Persona: the Triple-A Chronicles
A suffocating darkness that no one saw...
A scaled arm hidden under the sea...
An armored justicar whose sword pierces evil...
This and many other things were the ones that marked my life in an outstanding way...
Someone once said "Time is given once, and never again." I realized sometime ago that he was wrong. In the night, time lies hidden… available only to those gifted to hunt, cursed to be hunted… This is the story of three persons, two chosen to have a dire fate, one made to have it…
Part VII : Love hurts
You have to be careful for what you wish... you may get it, and it may stab you...
Capital Federal
Buenos Aires, Argentina
June 4th/5th, Dark Hour
- I told you, it's safe now. No more monsters, see?
The boy looked around and saw the remains of the two shadows that had been chasing him, and started getting up, but he turned his eyes to our Personas, and he started shivering again.
- No, no, they won't hurt you, they are... ah, fine. Ashley?
Ashley sighed, and took her evoker. Kiros Prepared...
- Lullaby.
Kiros's red eyes shined. The guy inmediately closed his eyes, and fell to the ground.
- Ok, up we go. - I took the guy and, with some effort, carried him on my shoulder. - Ugh... is it just me, or we all wish these people wouldn't just stay frightened?
- Since you're the one who has to carry them, i think it's just you. - Said Ashley.
- Ha comma ha comma ha...
I really needed to go back to the gym. This scene was becoming too usual. Someone becomes aware of the Dark Hour, the shadows chase him, we stop the shadows, but the person remains cowering in fear, so we have to carry them. And a lot of people who worked in the company weren't exactly on their average weight...
- I really don't know if Kiros's spell is making this better, or worse. Perhaps being awake, they would hold a bit of their weight themselves... and i still don't know why can't you ask him to carry them. Doesn't he have telekinesis?
- Well, yeah, but i'm not going to ask him to do a petty task like that... didn't you say we had to respect our Personas? Why don't you ask Eargirith to help you?
- He cannot hold anything without piercing it with the scales in his arms... and he says it's good for my health to do this...
- Then listen to him. And look, we're already here.
The sixth floor was our "safe zone". Having much more space than anywhere else in the building, and much more light thanks to the many windows, it was the perfect place to carry the people we found and fend off any shadows that tried to get close to them. Amy was already here, guarding another sleeping person.
- How was it?
- Heavy. - Said i, and dropped the guy to the floor, with little care. - Did we miss anything?
- Not really. One of the little, slime-like ones came, but i didn't even need Nienna to dispatch it. - Amy gave a pat to her rifle, that was right next to her.
- Well, then we just have to wait until the hour is over. I'll look around once more, just in case... Eargirith?
Eargirith made a reverence, and his gem shined, and so did my eyes. I looked all around, but there weren't any other lights.
- All looks clear. - I sat on the floor, and put the shield down, and the enemy radar dissappeared. - It's really good that this floor is abandoned. But i wonder why aren't they using it for something else...
- Well, according to Miss Larrondo, before this building was a call center, there was some kind of shopping mall in it. And in this floor there were tons of jewelries and clothes shops. Then after a while they say that some weird dissappearances started to occur, and it happened to the women who purchased jewels here. With those rumors going around the whole neighborhood, the stores's sales dropped, and they had to sell the building...
Amy startled when she heard the dissappearances part.
- Dissappearances? You don't think...
- I thought so first. - Said Ashley - But all this Dark Hour thing started only a few years ago, and these stores closed tens of years ago...
- Maybe there were already shadows then, but they weren't so usual... or they were in another dimension, or something... - I placed my hand on my head - whatever happened, it has little to do with us now, and my head is starting to hurt with all this heavy thinking... why don't we practice a bit instead?
Ashley sat on the floor, next to one of the sleeping victims.
- Not me, thanks. I already fought those two shadows today, that's all the experience i need.
- Amy?
- Sure. I still have energies to spare.
In the days we didn't have to rescue anyone, or in some cases when we finished early, we liked to test our Personas' abilities. We had already figured out that each Persona had different powers: Nienna used fire, and had some special attacks with her sword. Eargirith had the enemy radar, the two electricity spells that i had used before, and he could also shred anything with his hands. Kiros was a particular one: It had a spell to weaken, another to slow down, a poison one and a sleep one, the "lullaby", as we called it. And so far, it hadn't shown what was under his cloak.
I placed myself in front of Amy. Since i had my shield, obviously all the attacks were directed at me.
- Ok, try something with the sword first.
- Alright. Fatal End!
Nienna lunged. I took the hit, but it didn't throw me to the ground, which was a surprise since the last two attacks i had taken from Amy did.
- Alright... either i became stronger or that was weak. Try the other one, how was it? Rave Blade?
- You should remember, it was the last thing you heard before passing out. It's Brave Blade!
Nienna jumped and made a vertical slash. Amy smiled, but i smiled too. I did remember the name, and i did remember how Nienna attacked. And most important, i had already figured a way to stop it.
In the second before Nienna's sword fell over me, Eargirith made a step forward and took hold of the shield. The attack was crushing, but with both of us taking it, it was stopped.
- Zionga.
Eargirith also smiled, and his gem shined out. The shield got covered with electricity. Electricity that passed to Nienna's sword, and from it, to Nienna herself. Nienna screamt and fell to the ground, but she inmediately stood up, and smiled as well.
Amy just stood there, looking at the scene. She finally talked.
- That... is beautiful.
- Thanks. It was really Eargirith who came up with the idea, so all credit should go to him.
Amy was still staring at us.
- You're beautiful. So pretty...
- Uh... thanks?
- I love you...
- huh?
Amy was still looking at us, as if she was looking at an angel. What was wrong with her? Amy wasn't that kind of girl... or at least that was what i had thought. I looked back.
She hadn't been looking at us. Behind us was a shadow, a... prince shadow.
It was strangely well dressed: yellow boots, black pants, a flowing wide- shoulder shirt with a heart in the middle, and a crown with a huge red gem. He also had rings, one on each hand, and each one with a gem as big as the one in its crown, except one was green and the other was blue. His hair was precisely well cut, and of a glowing, blonde color. But its face was black, with two orange firey eyes. And in his hands, it had a rapier. A rapier that was getting too close to Amy.
I barely made it in time to get my shield between Amy's throat and the shadow's weapon.
- Amy, don't just stand there! Do something!
- It's so cool... so strong...
- What's wrong with you? Ashley! A little help?
- He's so handsome... i love him...
Ashley was also sitting peacefully and looking at the shadow. That thing was trying to kill them, and they were just standing there, admiring it. I got the feeling that i had found out what had happened to the women who dissappeared all those years ago. It was some kind of... femme fatale for women.
It looked like it was just me and Eargirith to do the job. I got up. It was now my turn to attack...
- Zionga!
Eargirith's gem shined over the red one on the shadow's crown, and the lightning fell over it. But the shadow raised its right hand, and the blue gem in his ring stopped all the electricity. A wicked laugh filled the whole room. I amazed myself of the luck i had. The only shadow that i have to fight alone in three weeks, and there was the coincidence that it was inmune to electricity... just great.
The shadow lunged over, and launched a swipe with its sword. I dodged it, but it inmediately launched a second swipe, this time with the right hand. The blue gem of its ring made a crashing glass sound against my shield. I tried to get away of it, but it made a third attack: his head lunged towards mine, and though it didn't have much strenght, the red gem hit me directly in my forehead.
I fell to the ground. the gem had made a horizontal cut in my forehead, and the blood was getting in my eyes. It took me a second to realize the shadow was still coming at me.
I took my evoker. I couldn't see the shadow, but someone else could...
- Fatal End!
I heard the shadow step away, and the sound of ripping clothes. I cleaned the blood in my eyes with my sweater. The shadow had an angry face now, and the heart in his shirt was crossed by three diagonal scratches.
The shadow looked around, saw Amy, and smiled again. The green gem in its hand started to sprakle, and the sound of electricity started to be heard...
I got between Amy and the shadow, and Eargirith followed. The shadow launched a lightning very similar to Eargirith's, but it onl tickled. It looked like having an opponent who used the same attack that you did wasn't that bad after all...
The fight was taking too long. I had to get Amy and ashley back to normal. At least one of them.
- Come on, Amy, snap out of it! It's a shadow! Remember? those things that try to kill us?
- No, he's different... he loves me...
- Oh, for crying out loud!
It seemed words weren't doing any good, so i decided the desperate time called for a desperate measure. I raised my hand, and landed the strongest slap i had ever given to anyone.
Amy fell to the ground. Her eyes stopped looking towards the shadow, and she also stopped smiling. I remember praying in hopes that it had worked...
- Huh? w...what's going on? did... did you slap me?
- Man, you finally woke up! Help me stop him now!
Eargirith launched three quick slashes to the shadow, but none of them hit. The shadow then looked to Ashley, who was still charmed for it. His green gem started to sparkle again...
She was too far, i wasn't going to reach this time...
- Agilao!
A total sight for sore eyes, Nienna's hands threw two great flames directly to the shadow. It quickly caught on fire, and started shrieking loudly. Those fancy clothes apparently were very flammabble. Two minutes of shrieks later, the only thing that remained of the prince shadow was a pile of ashes, and the three gems, smoked and cracked. The fight was finally over.
I sat on the floor, and made a long sigh of relief. I took Ashley's first aid kit, and started putting a patch in my forehead while she was getting back to normal.
- Nice going, Amy... that definitely made up for all the time you were sitting half-brainwashed.
- I... i don't know what happened, i saw it behind you, and then everything became fuzzy...
- what... did we do something bad while we were like that?
- Apart from drooling a bit and not moving while a shadow was beating me up? Nah. Nothing.
- Well, i guess it's good that this was a unisex team - said ashley, and chuckled.
- Yeah... well let's just make sure it doesn't start to happen usually. Otherwise i'll force you to get boyfriends next time.
Fifteen minutes later, we opened the door at Larrondo's office.
- What happened to your forehead?
- Long story. You were saying you wanted to tell us something tonight?
- Indeed. Yesterday, professor Uehara contacted me, and said that this increase of shadow activity outside of Tokyo cannot continue unchecked. According to him, its investigation could help a great deal in discovering the reasons behind the existence of the Dark Hour, and, with some luck... in stopping it.
- So, what do we have to do? thay want us to research it, or something? - said Ashley, already looking interested.
- No, apparently that won't be necessary. They have already sent us one of their agents. He will help your team with our current search and rescue tasks, and will file information regularly to the Kijiro group.
- So he is aware of the Dark Hour? He has a Persona too?
- Well, why don't you ask him instead?
A door opened behind Larrondo's office, and through it came a rather weird person.
He seemed to be a guy af around my age, if not a bit younger. However, he definitely looked ike he had some kind of illness. His skin was very pale, and his hair, which seemed to have been blonde someday, now had almost lost its color. But he had it carefully set in a ponytail, and was very well dressed, with a light blue suit, a red shirt and well polished brown shoes. His yellow eyes were very similar to Elizabeth's, though they weren't inexpresive as hers, but full of a noticeable determination.
- Allow me to introduce you. Andy, Amy, Ashley, This is Takaya Sakaki, head of the Persona users division of the Kijiro Group. Takaya, these are Andy, Amy and Ashley. They form our Dark Hour Security here in the company.
- Pleased to meet you. - Said Takaya, and offered his hand.
- Likewise. - Said i, and we shook hands in turns with him. - I'm sure we'll get along together in no time.
- I'll look forward to it. - Said Takaya.
- End of Chapter VII -