the shadow that was advancing towards the mask. He picked up speed and jumped forward, only to get tackled in mid-air by another shadow. Soon enough, dozens of them jumped on him and Minato cried out in pain, trying to bulldoze his way through but the countless sleepless nights and stress had left him exhausted.
"Get up!" Hamuko was knocked to the ground but she got back up.
"Do not look at the mask!" Minato ordered, finally getting up. He looked ahead and saw dozens of them charging of him and that left him no choice. He quickly summoned Orpheus and the musician slammed the lyre hard against the ground, evoking a shockwave that blew the incoming enemies far away. "Do not touch it no matter what!"
"There are so many of them," Hamuko panted. She was just as exhausted and the sudden attack made one thing very clear, the damn things were planning for this moment and struck at the best time for them. "Shit-"
Someone came rushing in and shoved Hamuko away before tearing into the shadows and reducing them to bits. Hamuko landed and looked up to see Sho panting like mad, he was tired but still ready to brawl like always.
"You," Minato hissed. "Go fuck yourself-"
"You're welcome, bitch!" Sho yelled back, going to work on his enemies. "Get it! Leave the shadows-"
BANG.
BANG.
"To us…" Mitsuru said as he pulled out her rapier and the other teens came running behind her. They were still outnumbered but things looked a lot better now. Akihiko punched the zombies and shadows off Minato and the blunet bolted, powering his way through the horde and tackling the zombie who had the mask in his grip. The two rolled around for a bit until Minato sent the rotting human flying. He quickly stood up and got slammed back down by a bunch of other shadows. He kicked them off but the mask was no longer in his grip-
"Persona!" Yukari shouted, sending a burst of green wind that struck the mask and sent it flying away from the shadows. Minato followed it and quickly ran for the landing point, jumping up to catch the mask in his grip-
A venus eagle caught the mask in mid-air and took flight-
Sho launched one of his swords towards the flying pest, reducing it to mist and the mask plummeted, caught by another zombie who tossed it as soon as Minato got close.
"Stay away from it!" Minato ordered.
"Tch!" Hamuko hissed. It was hard to battle with the thing in the same area as them but she fought back and took extra care to stay away like Minato ordered.
A wave of dread went down their spines whenever they got close and so they backed the fuck away and kept the focus on keeping the shadows and zombies away but the waves were never ending and they were numbered in the hundreds and it made sense since they were building up for this moment for days.
A torrent of wind from the shadows sent the mask flying again, crashing into the back of Junpei's head and the capped teen immediately collapsed due to the insane pressure given off.
"Oh no!" Minato ran like a bat out of hell-
Akihiko stepped up and kicked the mask in Minato's direction but yet another zombie got in the way and caught it. Minato kept his pace and ran through him, grabbing the mask and trying to stuff it inside his jacket.
"Watch out, senpai!" Ken yelled and a blizzard of spells exploded against Minato and the blunet collapsed down, losing the grip around the damn thing again. "NO!" the mask soared past numerous shadows and he got up, quickly running after-
As soon as another lost grabbed the mask, he went running for his friends, horrifying Minato because the plan was very clear now.
"Sho, watch out!" Minato screamed at the top of his lungs as Sho stumbled backwards after taking a multitude of blows. He listened to the groaning from the zombies and widened his eyes as the creep with the mask came running towards him, looking to shove the mask on his face-
Minato pulled him back, saving him from the mask. He kicked him backwards and grabbed the mask from the lost, panting hard because he was exhausted and tired from the never ending battle.
"Ugh," another horde of shadows swarmed on him and Minato held onto the mask, clutching it close until the pain was too much and he was forced to let go. "That's it!" he stood up and growled, holding his fist up.
"I don't give a crap anymore!" Minato screamed out to the skies in hatred. "Hamuko! Summon Satan right now!"
Hamuko gave up and switched her persona, clutching her evoker to her temple because there was no other way. The rest backed off and Minato switched his persona as well, ready to summon Helel and burn the pests to ashes-
BOOM.
Minato was taken off guard when the numerous shadows around him exploded simultenously, splattering gallons of ichor onto the teenagers who were blinded as the disgusting liquid splashed onto their bodies and faces, blurring their vision and senses as they desperately tried to get rid of the filth-
Minato took a step back and cleaned his face. His vision was still blurry but he could make out and sense the pressure bolting forward towards someone who looked like a human.
His heart skipped a beat.
That someone was….
...
...
...
...
Not Mitsuru.
Not Yukari.
Not Junpei.
...
...
...
...
"No..."
His heart jammed up to his throat.
"Get away..."
"Move..."
"Please..."
...
...
They did not...
...
...
...
"HAMUKO!" Minato screamed at the top of his heart-
Hamuko cleaned her eyes and froze in her tracks, barely moving her head to see something snow white flying towards her face-
She went blank.
Her memory failed her.
Her vision went dark.
And she remembered no more…
Hell was unleashed on the world the moment the mask was shoved onto her face and the evil spirit inside the mask took over her soul, making her screech out to the skies as she tried to fight back but it was of no use-
"NO!" Minato made a mad dash to save her but it was too late.
"HAMUKO!
He yelled out desperately, begging her to listen, praying to every deity his voice would reach her-
"HAMUKO!"
"Hamuko…."
"Hamu…"
A massive wave of darkness exploded from Hamuko who was floating a few feet above the ground, the mask still on her face and Minato's shouting having no effect because Hamuko was no more.
Fuuka and Mitsuru felt a massive increase in the numbers of shadows, like several thousand had magically spawned out of nowhere but along with that, they felt two horrifically powerful presences in the city and the rise of new structures.
"City…" Sho took a step back and looked around hell itself, the demon city of Iwatodai because nothing was the same anymore-
"Finally…" the new vessel to the Night Queen spoke.
The other teenagers looked on with pale faces-
Minato was shaking like never before because the mask had taken control of the last person he wanted to face. He had already lost the battle before it even began….
"No…" he whispered, not paying attention to the fact that the time for the Dark Hour several seconds past and yet it was still not over. "Please no…"
Hamuko/Nyx sighed out and looked right into his soul, smiling behind the mask because Minato was finally terrified, shaking and cowering like the mortal that he was.
"Behold the Night Queen…"
The haunting was finally over and hell had been unleashed on the world because the Gods had invaded and someone in the corner of reality, the God of Death, the unrepentant hunter of all was smiling.
Who else thought Sho was going to be the unlucky one? I tried to troll... hopefully it sorta worked a little. The two candidates were Hamuko and Sho. I thought of Sho at first but... Minato vs Sho has been done a thousand times and the charm just isn't there anymore. Anyone else... Minato would have been fine and in control so Hamuko was the only option because Minato is already done. :P Also, she's the only one (beside Sho) who can match him in personas and her getting the boost puts her above even Minato.
Ouch.
Again, this could have been the same old boring route to the promised day but that wasn't going to happen, the last month is going to be painful, who fucking knows if Minato even makes it to the promised day?
I suck at writing horror but hopefully, some of the scenes expressed the hell the team was going through and did give off the creepy and scary vibes. I've read a lot of horror novels but... I'm not good at it, very FEW people are good at writing horror. :P
I'd appreciate some reviews because dead motivation and 2018 is around the corner so... yup, do lend a hand because my co-authors don't give a shit anymore.
Kidding aside, 2018 is 2 months ago so yeah... I'm kinda nervous. Life was hard in the past month so I couldn't update at all.
I hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading. I'm rusty as shit and still suffering dizzy spells so... sorry.