Hey everybody! ProjectSonizard back with another chapter. This one is alot bigger than most of my other chapters so far. Please Read & Review, Critisicim welcome!
Chapter 11 – Disorientation
February 20, 2018 – Thursday [CHAS - ?, Lunchtime]
Ryo dropped to his knees, not only the new weight upon his back caused it, but also that he was back here. Time slowed down for just a second. Ryo's mind went blanked as he processed what he was seeing. He thought he heard Katsumi scream, and Takeo crying, but he wasn't sure. For some reason he could still not let go of the device in his hand. "W-Why is this happening?" Ryo thought. He shook his head violently trying to convince himself that he wasn't there, but the dry, smokey air and intense pressure contradicted that.
For a second Ryo thought he heard someone's calling out to him, but he ignored it. Until that person shook Ryo snapping him out of his spell. "Ryo! Come on, we need you!" Michio yelled trying to get Ryo's attention. Once Michio saw Ryo's eyes look at him, he sighed with relief. "Thank goodness you are alright! I thought you may have snapped... Which is understandable."
"What the hell is going on!" Katsumi shouted frantically. Takeo continued to cry while Aimi stood frozen.
"GOD DAMMIT!" Viper cursed as he punched the wall, almost breaking it into ashes, "WHY ARE WE HERE!"
Michio stepped up, "Stop! If we all calm down we can think about this more clearly!"
"WHAT'S THERE TO THINK ABOUT!," Viper screamed his response, "WE'RE GOING TO DIE HERE! THIS IS THE EXACT SAME SITUATION AS BEFORE GOD DAMMIT!"
At that moment, Takeo rose and punched Viper across the face as hard as he could. Viper fell down in pain as Takeo stood over. "STOP YELLIN'!" He shouted as he bawled.
Everyone stood quiet for a second as they tried to gather their thoughts. Ryo looked around on last time to confirm the situation. The sky was crimson red now with no clouds in sight. Class 2 – C looked as if it was resting on top of a broken support beam disconnected from the rest of the school building. Everything around them was burned and charred with numbers slowly floating from ruins like last time. The air was still dusty and he could smell a fire somewhere. Aimi eventually spoke up which surprised everyone, "W-We need to find some way out."
"Oh yeah, like we could just do that!" Katsumi retorted in her usual snobby tone.
"Let us stop and think," Michio began, "How did we get back last time?" Everyone thought for a moment.
"We killed that thing." Ryo stated, trying to help out now; his mentality may have been weak, but he would do anything to get back home.
"Right, so maybe we are here for a reason, like to do something similar." Michio paced about frantically. The classroom was now empty, except with broken pieces of desks strewn about. Ryo gazed up at the planet as it seemed to approach closer and closer. He could look at the sky because the roof of the classroom was missing and pieces of it could be found in the corners. Inspecting the planet closer, he felt like he'd seen it before.
"Michio," Ryo called which made the scholar stop and look, "do you know what planet that is in the sky?"
Everyone looked up at the object Ryo spoke of. Michio swallowed hard but slowly started, "I-It looks like... Mercury maybe? If I recall, Mercury looks like a moon because of all the craters on it." Ryo now noticed the vast numbers of craters on it. "Why do you want to know, Ryo-kun?"
Ryo thought for a second, "Just wondering I guess... I felt like I knew it."
"Ah enough with this mierda," Viper cut in, his eye was now black thanks to Takeo's punch, "We can't stand around like this anymore. We need to do something to get us out."
"Alright, how about we send out some... expedition?" Aimi offered. "Like... Bro, Michio, and Viper can go; Takeo you can stay with Katsumi-chan and I so we can look around for supplies if we have to stay here for a while."
"No way chica, I'm not going out there!" Viper replied.
"Listen Viper, we want to leave as much as you do, so you gotta-" Katsumi said as her voice slowly rose.
"That's okay," Takeo interrupted, "I wanna go with 'em." The tears on Takeo's face continued to stream but he wasn't ready to give up. "I wanna make sure Sensei is okay."
"Takeo-kun... Are you sure about this? We do not know if we will come across more of those monsters." Michio questioned carefully.
In response, Takeo went to the corner and held up a large piece of concrete that would be too much for anyone but him. "I'm sure!"
Michio looked at Ryo who nodded back at him. "Alright, but be careful okay?" Michio looked around and picked up a long, rusty pipe from the open hole in the class that revealed plumbing underneath. Ryo got a piece of sharp metal from a broken desk; it would not cut his palm due to it being smoother near the end.
Before they left, Aimi ran up to Ryo and hugged him. "Bro, please... Come back safe..." She whispered.
Ryo broke the embrace but gave a rare smile to his sister, "I promise." With that the three friends opened the charred door to the rest of the school building and left.
From the classroom was a long purplish hallway that was dimly lit by lights that were barely being held up by very thin cables. It all seemed very dream-like, the walls were elongated and the groups vision was cut of by some kind of smog. Ryo was surprised, this school was quite the contraste from the consistent fiery ruins he's seen up until now. The pressure and thick air still remained however making the near impossible. As the three pushed on, the discovered that the hallways of their school building somehow redesigned themselves to become more labyrinth-like. Lockers have been knocked down, doors to other room were sideways or upside-down, and the floor was a mess with broken tile pieces.
While exploring, Takeo stopped for a second, "Do you hear that?" The others paused as well.
"Hear what, Takeo?" Michio questioned. Takeo hushed Michio as the three began to listen. Other than the flickering lights, nothing could be heard...
"Wait," Ryo thought, "What was that?" He thought he heard it a very faint banging and rattling could be heard far off. "I think I hear it." Ryo said to the group.
"So do I. It sounded like it came from over here." Michio explained as he continued on. As they walked, the sounds got louder and louder. Nearing the source, Michio stopped and turned around after contemplating, "What if it is one of those monsters?"
Ryo stopped. He hadn't thought about that before. Images of that night flashed in his mind once again. He reached in his pocket for the device that brought them here. Could he summon Charon again? Does he even want to? The sensation, but with it came pain he remembered. "Let me lead." Ryo offered. The others looked at him funny; Ryo always knew he wasn't the strongest person, in fact he's actually incredibly skinny, but he knew that he could fend off the monsters better than anyone else. "If those things are there, I can take 'em with this." He pulled out his device to show.
Takeo grumbled something, but nodded. Michio looked around hesitantly. Ryo brushed past the two before they rounded a corner revealing the source of the sound. All that was down the hallway were more toppled lockers and an up-right door which had a plaque that read 'Janitor's Closet'.
The banging came from inside of there along with small yells. "HELP!" A voice screamed. The three ran forward answering the pleas. "Oh thank god someone's here! Please, get me out!"
"Just wait 'ta second, we'll get this door open." Takeo said who first tried the doorknob, but found it to be stuck. He then started to tackle it with his shoulder; ordinary wood door was somehow be made of steel now.
As Takeo continued his assault, Michio began to talk to the person inside. "H-How did this happen?"
"T-There was this flash of light and e-everyone just disappeared! I-I got so scared so I ran in here to hide cuz I saw these things down the hall, but the door locked itself!" The person explained.
Michio paused, "Has this happened to you before?"
"Y-Yes! The first time, there was this loud booming voice, and an explosion. I thought a nuke hit the town or somethin'!"
"Listen no nuke hit obviously, and we are going to get you out, okay? My name is Michio Shimizu, and the one banging on the door is Takeo Kimura, and there is also Ryo Fujihara. What is your name?"
"I-I know you guys! You're those chitsus from the other day!"
"Chitsu?" Ryo repeated. "Are you Isao? The one who gave me 300 yen?"
"Y-Yeah, what about it?" Isao replied, "J-Just get me out of here!"
Takeo collapsed after five minutes of giving it his all. "N-No good Sensei; the door isn't going 'nywhere!" he panted heavily and grasped his shoulder which was in extreme pain.
"That is fine Takeo-kun, just stay here and rest, Ryo and I will go to the faculty office to get the janitor's keys and we will come right back!" Michio said sympathetically and then looked at Ryo, "We have to hurry, I know the faculty office is on the first floor."
The two ran off looking for a stairwell of some kind. After a minute, they found a giant hole in the ground with a pile of rubble, conveniently creating steps. When they descended, the two noticed how much easier to navigate on this floor than the previous one. Not a minute had passed before they found an up-side down door labeled 'Faculty Office'. Ryo tried to open it but the door refused to open. "Dammit, jammed!" Ryo cursed.
"Shit, we have to think of something; those monsters Isao saw could be anywhere!" Michio looked around trying desperately to think of a plan. Ryo knocked on the door, and unlike the other door which made a metallic sound, this one actually sounded like wood.
Something occurred to Ryo, within a second he raised the piece of metal he had held and struck the door. It sliced through the door easily. Ryo then pulled it out and kicked in the door, breaking it. Michio looked awe-struck, "H-How did you do that?"
"...I just did, now come on!" Ryo replied. They rushed in and checked multiple toppled desks, sometimes breaking them open. "Guh, no luck. How about you?"
"Nothing over here." Michio called from the other end of the room. Unnoticed, a shadowy figure lurked along them. It stayed in the corner stalking it's prey as they searched the room. Michio was busy near that end when he opened a draw to find a lone set of keys accompanied by several piles of ashes, presumably papers. "I found them!" He rose triumphantly, his back was turned. This was the chance. It struck.
Ryo had only just noticed the figured now, but it was too late. It grappled Michio's back and started to claw at him. The figure was another black, humanoid figure, except it wasn't drenched with sludge. This time it appeared dressed with a fine fabric of some kind. Almost like a suit, but much more demonic. Its body seemed infused with the fabric which showed a very bland pattern of lines and circles. Near its head, the fabric connected to a golden ring locked around its neck. The mask it wore was also different. This time it was blue with two big, round eye holes. It was almost completely flat except for a long nose that slightly protruded out. It had an open mouth and the Roman numeral for one on its forehead.
The creature tore Michio's uniform and sliced deep wounds as it clawed. All that could be heard were Michio's agonizing cries. Ryo rushed forward and sliced through the creature with his sharp blade. It lurched away and made a blood-curdling screech, nearly shattering the eardrums of the two. Within mere seconds several creatures erupted from the walls, surrounding them. They all looked exactly like the first one, with their blue masks and gangly bodies.
Ryo realized the only thing that could save them. He quickly reached down in his pocket for the device. His hand shook violently as he raised it. "Why? Why do I have to use this again? I-I..." Ryo's thought was cut off by Michio who began to stand.
"Don't worry, I have your back." Michio said. He held up his weapon and looked at Ryo
Ryo was surprised but could see the determination in his eyes. They were in this together. Ryo extended the device, held down the button, and slid it through the air. The light green line of numbers, almost transparent, appeared one again. He released the button and the stream shattered, creating shards of glass in its wake. A blue light arose around Ryo. Out from his shadow came the beetle-like figure Charon. Ryo's eyes became bloodshot, and he could hear a massive ringing in his ears. The burning-up sensation.
Ryo screamed but he wasn't deterred. He rushed in, Charon in toe. They swung around madly, destroying the shadowy beings one after the other. Michio ran in as well, stabbing a creature in the heart. Unfortunately, he had no effect and it just ripped the pipe out of its body.
Michio panicked, he tried to punch one of the beasts, but to no avail. It grabbed his arm as the other pounced. Ryo looked over and saw Michio. "NO!" He screamed as he raced over.
Life just stopped. Michio's heart seized. "This is it..." He thought, "This is my end. Dying like Hikari to a pack ravenous monsters..." His life flashed before his eyes. All the feelings, accomplishments, and disappointments came flooding back.
Life then continued. The creatures now piled on Michio, but a ray of blue light enveloped them all. The creatures instantly disintegrated into black dust that drifted off. Charon finally looked over as well to witness the spectacle. In the light, Michio got up and held out his own device. It looked almost identical to Ryo's except it was smoother and it looked as if all the different attachment's on Ryo's were neatly under a blue piece of coating. The buttons seemed smoother and it fitted into Michio's palm perfectly, unlike Ryo who constantly had trouble holding his in one hand.
Michio held down a button on the side of his device and waved it in front of himself. Instead of Ryo, who just made a straight horizontal line, Michio made is line almost as if he was writing his name in mid-air. The motions were extremely fast; before anyone could notice, a word made of numbers and algorithms hung in the air. And just like that, it shattered into glass shards. A stronger blue light shined once again, except this time a figure faded into reality.
The figure was sitting like he was meditating. It wore a garb that resembles that of a monk's and rosary beads around its neck. The actual body seemed... Robotic. It was made up of several different metallic parts that clung together. It had a head, but no facial features except a nose and the kanji for 'Mind'. In one hand it held a lotus flower delicately.
A clear and serene voice echoed, "No longer shall you travel down the path of strife alone, for I am Sakyamuni, the wise."
"Now! Sakyamuni!" Michio commanded, and in response, Sakyamuni carefully rose his lotus flower and water suddenly erupted out of nowhere. It rushed past the remaining creatures, destroying most of them and knocking down the rest. Ryo took his chance; he screamed and Charon roared in sync releasing a wave of purple energy, vanquishing more of them.
Michio and Ryo's eyes locked, "This is our chance to go all-out!" The scholar commented.
"Let's do this." Ryo ordered smoothly. The next second, the two along their Personas, dog-piled the enemies, slashing jabbing whatever they could. A giant cloud of dust was kicked up during this action and nothing could be seen during their rampage, only the sounds of metal piercing skin and the cries of the creatures Soon, one by one they fell and Charon and Sakyamuni finished it off with an explosion caused by a collision the two had. When the dust finally settled, nothing remained except for the two 'prey'.
Both manifestations soon receded into nothingness after wards. Ryo was about to collapse from exhaustion when Michio caught him. "Whoa, come on Ryo, we still have to get these keys back to Isao before more monsters show up."
Ryo slowly nodded, "Alright, but how come you aren't tired?"
"... I do not know, in fact, I feel a hundred times better!" Michio answered
Ryo took a moment to process this. "Okay, let's get going then." He said weakly. The two ran back toward Isao and Takeo, trying desperately to find the stairs. When they reach the second floor, a loud wail echoed through the hallways. "That was Aimi!"
"Damn, we have to be fast!" Michio said. Once they reached the closet, Michio immediately tried the keys.
"Yes, you found it! But you guys were gone for a while..." Takeo grieved, "And there have been some screams 'n stuff..."
"No time to explain Takeo-kun," Michio replied finally finding the necessary key. The door unlocked and swung open. From it fell a curly red-haired student gasping for air. He coughed once or twice as he got up and looked at his saviors.
"Ohmygod, thank you guys soooooo much!" Isao said quickly, "If you guys EVER need anything, I'm your man!"
"That's great, but we need to get going!" Ryo interrupted.
"Of course!" Isao agreed happily. The new party of four made their way back to Class 2 – C as fast as they could. Ryo was the first to reach the door and slammed on it when it wouldn't open.
"GOD DAMMIT, LET ME IN!" Ryo commanded at the top of his lungs, startling everyone. To his surprise shuffling could be heard from behind the door. Soon, Viper opened the door with a relieved expression.
"Oh thank god you came! Get in here!" Viper pulled Ryo into an even more destroyed classroom. It almost resembled the faculty office when him and Michio left.
"W-What happened?" Ryo asked, his voice shaking.
"T-There were these... God damn! Your hermana killed these monsters that broke through the floor!" Viper spat out in a mixture of shame guilt, "I-I tried to take them out, b-but one nearly took off my arm!"
"Where is she!" Ryo demanded as he gripped Viper's collar, the punk weakly pointed to the corner where a teen in fetal position was.
Just now, the rest of the group entered the classroom, shocked by what they found. "Viper, what happened!" Michio asked sternly.
Ryo didn't pay much attention to them though, but he focused on his sister. There she lay, in the corner with her arms around her knees, sobbing very lightly. Her brown locks of hair were a mess and her eyes once again seemed emotionless.
"She did that thing you did... With the monster..." A voice said from behind Ryo. He turned around and saw Katsumi who looked bruised and battered. "If it weren't for her I'd be dead..."
Ryo looked back down, he now saw it. The device. Gripped firmly in her hand was the very device that him and Michio used to summon their Personas. Tears now fell from Ryo's eyes. "Why? Why does my little sister have to be involved in this?" Ryo thought.
Raptured CHAS: Palmtree Panic Zone - Bad Future (Sonic CD JPN)
Fight Scene: Green Forest (Sonic Adventure 2, Just stating this again incase anyone forgot)
No reviews last time, but please keep reading. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.