FOUR – EPISODE COUNTERWEIGHT

"Sir, I'm uncomfortable with the recent turn of..." started a young man. He was silenced by his superior- a bald, badly aged man easily in his seventies. The office they reside in was nondescript, fluorescent lights and beige walls- urban camouflage. They quickly made their way into a rarely used office- one that was already occupied by a number of other, equally nervous individuals.

"Checked for bugs?" said the elder man through clenched teeth.

"Yes, Toshioya-sama. We should be in the clear- the Kirijos aren't listening in."

"Good. Now, how the hell did they catch up?"

"Sir," interjected the aide. "I still don't understand- why are we in a panic so soon? Tetsuya Juno's one man, the former SEES members combined couldn't stand up to the Messiah-"

"Goddamn newbies," growled a burly man across the conference table. "Don't understand a thing at all. We spent the last five years making damn sure that when we did split, it would be far too late for the Junos to interfere. And we did it for a reason! In less than a day, he's gotten the alliance of the Kirijo Group. He forced Takaya to show weakness to the cult's initiates! He's an unknown factor, an unpredictable trickster, and I've worked under his family for far too long to make the same mistake as all of their prior victims!"

"Are you so much in fear of this one man?" purred a new voice from the shadows. A cheshire's cat's leering grin gleamed out of the shadows.

"Since when were you here?" demanded Toshioya.

"I... am of the shadows," said Takaya. "Are you saying you aren't pleased to see me?"

"N-no, no, my apologies, Shepherd. But we are concerned about the latest developments. Our deal was that the Juno family would not-"

"Ah-ah," interrupted Takaya. "Our deal, Toshioya... was to bring about the demise of humankind. Or, in your own words, our 'ascension'. That will still occur... regardless of whom may stand before us. The ten years of... unnatural peace... has only bolstered Nyx's resolve and power. Nothing human... nothing human at all... can prevent Her coming. Two weeks, gentleman... until the end of the world..."

Like an illusion of sunlight, dust and darkness, his presence dissipated, leaving only the mocking trace of laughter.

"Yes? Yes? Okay, you done yelling? How's your hangover? ...are you done yelling now? Great, thanks." Tetsuya sighed and tossed the burnt remnants of his coat into the trash. He popped the hotel room's minifridge open and grabbed a beer. "Look, we're still alive. That trick's never failed me before, has it? ...ruined what remained of my coat, though. Anyhow, overall, I'd say even the aborted ambush was beneficial for our cause."

"Beneficial?!" yelled Alex over the phone. "How the hell does getting your ass kicked all over Tartarus count as 'beneficial'?!"

"Well, for one, we now have a fair estimate of the modifications they've done on Arisato's clone."

"...oooh, I see where you're going with this. That is something."

"We also see the limits of their modifications. Takaya might've been able to weather the ravages of those drugs a hell of a lot longer than anybody else, but even with healing magics..."

"Yeah, I got the footages. Fits his pattern and obsession with death. Going out with a bang seems like his M.O. Now, what about the other project...?"

Tetsuya shook his head. "Nah, I've been trying all the avenues I can think of since you booted me into Japan, bro. According to our records, the Velvet Room itself chooses who can enter- if Igor doesn't deem me worthy, there isn't anything I can do."

"That is entirely too inconvenient. But I won't fret too much. He plays the game at a much higher level than even ourselves- against an opposition we've only gotten hints about the last few centuries."

"Right, odds are he already picked out his pawn for this round."

Thud. Thud-thud. Heavy slams, reverberating across the empty gym. Fists and arms toned with decades of hard labor and careful conditioning. Akihiko Sanada- once a fighter, always a fighter.

"You have been doing quite well for yourself," said Mitsuru as she handed him a bottle of water. "I was impressed by your last match."

"You were watching?" asked Akihiko. "Thanks, I appreciate it. Got a black eye in that one, though."

"Yes, well, I saw what happened to the other guy."

"Heh. Hey, do you really trust this guy?"

Mitsuru shook her head. "Not at all. But he is the best-informed of us. For now."

Akihiko nodded. "Reasonable. So, what do you think we need to do?"

Mitsuru pondered. "The key is Arisato-san. Tetsuya mentioned them using a 'soul cage' to emulate his abilities... but didn't it seem odd?"

"You mean about how powerful he was?" Akihiko nodded. "I almost hate to admit it, but he was the most competent fighter amongst us all. But not by that much. We couldn't even lay a blow on him last night."

"This 'soul cage...' when the Kirijos worked on the anti-shadow humanoid weapons project, emulating a human mind was by far the most difficult aspect of the project. The slightest change..."

"Eh, I wouldn't know about that," said Akihiko. "...hey, you alright?"

Mitsuru stifled a yawn. "Didn't sleep well. Odd dreams. The group's meeting at the shrine in an hour to discuss our plans."

"I'll be there."

Thunder wracked the gym.

"Ken-chan!"

"Woof!"

"Yumi-chan, Koro-chan!" exclaimed Ken as he parked his scooter. "Hey, boy. Here, a treat from Aigis-san."

"Aw, the dog gets a treat and not me?" pouted Yumi, dressed in a short skirt and hooded sweater. Her ponytail bounced as she leaned in on Ken.

"No, of course not, come here."

"Mmm... better," she breathed as they broke the kiss. "How's your guardian doing?"

"Oh, Sanada-san's the same as always," replied Ken as he locked the scooter. "Actually, I'm meeting up with him in a few minutes- just wanted to drop by and tell you I might be busy for a while."

"What, again?" protested Yumi. "But last year you said it was only a two, three day event."

"Ahh... issues turned up," said Ken shiftily. "It... um, you remember what I told you about Arisato-san? Um... did I mention it was foul play, in a way?"

"...this isn't going to involve the police, is it?"

Ken shook his head.

"The government?"

Shook harder.

"The Kirijo Group?!"

Ken nodded vigorously.

Yumi rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright. Hold back the details if you must. Just... Ken?" She kissed him lightly. "Come back as soon as you can, alright?"

"Nothing in the world can stop me."

"Dude, you look half-dead," noted Yukari as she tossed Junpei a can of coffee.

"Oh, thanks Yuka-tan,"mumbled Junpei as he popped it open. "Sorry, didn't sleep well last night. Kinda glad it's spring break- no students to deal with right now."

"Mm? Thought you liked your job." Yukari smoothed down her skirt and sat next to him.

"Oh, well, yeah. Being a gym teacher's actually a pretty good gig, compared to my last few jobs," said Junpei. "Heh, sounds weird coming from me, eh? I even skipped gym in high school."

"Eh, you stopped doing so after... er..."

"Chidori? Yeah, you're right." Junpei slugged back the rest of the drink. "Then we lost both Ryoji and Minato, and I spent another few years moping around. Man, Chidori spent a year or two yelling at me in my dreams"

"Sh-she- your dreams?"

Junpei smiled wistfully. "Yeah, sounds a bit crazy, I know."

"...that's incredibly romantic, actually."

"Heh, I guess so. So what've you been up to?"

Yukari shrugged. "Just the usual office work. Working on a novel on and off, but..."

"Oh? A novel?" Junpei blinked in surprise. "Didn't know you were the literary sort, Yuka-tan."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean? Oh, everybody's here."

"Hey Junpei-kun. Hey Yukari," said Fuuka. "Sorry I'm late- had to do some paperwork at the college. Where's everybody else?"

"Akihiko, Aigis and Mitsuru are making an offering at the shrine," said Yukari. "Ken's giving Koromaru a walk. We're... leaving Juno-san out of this meeting."

"Oh? Why?"

It was Yukari's turn to blink in surprise. "Why? B-but he's untrustworthy!"

Fuuka shook her head. "He got us out alive."

"He attacked us!"

"I'm not sure about that..." Fuuka looked up thoughtfully. "Nobody actually sustained any injuries outside of minor abrasions, right?"

"W-well, I guess not. I didn't do much healing until after..."

"I did invite Juno-san for the meeting," said Mitsuru as she walked up. "However, he won't be showing up for another hour. He knows why."

"Good afternoon, Mitsuru-san."

"Good afternoon, Fuuka. Yukari, I understand your hesitation to trust him- I share it. The remnants of the Juno Group is currently lead not by one but two mavericks, and we've only gotten a glimpse of Tetsuya's agenda. What his brother is planning, I've yet to figure out."

"Ken," said Akihiko. "Get over here, we're starting. Anyhow, the way Mitsuru and I figured it, there's only two real ways to handle this: Nyx or Minato. But, really, there's only one way. We can do what we did last time, and beat the Appriser, but that wasn't all there was to it."

"We do not have anybody with Minato's ability," confirmed Aigis. "Nobody is even sure what Minato did... only that he paid a heavy price for it."

"Right. So the only choice is to kill him."

Uncomfortable silence. Junpei coughed.

"Um... I'm not sure how to put this, but..."

Mitsuru shook her head. "I know, Iori-san. We've fought shadows, but we've never actually killed anybody. Even with Strega... Jin took his own life. Actually, even if we did have a chance at stopping Nyx again, Tartarus is going to be guarded by a whole lot more than Shadows this time. I'm afraid we're in a bit of a fix."

"Well, hell, there's got to be something we can do!" protested Junpei. "We saved the world once, didn't we? There's got to be another way!"

Mitsuru nodded. "I'm sure there is. Which is why I'm forced to ask all of you if you're willing to follow Juno-san's orders."

"...I think I lost you on that sharp right turn."

"It's simple, Iori. We've run out of options. I can't mobilize the Kirijo Group's resources- less than a percent of our... defensive capabilities are attuned to the Dark Hour, while our enemy has at least those available that we saw during the skirmish."

"Okay... but what does that have to do with Tetsuya?"

"He... outlined a plan of attack to me after last night. It..." Mitsuru looked uncomfortable. "It steps on a few ethical issues, certainly. The plan is to..."

Tetsuya pushed his shades up closer to his face. It was a sunny day, but the air still crackled with the chill of a prior rain. His phone rang.

"Yo, bro. On my way to the SEES meeting."

"You sure they'll agree to it?"

"All other avenues are closed, aren't they? The ambush failed- the only thing left to do is this."

"Still, they are very fond of him. This may be stepping over a line."

"No such thing as lines. Only shades of gray. You taught me that, Alex."

"Heh, alright, point made. Talk to you soon."

Tetsuya pocketed his cellphone, and slipped off the shades. He gave the SEES member a bemused grin, and was greeted by a mix of anger and reluctance.

"This is your idea?" asked Ken angrily.

Tetsuya shook his head. "My brother's. But I chose to be the one to relay it to you. We have the equipment ready, as well as the sample. This is the surest way we have to counter their ambitions."

"And if it works?" asked Aigis. "What happens afterwards?"

"Then Minato Arisato dies for the world he loved. Again."