"Nothing ventured, nothing gained" - Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales
Chapter 3: The Child I
Theo stood at a foot of a large, imposing archway in the middle of the wasteland.
"Technically," Anima corrected, "it's a gateway."
"I believe the Japanese called them torii, Theo," Animus finished
"You two finish each other's sentences a lot," Theo pointed out.
"Well of course," Anima began.
"We're facets of your mind and soul, we're pretty much connected to each other," Animus continued.
"It's a shame you can't be connected to us-"
"-You know, because of the denial thing."
Theo sighed. "Alright, alright, I messed up, I know, now tell me why I'm here instead of kicking my Shadow's ass."
"Easy," Anima said. "We're going to train you."
"WHAT?" Theo was shocked. "That could take days! Weeks! What the fuck happens to my physical body?"
"Oh don't worry about that," Anima said, trying to calm down Theo. "Time slows down to a crawl when you're in here.'
"Yep," Animus explained. "In your mind, what could be days and weeks, possibly even months and years could be like five minutes in reality."
"Besides," Anima pointed out, "You were out like a log for a few hours. You'd think people would be worried that you would be knocked out for a while."
"Well I don't like it," Theo huffed. "I want to beat him now for trying to kill me."
Animus raised an eyebrow. "So you're telling us-"
"-That you expect to fight your Shadow-" Anima continued.
"-Who, for the record, nearly killed you-"
"-Unarmed and unprepared?"
Theo stared at them. "Well... if you put it that way... no."
"Good." Animus smiled.
"Didn't expect you both to be my senses of self-preservation, though."
Animus chuckled. 'You'll be surprised."
Theo huffed out of jest. "So why is there a gate here?"
Anima answered. "The gate is a link to the rest of the collective unconscious."
"You mean the rest of my mind?"
"No," Animus said. "We mean, the literal collective unconscious. The gate links your mind with the rest of the world."
"So wait, to get stronger, I leave my mind to enter someone elses?" Theo asked, sounding worried for his own mind.
"In a way, yes. But remember: you only wake up once your mind is fixed. To do that, you defeat your Shadow, which cannot leave your mind at all."
"You guys can."
"Well, yes, but we're the Animii. We are what makes you think. That gives us a bit more freedom. Now, I believe we have wasted enough objective time. Through the gate, Anima?"
"Why of course Animus, now then, Theo?"
Theo breathed in deep. "Yeah. I'm good."
They went through the gate, vanishing in midair as they were transported into God-knows-where.
The gate teleported in front of a French street, the trio appearing soon afterwards.
"So where are we?" Theo asked.
"We're in another person's mind, it seems," Anima answered.
"Good. Now then," Animus announced, "Let's get down to business. Theo, I'm pretty sure by now you'll expect the way to be dangerous."
"Of course, why wouldn't I?"
"Well, we have to give you weapons. Or can you kill them with your bare fists?"
"Wait, what am I killing?"
"Shadows."
The three were silent for a few minutes.
"...Shadows...?"
"Yes," Anima said. "Well, not like your Shadow-"
"-That would be suicide, obviously."
"What we mean are the 'minor' Shadows. Instead of one person, these Shadows are from the collective unconscious of humanity. As such, they can't really be gone forever, unless humanity is firmly positive in their collective thoughts."
Theo sighed with resignation. "So basically I'm an exterminator?"
Anima smiled. "Yes! But, you know, more deadly."
"However, there's still the danger of a major Shadow appearing. Your rejection of your Shadow means that the minor Shadows will clump together to form a major one. If that happens... accept it. Do NOT make the same mistake. Major Shadows may be weaker than your original, but they are still a threat."
Theo nodded. "Okay. So Animus, what are my weapons?"
Animus stepped forward and produced something out of his pocket. "Actually, it's more of 'weapon', in the singular. Here," he said, placing the object in Theo's hands."
Theo stared at the object. It was a black retractable pen, with the word "Arcana" engraved in goldcon the side. He held it up and shook it in front of the two. "This is a pen. This is a pen. What the hell is a pen going to do?"
Animus grinned. "Click it."
Theo did so, and the transformation was immediate. The pen did not eject out a pen; it instead enveloped his hand to become something more useful, and far more deadly.
"This... what is this?"
The amorphous blob which used to be a pen continued to envelope his entire arm, steadily growing bigger and bigger until it covered his right shoulder. It further enveloped until it became a gauntlet on his right arm.
"It's your weapon." Animus said. "Your mind made it possible. Fractured as it is, you yourself are still functioning."
"That's why you have to fix your mind," Anima explained, "By defeating and accepting your Shadow. The wasteland that is your mind is still somewhat intact. If it was truly fractured, you wouldn't be here by now."
Theo looked at the both of them. "Hey, thanks. Let's go kick some Shadow ass then!"
Anima stared at him. "Oh! Oh no, YOU'RE going alone."
Theo was surprised. "Why am I going alone?"
"You're training," Animus said. "It would be somewhat unfair if we helped."
"And we want to see your potential. There's power within you yet."
Theo nodded. "Yep. Yes there is."
"Wait!" Anima stopped him. "Before you go, here's my contribution."
Anima held out a small earpiece. "We need to communicate while you're in there. If things get too tough we go in to get you."
"Thanks," Theo said. "Hope you don't need to."
"Well what are you waiting for? A trumpet? Go already!"
Theo simply smiled and went down the road. Suddenly, he heard a crack in the air, and time seemed to stop.
Thou hast forged a new path with the psyche...
Thou has discovered the journey...
Journey, Rank 1: Fool
AN: Fun fact: I was originally going to put Yukiko's Castle here to link this and Persona 4. But then I wanted to be more original. Still, I don't want to head over to completely AU, just no.
I own Anima, Animus and Theo. The Persona series and my tears on which they get off on is owned by the Atlus.
