"Beautiful music, isn't it?" Igor asked, gesturing at the stage below "The singer covering her ears is Belladonna, and her blindfolded companion is Nameless. And their magnificent duet is known as Aria Of The Soul. I'm sure you've heard it before". Souji coughed into his fist, taking a seat in the balcony "Yeah, it's a beautiful tune Igor-". "Beyond beautiful" Minato cut in, having a finer appreciation of music. "But we came here to talk".
Igor clasped his gloved hands together, as was common for him, and flashed the same toothy grin "Of course. I don't think either of you have come here just for the sake of visiting". Minato scratched his neck awkwardly "Well...Er...That's...".
Igor chuckled slightly in response "I'm merely joking. I felt it would be a good way to break the ice after such a lengthy time apart". Souji rolled his eyes, unamused "We're here to ask you about Erebus". Igor nodded "Indeed, I suspected as much. He is the reason the world has been thrown into such turmoil as of late". "The actions of your team, Souji, led to unforseen consequences" Margaret said, looking over at her grey-haired friend "By lifting the fog that shrouded the hearts of mankind, a great deal of humanity lost their apathy and desire for death. Erebus was severely weakened as a result, so now this is his last ditch effort to bring about the fall".
"Much like Nyx" Elizabeth began, looking over at Minato "Erebus is acting through an avatar. Originally nameless, as it saw no purpose in names, it calls itself Mr. Niall Hism now". Minato frowned "Nihlism? Really? Little on the nose, don't you think?". Elizabeth held back her laughter and continued "He was able to revive and empower Takaya and Jin, and most recently freed and empowered the murderer known as Mitsuo Kubo".
Souji grimaced, a person as unstable as Kubo should not have something as powerful as a Persona. It was like giving a wild animal god-like power. Adachi was a prime example of somebody abusing such a diverse power. "So, his plan is to bring the Fall, I get that. But how's he going to do it?" Minato asked, leaning back in his seat.
"By empowering Erebus" Igor replied "Hism will start giving Apathy Syndrome to anyone susceptible, mainly past victims of the disease, to empower Erebus again. Takaya, Jin and now Mitsuo will serve as his acolytes and do everything in their power to keep you from stopping the Fall again". Minato gritted his teeth "No. No way in Hell are they going to stop us...I died once to prevent the Fall, and I came back to stop it again. I'll be damned if some Nietzche-wannabe assholes are going to undo everything I sacrificed for, all the time I lost...". Minato cast his gaze down to the floor, thinking back on the bonds he formed in high school. People the would never know why he died, or that he was alive again.
Igor gave a heartfelt smile in response "I've always admired the resolve of you Wild Cards. You two in particular have gone above and beyond in your journeys, pushed the boundries of reality, gone beyond the impossible! Both of you have formed unbreakable bonds, overcome great tragedy and stood up to primordial deities with unblinking eyes. I have no doubt you will do so again together. In any event though..." Igor trailed off, gesturing at Elizabeth and Margret. The silver-haired sisters nodded at the same time, each raising the Persona Compendiums up.
"Once again, I welcome you Minato Arisato and you Souji Seta, as guests in the Velvet Room. You will have access to the full range of our services again, as well as a new service I will open to you when the time comes Souji". Souji raised an eyebrow at this "Wait, what was that? And why can't Minato do it?".
Igor gave his signature whimsical chuckle in response "In time, I will offer a new service to you when you are prepared. Don't worry, you will not have to wait too long". The long-nosed man looked over at Minato "As to why Minato cannot undertake this service...It is a long arduous, that will result in a massive increase in power. Due to Minato's posession of the Universe Arcana, his power would not undergo any change".
Minato opened his mouth, as if ready to make some sort of objection, but in the end he just dropped his hand and sighed "True 'nuff I suppose". Souji just rubbed his chin in thought "If this service you're offering is so useful, why can't I just get it now?". Igor drummed his fingers together, expecting that question "The new service is a sort of training. You need to experience the power you will be going up against first hand, just so you understand why you need to endure that training at all costs. You need to know that failure is not an option".
Souji was confused, as one would be, but he learned from experience that quizzing Igor never got you anywhere. Best to just go along with it for the time being. With the meeting dealt with, Minato and Souji excused themselves and went back into the real world.
"Hey..." Souji began, as he and Minato walked down the illuminated Port Island streets "What do you suppose Igor meant back there?". Minato just shrugged in response "Who knows? Almost everything that Igor says is some cryptic smoke and mirrors bullshit. 'Persona! Persona! Persona! Social Links! Social Links! Social Links!'". Minato waved his arms around in an overly dramatic fashion, pretending to be a spastic Igor.
Souji started laughing in response, earning strange looks from bystanders. Once he was done, Minato looked somewhat more serious "Hey, earlier at Hagakure you wanted to say something to me. What was it?". Souji frowned, still somewhat hesitant to ask a question that might come across as insensitive.
"Did you...Did you ever have a sister?". Minato's expression visibly darkened, and he stopped walking completely. Souji seemed to have struck a nerve, and was all but ready to run until Minato started talking "I did. Hamuko. She was only an toddler when she died in the car crash. I don't see how that matters". He crossed his arms as he said this, his voice quite quiet. Souji scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably "It's just that...Well, are you sure? Because you and Na-".
Minato cut him short "Yes, I'm sure. I was told repeatedly that I was the sole survivor of that accident. You think me and that Naoto girl are related just because of the blue-hair? It's a rarity, sure, but it's only a coincidence in this case..." Minato spoke with great haste and little emotion, clearly he wanted to get off the subject as quickly as possible. Souji frowned, not willing to give up on his hunch so easily "It's not just the hair. It's the similar facial structure you both have, the similar attitudes you've both shown. On top of all that though, there's the fact that her parents died in a car crash when she was an toddler too".
That last line caught Minato's attention "What?". Souji nodded "Yeah...What year was your sister born?" Souji asked, causing Minato to think "Let's see...I was born in '92...So, Hamuko was born in '95". Souji put a hand under his chin "Same as Naoto".Minato's eyes widened further "No way...Who the hell took her in? Why the hell would they change her name? Why would they lie to both of us?".
Souji frowned, knowing he couldn't give Minato all the answers he wanted "Her grandfather took her in. As for the other questions, I...I really couldn't tell you. Best thing you can do is talk this through with Naoto, figure everything out". Minato bit his lower lip, and his clenched fists trembled for a few moments. In the end, he just sighed and relaxed himself "Right. Yeah. Listen, thanks for telling me all this. Even if you're wrong, it's something I'll need to look into. I owe you one". Souji smiled, and placed a hand on Minato's shoulder "It's no trouble. We Wild Cards gotta' look out for each other, right?". Then, time seemed to stop for the both of them.
*CRASH*
Thou art I...And I am thou...
Thou hast established a new bond...
It brings thee closer to the truth...
Thou shalt have our blessing when creating Personas of the World Arcana
The two blinked in surprise a few times once the flow of time returned to normal, with Souji breaking the silence by asking "Uh...Did you just get that too?". Minato was equally surprised "I-I think so. Geez, feels weird when somebody else knows about it...".
Back in the day, Strega had a whole host of little foxholes scattered all around Port Island. Secluded areas that only they knew about, which contained plenty of supplies. Perfect places to go if the heat was ever turned up too high on them. And now, even ten years later, Jin had picked the locations so carefully that they were still kept a secret. Such as the one hidden near the Iwatodai train station Jin and Takaya were hiding out in now.
"And why did you think it was a good idea to bring this lout in on things?" Takaya asked, gesturing at Mitsuo who was busy examining the dried-on bloodstains on his skin. Mr. Hism clasped his gloved hands behind his back, also looking at his newest Acolyte "Strength in numbers. This one has seen Izanagi's brood firsthand, unlike you two. And as the one known as Adachi was penitent in the end, he showed his weakness. But Mitsuo...".
Mr. Hism trailed off, watching Mtuso sniff at and lick off some of the dried-on blood on his fingertips "Oh, he will prove himself as being most merciless". Takaya rolled his eyes "That's not what I meant. I wonder why you thought a deformed mental defective would be a good choice for a follower".
slowly turned his head toward Takaya, the eyeholes of his mask beginning to glow gold "You. Do. Not. Question. Me" 's normal icey voice took on a great deal more menace, and Takaya visibly flinched. Then Takaya felt white hot jets of pain pulsing through his limbs, causing him to writhe on the ground in agony. "You are a puppet to me Takaya, my plaything! Consider yourself fortunate I have left you with the delusion of self-control!". The pain Takaya was feeling now was beyond measure. Even the beatdown from Aigis last night seemed like little more than a papercut by comparison. It felt as though all his bones were being slowly broken, as if his organs were melting, as if his brain was being flayed...
And then it abruptly ended "Remember that pain Takaya. Question me again, and I will make it all too real". Takaya nodded slowly, forcing himself back onto his feet while also checking to see that he hadn't sustained any actual injuries. Jin had stood back, had wanted to help his closest friend of course, but the terror of undergoing the same pain was a pretty good deterrent. Mitsuo was seemingly oblivious to everything the had happened, more intrested in adjusting the hospital scrubs he was dressed in.
"Okay..." Takaya managed to wheeze out "Alright. I'm sorry. What's your plan? We were almost destroyed when we fought them directly last night". The lips on his mask curved into a smile "Indeed. Which is why fighting them all directly is not what we will do". Jin narrowed his eyes "What do you mean?". Mr. Hism, still smiling, clasped his gloved hands behind his back "A simple, yet effective concept. Divide and conquer".
"There you guys are!" Yukari yelled, seeing Minato and Souji re-enter the Kirijo Tower "You have any idea how rude it is to skip out on a meeting like that?". "Take note blondie" Junpei whispered to Yosuke "When Yuka-Tan gets pissed like that, it's best to just agree with her. Or run for the hills as fast as you can, either works". Yosuke snorted "Dude, I've survived Chie. And she kicks things into space. I think I can handle Yukari-san". Yosuke let out a small yelp of pain, feeling Chie pinch his earlobe "It's rude to talk about people behind their backs Yosuke" Chie grunted, which compelled Yosuke to blurt out a hushed apology.
"Sorry Yukari-san" Minato replied, his voice oozing sincerity. He could be a pretty convincing actor, too bad his teammates could see through his ruse. "We had to go get information as quick as we could, and me and Souji are the only ones who can enter the Velvet Room, so...". Yukari sighed in exasperation "I know. Still would've been nice if you guys gave a little warning beforehand...". Minato smiled, snaking an arm around her shoulder "Sorry honey, but I am a manerless ne'er-do-well ya know".
Souji coughed slightly, looking over at his team "Oh yeah, the Velvet Room is-" Teddie cut him short "Aigis already told us Sensei! You got your Personas from there, right? How come you never told us about it?". Souji quirked a brow "Uh, where did you guys think I got them before you found out?". Yukiko shrugged "Well we thought you, ya know, just made them up. Like a schizophrenic...". Souji wasn't sure if he was surprised or offended "You guys thought I was a schitzo, and you let me lead you?". Kanji scratched his face "Well...You were the best suited for the job. Nice to know you're not actually crazy though, Souji". Souji's jaw was practically hanging open "I-I don't...You guys th-...Ah, forget it, it doesn't matter. Guess that's what I get for being secretive...We did have information to give you guys".
And so Minato and Souji spent the next few minutes giving their comrades an abridged version of what Igor had told them, telling them all about Erebus and his avatar. Touching on the subject of Apathy Syndrome and mentioning some sort of training that Souji would have to go through at some point in the future.
"Well that's a bummer" Junpei added once the two had finished their story "He basically said you have to get your ass kicked in order to get that training. What a dick...". Souji rubbed his forehead "Believe me, I know. I suppose it balances out all the things he's helped me with in the past". Kasumi coughed into her fist "Much as I'd like to hear you angst, that's not what this meeting was called for. After what you just told, we know for sure what we're up against and what they're planning. So right now our efforts now should be focused o-"
Kasumi was cut short by time stopping, and all mortals turning into coffins.
"Huh. Guess we know she's not a Persona-user" Fuuka said, causing Minato to mutter "Thank you once again for you unparalleled insight, Captain Obvious". Akihiko looked over at the two mission control maidens "Fuuka, Rise, either of you sense anything?".
A powerful buzz rang through both of their minds, both of them sensing several bursts of the same malicious energy from the other night, along with the familiar Personae of Takaya and Jin. The intresting thing was, they all seemed to be coming from different areas in the city. "I'm...Sensing a large cluster of Shadows around the Port Island station..." Fuuka began "I recognise Takaya's energy, he's due west from Paulownia Mall. As for Jin he's...At a construction site near Gekkokaun High" Rise continued. "Along with that, there's a third Persona-user down at the Port Island docks". "Must be Mitsuo" Yosuke concluded, doubtful it could be anyone else. "And...Somthing else" Fuuka said "A pretty big power source, moving through the Port Island residential area. Most likely their leader".
"Alright, how're we going to divide the teams on this one?" Souji asked, looking over at the other leader. "You do know it's probably a trap? Couldn't take us all on at once, so they're going to try split us apart?". Souji smirked "That's part of the fun, isn't it?".
After several moments of hushed debate, the two leaders had decided on the proper arrangement with Minato barking the order "Alright, here's how it's going to go down. Akihiko, Junpei and Kanji, you're going off to Port Island station. Naoto, Nanako and Yosuke you can take care of Kubo. Yukari, Aigis you can handle a toady like Jin together. Mitsuru, Chie, Yukiko we're leaving Takaya to you. Teddie, you're coming with me and Souji after the big fish. Ken, Koro-chan you're hanging back here to make sure nobody jumps Rise or Fuuka".
Ken groaned, brushing several brown locks from his face "I think there's only one word for that assignment boy" Ken mumbled to Koromaru "Lame".
Minato had wanted desperately to talk to Naoto about all this. He wasn't sure what he was more afraid of, looking like a fool if he was wrong or uncovering a horrible truth if he was right. But, that would have to wait for another time in another place. There was work to be done.
"Alright, lets show these assholes who's sheriff in this town".
A/N: Sorry for those of you who were waiting on this, holiday got in the way. Anyway, keep an eye out for the next chapter which will be full of ACTION!