Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or any content from the Megami Tensei series as a whole. I do not claim to own anything. All contents' right belong to their respectful owners. Once again, I do not claim to own anything.
SLIGHT FILLER AND SHOE-HORNED CHAPTER AHEAD! On the note after last chapter, I'm hoping this one turns out better. Now, I know, I've been tiptoeing around the concept of the Personas talking to the users and how they're each other and shit, like how Naoya could feel the wind like Seimen Kongo controlled it, I derive most of the Persona characteristics from Stands from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, which I could argue Atlus ripped-off, but that's besides the point, I rushed the last chapter which is why I shouldn't give myself a deadline, but at the same time if I don't, I wouldn't get anything done. So, I'm sure by the time this goes up there might be confusion, I'll get to the explanation of the implication of the Personas having a voice and the whole speaking and listen later, like Chapter 20, just bare with my fan-non for now, just like the insertion of the Alignments, the Ssuling, and two or three more upcoming demons that is a plot device I used for the novelization. For those who've played the game, they know the boss that's in this chapter is not in the actual game, just consider it major foreshadowing for the next novelization. Though for those who check my profile would know already that I'm planning on doing novelizations of Persona 2: Innocent Sin and Persona 3 and Persona 4, a quadrilogy of novelizations for the site. With that aside, welcome to Persona: Be Your True Mind Chapter Fourteen.
Chapter Fourteen: Black Market Part 2: Norn
Kei saw the mess Chisato called a painting before his eyes. The smell of urine and alcohol passed his nostrils. "We've been sent back to Peace Diner…with Todo at Chisato's mercy. She's clever, isolate us from our leader and she'd have us fall apart. I will not allow it."
The smoking-jacket, cigar smoking man clapped. "That was fast! I was betting on at least an hour!"
Maki was curled up into a ball, her knees to her chest, sobbing. "Chisato…Naoya…"
Masao burst in anger, kicking the wall heavily. "Shit! Shit! SHIT!" He chucked the duffel bag of ammo to the ground. "Chisato…we can't leave Nao alone with her."
Eriko agreed, checking to see if Brown and Ayase were conscious. They both were sprawled across each other on the floor of Peace Diner.
"Sonomura has broken down. Masao is taking his rage out on the environment. Uesugi and Ayase are unconscious. Kirishima is watching over them. Kido is leaning against the wall. Yukino! Where's Yukino?"
Yukino rose from up behind Kei, startling him. "Wow, Chisato has become a real bitch with that mirror."
"Uh, yes…I agree." Kei stammered.
"She has Nao-kun…" Maki feebly said.
"We have to get him back!" Masao burst. "We have no idea what she could be doing to him right now!"
"If we want to do something, we shouldn't be standing, flapping our gums." Reiji stated. "If we want to rescue the punk and take care of that bitch, we need to hurry back down there."
"Kido has a point." Kei said, instructing Eriko and Masao to carry Ayase and Brown on their backs while Yukino was to take on the duffel bag again. "Running in half-cocked isn't necessarily the most superb idea. Add to the fact the Kama Palace has most likely been changed as Igor stated. Also added to the fact that Todo was the one who aimed us in the proper direction the first run-through. We'll need to use every fiber of our brains and intellect to guide ourselves to Chisato's chambers again."
Reiji grinned. "I assume you intend on leading us, Four-Eyes while the punk is getting felt up by the bitch."
"No, Kido, I don't assume." Kei's eyes narrowed. "I am." He stated with a definite edge.
Reiji ceased his smiling. "Fine, I was hoping to take the reigns, but I'll give you chance. See how well the second banana runs the show."
"Second banana! How dare he refer to me as such! I am the heir of the Nanjo Group! I will be the number one man in Japan! I promised Yamaoka!"
Kei shrugged. "If that is what you wish to think of me as Kido, then what does that make you; even lower than second-in-command, a grunt perhaps."
Reiji scowled. "Nice one, Four Eyes! Just leads us, the bitch probably has his fly down by now!" Reiji walked out, Eriko and Masao carry Brown and Ayase alongside him.
Kei glared at the floor, noticing Maki still curled up into a ball. "Am I truly second-in-command? I'm the brains of this group! The one…who…devises the plans. No that's Todo. Todo leads, but he's completely incompetent. Why haven't I been more up-front with this. Surely, everyone recognizes me as smartest. If that's the case, why am I not the leader? Why is Todo the one everyone looks for guidance? I'm the one who deduces and explains the logic. I'm the one who can derive the reason from the mystery. I'm the one who can defeat the demons in instants…which often never effects Kandori's guards…and Todo often puts me in a defensive post with him exceedingly capable of implausibly versatile offense."
Yukino came abreast to him. "Kei, I'll take care of Maki. She's probably really hurt right now."
"Uh…yes…Yukino…go ahead."
"Nao-kun…Chisato…why?" Maki mumbled.
Yukino went to her side and helped her up and slowly moved her to the exit.
"Yukino believes I can lead us. I know she does. The others…maybe I'm being to naïve. They don't find me to be the smartest. After berating Uesugi with insults and calling him a nuisance, they probably thought of me as a nuisance. Breaking down and growing hysterical at Yamaoka's death, refusing to leave the hospital until Masao snapped me out of my mindset, leaving him to the Ukobach, instigating Uesugi to Chaos…they don't like me as much as they don't like Uesugi." At Kei's realization, his stomach sunk. "Not Yukino…she can't…she despises Uesugi as much as I do…she can't hate me. No…she can't possibly…then again…she never says much about me…we talk…occasionally…but…does she honestly like me…just as a person…she has too. Does she…?"
A stray tear rolled down Kei's cheek, he wiped it away with his neckerchief as quick as possible. "No…no more tears. I promised myself after Yamaoka's death. I can't show weakness…I can't let my name be embarrassed by my expression of sadness. I have to be adamant…I have to be the leader. I'll prove to the infidel and that cur Kido that I am capable of being the leader. I'm thrice as great as Todo in all parameters. I can control myself, I'm not afraid to make a move. He's a scared pup and I'm the prideful lion. I'll show them! I'll show all of them!"
Persona: Be Your True Mind
Chisato knelt at Naoya's feet, his eyes still dilated a light pink. He was minus his school jacket, button-up shirt, MP5 and Katana, all of which cast aside. Chisato was currently removing his pants.
"Oh, Nao-kun, you'll love this…you're the one for me…the one who never fell for Maki's tricks. I'll savor you for as long as I rule as Harem Queen. My Marin Karin will wear off eventually, but my mirror will make you mine forever." Her mirror flashed, attracting her attention. "I see you're friends have enter the Kama Palace again, all ready on the eight floor, should've moved that shoot a bit farther. Doesn't matter; the Moirae Sisters are in place…what's this?" The mirror flashed again. "Yosuke…he's in the market…he's injured, but he's okay." She paused, her face covered with a disproportionate amount of crowds of moles, a hint of relief, but replaced it with rage. "He's entering the maze…wonder how he figured the situation out so fast. Should I let him run into the Moirae Sisters and they'll kill him…no…I'll arrange the maze again to give him a straight shot to me. I'll give him my special punishment! He'll regret being fooled by Maki's innocent demeanor!"
Chisato removed Naoya's pants, leaving him in his briefs. "Back to you, Nao-kun." She had the sinful smile of a succubus.
Persona: Be Your True Mind
Kei kept following the bending path of the brownish walls of the Kama Palace. "Good progress, Ayase and Uesugi have regained consciousness, we managed to reach the ninth floor without too much trouble. This is where we were stuck last time."
Eriko was twiddling her thumps. "I hope Nao is okay and that harlot hasn't sexually abused him."
"Kirishima, keep count of the forks and paths leading to forks, like I instructed!" Kei snapped.
Yukino kept by Maki's side. "Don't worry, Maki. Everything will be all right."
Masao shoved his hands in his pockets, still angry that Chisato had hurt Maki and took his best friend. He walked by Kei, starting up a conversation that he'd been meaning to for awhile.
"Yo, Nanjo," Masao called.
"What could he want?" Kei thought annoyed. "Yes, Masao?"
"I know it's really late to say, but thanks."
"Thanks for what?" Kei said unwavering in his solid monotone speak.
"For calling me by my name; you know back before the incident at the hospital when you called me monkey and ape and shit like that."
"Yes, you're reasoning behind this?"
"I just wanted to say thanks, Nanjo." Masao offered his hand. "I still don't like ya that much, especially when you ditched me at the police station, but that day when you were crying over the old butler's showed me your not as bad as I originally thought. Don't make much of what I'm saying, just know I appreciate you using my name for a change."
Kei hesitantly shook Masao's hand. "You're…welcome." Kei returned his hand, Masao moving back to Maki and Yukino.
"That was odd for him to say such things. He appreciates me using his name for a change, not calling him monkey or ape. That…idiot." Kei sighed. "He doesn't understand he's the one who earned my respect to have me use his name. He…realized I was not as bad as he original thought…when Yamaoka died. Is it because I cried or because he talked me out of writing myself for dead with Yamaoka? Masao Inaba, you're a fool…a kind-hearted fool…who refuses to leave his friends behind. He was content with saving Sonomura, content with saving Todo, and was content with saving me. For a fool, you really know how to open my eyes with your words every time Masao Inaba. Maybe you aren't as bad as I original thought either."
Kei wanted to turn to Masao and say that he appreciated Masao saving him from himself back in the hospital, but kept looking forward, not wanting to show weakness, he had to be resolute, show he could lead them.
"Kido won't find error in me! I refuse to be outranked by him! I refuse to have my presence minimized by Todo! He guided us in the correct direction on this floor, I'll do the same!"
Kei halted, causing everyone else to as well. They path had opened into a area as wide as Peace Diner. He could see the descending staircase twelve feet ahead. "This is too straightforward, the previous final staircase was desperately hidden to protect Chisato's chambers. We stumbled upon this one with ease. It's a trap, I can sense it. What is does she have planned for us?"
Masao blood had started to boil at the appearance of the staircase. "All right, let's storm Chisato's throne and get Nao back!"
"Hold on, Masao!" Kei raised his hand. " 'Everything comes to he who waits.' Chisato wouldn't let us invade her room twice. She has to have guards for this staircase."
"The boy has found us out! How interesting!" A mature female voice screeched from thin-air.
A swirl of the wind in the air, put everyone on their toes as three women emerged to block the staircase.
The one on the farthest right up to the wall stood a woman dressed in a skin-tight bodysuit of striped white latex. Her feet were bare and her hands covered with black gloves. Around her waist was a gray cloth that was the length of her legs and hugged her hips, leaving a parting line at her pelvis. Her face was a sickly yellow, her pupils and iris matching. Her hair was a bundle of braids and buns covering the sides of her head with the buns and forming a pseudo-crown with the braids of blonde. On the fronts of the hanging buns of hair besides her bean-shaped head were dashes of green. She raised her right hand, holding a roll of thread that was stretching to the next woman who had appeared.
The woman crouching in the middle, touching and caressing the thread spread in front of her was almost an exact duplicate. Her skin-tight suit was red latex. A cloak of the same gray fabric was draped over her shoulders and the corners attached to the tops of her breasts. Her face, eyes were the same shape and color. Her feet still bare and her hands covered by gloves. Her hair was mostly styled similarly, but the braids were roped around the peak bundle of blond hair twice and them arched over to the length and radius of a circle. The fronts of her buns were dashed in magenta. She felt the wire with her fingers which kept on trailing down to the last woman who had appeared.
The last woman bared the same style of clothing as the other two, wearing a black rendition of the suit, bare feet, and gloves over her hands. The thread was clutched in one hand and in the other was a golden pair of scissors. Coning her head from her shoulders to four feet above her scalp was the gray fabric cloth. He was sickly skin and eyes were shadowed, but her blonde hair could clearly be seen in the darkness. The buns and mounds had made a peak for her cranium with the surface of the peak dyed a teal blue.
Kei kept his stance, broadsword in his right hand and his left hovering over his breast pocket, his fingers lightly touching Yamaoka's glasses. "I had almost forgotten your glasses were with me Yamaoka. Now, what are these strange femme fatale characters?"
"Identify yourselves or step aside, demons!" Kei order, readying his weapon as everyone else did.
"Demons," The one in white repeated in a young voice, spinning the roller and casting six more lines of thread to shoot across to the next women.
"Do not put us on the level of such horrid creatures, mortals." The one in red said in a mature voice, touching and stroking each line as they approached the final one in black.
"We are goddesses of old and our duty is to serve the Harem Queen." The final one in black said in a elderly voice, clutching the ends of the seven lines of threads in her left hand as her right snipped at the air with the golden scissors.
"Goddess? Mustn't let my shock show. If they are goddess then by Philemon's word conventional arms will not harm them. How do we deal with this? Todo surely couldn't have come up with a plan by now. It's up to me and my superior intellect to. I simply have to distract them as I culminate the plan."
"If you are goddesses of old, then tell us your names!" Kei ordered again. "I'd like to observe your powers at work before I believe what you say as fact! If you do not, we'll move you out of our way!"
White snickered. "Do not play us for fools child."
Red laughed. "Those armaments you hold cannot due us detriment."
Black heartily chuckled. "By saying you shall move us is a mere jest."
Kei started to sweat. "They won't acknowledge a bluff that easy. How can we deal with this? They haven't named themselves. I'm losing the battle of the mind and with them claiming to be goddesses I've all ready lost the battle of the ground."
"Identify yourselves I said!" Kei yelled.
The three remained silent, smirking at the eight.
"Enough stalling!" Kei had become desperate and clearly the three liked watching him squirm.
"If they do not choose to reveal their names, I'll do it for them…" Kei turned to Eriko. "KIRISHIMA! INFORMATION, THESE THREE, NOW!"
Eriko eyed each thoroughly.
"Kirishima's vast knowledge of the occult and mythology has to be able to deduce who these three are. See, Kido, I am a competent leader. Using the abilities of my subordinates as resources to aid the situation is a key tactic in being a leader, Todo would never think to utilize this strategy."
"Kirishima, who are they!"
Eriko glowered. "I'm not exactly sure, Nanjo…but the thread and their actions can indicate they are the Fates of Greek mythology consisting of Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos."
"Ah, yes, the girl has found our names." The one in white stated. "I am indeed Clotho, the youngest sister and Weaver of the Thread!"
"Deriving us from such picayune details is impressive, girl." The one in red commented. "I am indeed Lachesis, the middle sister and Measurer of the Thread!"
"It is saddening that the one who appears to be the leader could not derive it himself." The one in black added. "I am indeed Atropos, the eldest sister and Cutter of the Thread!"
"They are the Moirae Sisters." Eriko informed. "They are goddesses of destiny and fate. Clotho sees the birth of life, Lachesis sees to the past, present, and future, and Atropos sees to the death when it is time."
"The Fates of Greek mythology? It's said in myths that they could read the future not only for mortals but for the gods themselves and the words they spoke were inescapable." Kei added.
"Why yes, lad, we are." Clotho said.
"The Harem Queen has asked of our services to deal with you." Lachesis added.
"You eight will see your future as predicted by your own threads of life and just as suddenly as you saw these futures, they will be whisked away." Atropos concluded.
"Read our future and take it away. Interesting method, not sure how effective it would be to kill us with."
Kei lowered his broadsword. "Lower your weapons, we have no chance to damage them with these. Firearms as well. If you three, the Moirae Sisters believe you can end our lives by predicting our futures, go ahead. I warn you, we will pass you and reach the stairs. I guarantee it,"
Clotho spun her roller, causing the seven threads to dither in synchronization. "Bluffs and feign confidence will not defeat us, lad."
Lachesis let the motioning wires brushing the leathery material of her cloves, her knuckles slightly twitching at each contact. "Our predictions are law as you shall see."
Atropos fervently snipped just before the end of the threads. "Revel in your individual futures and let death embrace you."
"What is this haze? The area is fogging? Lachesis…is measuring the length of the thread…it's glowing…the haze is broadcasting…images!"
A fog had conjured up from the earth and consumed the Fates. They could be seen through the translucent barrier and the threads proceeded to glow a fern green. Clotho let the reel let out thread that appeared to be endless but never extended the all ready stretched length. Lachesis measured the thread as it kept extending. Atropos admired her scissors as she clutched the threads, waiting for her turn.
"These weaved threads of life belong to those in this arrangement Masao Inaba, Hidehiko Uesugi, Eriko Kirishima, Yuka Ayase, Reiji Kido, Yukino Mayuzumi, and Kei Nanjo! The brown-haired girl does not have one! I can see your births except for the brown-haired one." Clotho announced to the middle sister.
"Sonomura doesn't have a thread of life! Is it because she's of this counterfeit world! If that's the case-"
"I can see your pasts, presents, and your futures! You shall see and I shall speak! Pay close attention to the mist!" Lachesis exclaimed, touching the top most thread, the fog create an array of images. Everyone felt locked in place, unable to move and unable to speak.
"Masao Inaba, in your future, I see the big city, the ocean, and art." The fog displayed swift images of an sky view of an city that appeared to be New York, a boat on the blue sea, and graffiti of crowns on canvas.
"Hidehiko Uesugi, in your future, I see a tragic woman in your sights and a name up in lights." The fog displayed the image of a woman's face. Her skin was wrinkled, loose, and pale. Her cheek bones were profound, her lips painted, her hair a blackish blue with faded gray, her eyes were a frightening darkish yellow, one of which covered by her back-length hair.
"Eriko Kirishima, in your future, I see romance, travel, and an important poem!" The fog displayed hearts, an airplane, and a rough-looking blonde-hair man, with a fierce expression writing line after line on a piece of paper.
"Yuka Ayase, in your future, I see a deeper care for others and a deeper respect for yourself." The fog displayed images of Eriko and Brown and then several images of Ayase.
"Reiji Kido, in your future, I see change and…an offspring." Images of Reiji dressed in a suit and his hair covering his scar and a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes were shown.
"Yukino Mayuzumi, in your future, I see love, new friends, and even loss." A split image of Kei and an older man with shaggy black locks framing his face with hazel eyes was displayed, following that was a series of fast paced images everyone could barely see: images of two girls with blonde and black hair and images of three boys with black, blue, and red hair. Two of them seemed to wear similar uniforms as did another two with one lone girl wearing an ordinary outfit.
"Lastly, Kei Nanjo, in your future, I see love, searching, and achievement." The fog played the last images of the predictions. Yukino starting off the final chain, following with Kei sitting on a motorcycle at the entrance to an abandoned factory, and finishing with a number one imprinted on the back of his leather jacket.
The fog dispersed and the eight regained there ability to move, but Lachesis spoke out suddenly as she read the threads all at the same time. "You all...I can see all eight of you in a battle...together...a great battle."
(A/N: I would appreciate those who have actually played Persona 2 to not spoil anything mentioned in these visions in the reviews. I'd like to keep them a mystery for those who haven't played the game.)
"Art?"
"A girl?"
"Romance?"
"Like, what?"
"A kid? You friggin' kiddin' me?"
"Love and loss?"
"Love, achievement…" Kei repeated sullenly. "Love…does that mean Yukino doesn't hate me? Achievement…does that mean…I become the number one in Japan!"
"As you can see, your future has been shown." Clotho said.
"You and your friends cannot harm us still, Kei Nanjo." Lachesis added.
"Now embrace death from the power our Queen has granted us with her mirror!" Atropos exclaimed.
"What are they doing?" Kei asked as they grouped together and were swallowed in a column of light. "Is this how they planned to kill us? Wait, my train of thought before was cut off by Lachesis. This Maki is from the counterfeit world. Chances are this is why she doesn't have a thread of life." Kei glanced at Yukino who was readying her shotgun and razor blades. "Yukino, her shotgun! The Ssu-Ling of the Chinese mythology! I'm thinking about it in the opposite way, instead of thinking with Maki, think of the goddesses! The Ssu-Ling are gods as well, created by Kandori with the Deva System or perhaps by Aki's mysterious magical abilities and given power for him to use at his services!"
Kei steady his weapon and charged at the merging Moirae Sisters."Back in the S.E.B.E.C. Building when Byakko attacked our weapons hurt him! Yukino blew his brains out! If mortal arms damaged him, then he isn't gifted with the immunity like Philemon is! That Byakko wasn't the real god and if he was created by the same means that the Fates our! They can be killed with this sword!"
"KEI! WATCH OUT!" Yukino yelled.
The column burst and in replacement of the Fates was a lone levitating figure: a clock with silver hands and letters and a black face. It had three gold maidens encircling it's frame, each blank of features and expressions, each with long flowing hair, robes, and ribbons as part of the statue, an angel wing protruding from each of their backs following in a clockwise position. The highest maiden set above the twelve was sitting on the frame, looking forward with her wing pointing downward at the next maiden who had her back arched around the frame of the clock from the nine to the six, looking downward with her wing on an inward angle, and the last maiden appeared to be standing with her back to the edge of the clock near the three, facing out to the right, and her wing angled upward back to the first maiden.
Kei was in reach of striking the new arrival, but the hands spun and landed in the four o'clock position. The females voices of the Fates calling out at once. "Unmei no Kaze (A/N)!" At the settling of the hour, minute, and second hands, Kei was blown back by a burst of air pressure and then thrown into the dirt floor. The wind was picking up and surrounding him in a close cornered box of pressure.
The hands spun again stopping at the four o'clock position. "Unmei no Kiri (A/N)!" As Kei stood against the pressure, baring his teeth, and propping himself with his broadsword the wind picked up and surrounded the section of the room with him and the combination of the Fates in the previous haze that had predicted the Persona-Users futures which acted as a blockade against intrusions between Norn and Kei.
"KEI!" Yukino called concerned.
"NANJO!" Masao also called.
Kei looked up at the newly merged Fates, being a few feet from swords reach. "What have you become now?"
"This is the gift our Queen has given us! We are no longer Moirae the Fates! We are Norn, the Goddesses of Fate!"
"Damn it all! They've become one with the help of Chisato! That doesn't change anything! All I have to do is attack them! They aren't immortal! They can die! I don't care if I'm trapped! I'm not going to be on the sidelines like Todo always puts me! For now I'm the leader and I'll be damned if a leader stands on the sidelines! He faces the enemy head-on without fear! I'll show them! I'll show Kido!"
Kei in a fury rushed Norn with his broadsword. "Unmei no Kaze!" As the hands stopped at four, Kei had just reached Norn, but was shot backwards into the Unemi no Kiri. The haze aggressively threw him back onto the ground, Yamaoka's glasses leaving his breast pocket. They laid in between him and Norn. Kei noticed as he struggled to stand.
"Yamaoka's glasses…"
"Unmei no Kaze!" The air pressured pounded into Kei, pushing him into a crouching and then kneeling position. "Those spectacles, you became white as a ghost when they left your person! What is so important about them?"
Kei groaned at the increasing pressure on his body. "Touch them bitch and I'll kill you where you stand!" He retorted with utmost malice.
"Do they belong to that butler we often saw in your past when your thread was read? They must! They are larger than the ones you're wearing!"
Kei attempted to standing, but the Unmei no Kaze locked him down. He was incapable of moving a muscle as he was when the future was predicted. "SHIT! I can't move! The others can't approach! I'm going to die without even landing a single blow. I'm sorry Yamaoka."
"What would you do, Kei Nanjo, if I destroyed those glasses, right now?"
Kei's eyes widen and his jaw clicked. He fought against the weight and stood up with one leg, his other planted on the ground with his knee. "Don't you dare!"
"What is this I'm feeling? This memory is stirring in the Unmei no Kiri! It must be reacting to you, Kei Nanjo! Why don't you watch? Relive your past one last time before we kill you and your friends for our Queen!"
"What?" Everyone asked as the haze spun and began to showcase, as stated by Norn, a memory from Kei's past.
Persona: Be Your True Mind
"Father, look! I received a hundred on my exam!" A young Kei Nanjo said to his father and mother during their Saturday brunch.
Mr. Nanjo waved it off. "Yes, Kei, that is good. Off with you now."
"Why don't you go to room, honey, back to your studies." Mrs. Nanjo suggested.
Kei turned the corner of his mansion out to the hallway, the test crumbled in his hand, a depressed expression on his face. He sat on the grand staircase to the second floor, chucking the crumbled ball of a test behind him, the one hundred in red printed ink visible on the ball.
Kei kicked the stair below him. He was sadden. No matter how perfect his scores were, no matter how hard he tried, his father would never acknowledge it and his mother would send him away at any time of day or night during any day of the week. His father not once had said, "That's my boy, Kei! You shall make the finest heir to the Nanjo Group yet!" or "I'm proud of you, son! You have the knowledge and the brain to lead and carry on this company's glory beyond its limits!" For the twelve years of his life he chased for the attention and recognition of his father who often and always spoke of how he would become the next head of the Nanjo Group when his father passed away. Growing with this concept in his mind, he wanted to feel worthy of being the heir, worthy of taking his family's company and leading it into his generation.
"Ah, Young Master Kei is this yours."
Kei turn his head, seeing his loyal butler Yamaoka standing on the staircase, adjusting his spectacles and reading the un-crumbled paper. "Yes, it is Yamaoka, and I told you to stopped calling me young master."
Yamaoka stepped down the stairs and sat beside his young master, showing the paper to him. "You did very well, Young Master Kei. A perfect score, you should be proud of yourself."
"What does it matter, Yamaoka? If Father doesn't care why should I?"
"Young Master, my family has served yours for a number of years now. When I was your age I lived in this house with my father. He was your grandfather's butler. My father never praised me for anything I had ever achieved, knowing full well I would become a humble butler to the Nanjo Family and what I did would never prove to be important. Similar case to you, Young Master. I beg to disagree with him."
Yamaoka stepped down one stair and looked at his Young Master in the eyes. "I've served your father for over twenty years, Young Master Kei. I watched him grow and I'll watch you grow as well. Your father is raising you as your grandfather raised him, with a cold heart and hard exterior."
"Where are you going with this, Yamaoka?"
The loyal butler lightly patted his Young Master's shoulders and smiled. "Young Master Kei, you father cares, he may not show it, but you are his son and I am sure he loves you."
"Don't lie to me, Yamaoka!" Kei glared. "I heard Mother talking with Grandmother. I'm just the next offspring of the Nanjo bloodline. To be next leader for the Nanjo Group was the only reason I was born. Grandfather said once to Father I wouldn't be half as good as he was as the head of the Nanjo Group and you know what, Yamaoka, Father agreed with him. I try my hardest and Father will never see me as true heir to this family's legacy!" Kei's eyes were watering, he gently sobbed, turning away from Yamaoka and wiping them away quickly, trying to remove his weakness.
"It's all right to cry, Young Master Kei. Real men show their emotions, it's what makes them strong. I know you will be a strong man, Young Master. I've seen all your scores, your determination, your hard work. I know you can take your family company farther than ever. With your heart, Young Master Kei, I know you can achieve greatness. You'll show yourself and your father, you can be number one in Japan with the Nanjo Group. I know you will."
"Do you really mean that, Yamaoka?"
The old man smiled. "Of course, Young Master. I'm mean it as much as I say to you I'm proud to serve you and I'm proud to call you my Master, the heir to the Nanjo Group and the strong man who will become the number one business man in Japan. I will always be by your side, Young Master Kei. I will always be there for you to serve you and I will always be proud of you. Do you know why, Young Master Kei?"
"Why?"
"We are the same, Young Master Kei, and I care about you more than anything in the world."
Persona: Be Your True Mind
Kei somberly remained quit, tears dripping from his eyes, wetting the floor. "Yamaoka,"
"Well that was lame! So much for being by your side always! He's dead! We saw it! Such a pathetic old man!" Norn taunted.
Kei shot up, tears still on his cheeks, the air pressure not bothering him. A blue aura had erupted and wrapped around him in a flaming burst. "If you insult Yamaoka one more time, I'll show you no mercy!" Kei picked up his loyal butler's glasses.
"The way he died was pathetic too! Killed without a struggle, died in your arms, telling you to fulfill your dream! How generic!"
"DAMN YOU!" Kei charged. "YAMAOKA WAS A GREAT MAN! HE WAS MORE THAN MY BUTLER! HE WAS MY FRIEND!"
The hands proceeded to spin. Kei stabbed his broadsword deep into the center of the clock, shatter glass and breaking metal. "HE WASN'T PATHETIC! HE ALWAYS WAS THERE FOR ME! HE ALWAYS GAVE ME PRAISE! ME AND HIM WERE ALIKE! HE ALWAYS CARED! HE WAS MORE A FATHER TO ME THAN MY ACTUAL FATHER! MY MOVE!"
Kei slashed his broadsword to the right, tearing into Norn straight through to the second maiden statue, the velvet blue aura intensifying. "Yamaoka even in death, you'll always be with me! Give me strength! I'll lead us to victory! I'll use my knowledge and my heart to be number one!" Kei bellowed with all his strength. "PERSONA!"
A shatter of glass was heard in Kei's mind. "Thou art I and I am thou! Thou hast proven thyself worthy of the powers of Hierophant! Thou hast had a revelation of the heart and demonstrated education, authority, and relationship with the divine. Thou hast earned your Ultimate Hierophant! Aizen Myouou hast become Yamaoka, The Loyal Butler of the Nanjo Family!"
Aizen Myouou hovered above Norn in his purple latex. His stilleto fingers cracked and shattered as he tore away his suit, removing each piece of latex clothing, revealing an elderly man dressed in a butler's outfit, complete with suit jacket and squared handkerchief in breast pocket. In his white gloved hands was a white bo staff, protruding from his back were cybernetic angel wings shaped similar to a butterfly's. His curved, finely polished shoes stood on a hover-board lined with solar panels and ending with tail fins. In replacement to his glasses was a cybernetic visor across his eyes, directly above his gray moustache, plated with orange glass, segmented into squares. His her hair slicked back and above his head was a holy halo of pure yellow light.
"Yamaoka!"
"How? He's dead!" Norn exclaimed.
Kei grabbed at his butler's glasses. "You were always with me, Yamaoka. You're here with me now as my battle companion. We are the same aren't we that is why you're my Ultimate Hierophant, my Persona."
"Yes…Master Kei. I promised I will always be by your side and to serve you always and I will. Now, let us end this."
Kei nodded, grinning, hearing a word echoing in his mind. "YAMAOKA! SAMSARA!"
Yamaoka spun his new-found staff and pointed it towards Norn. Hundreds of sutras flew out from underneath Norn and from Yamaoka's staff as he flew around her with his hover-board at high speeds. The sutras and talismans closely and tightly ensnared and covered every single-inch of the merged Fates. Four larges square columns appeared underneath Norn in the four directions: North, Sound, East, West. They were marked with the words Birth, Life, Death, Rebirth, Reincarnation. They beamed with the light of heaven, mixing together into a giant crater of light underneath the trapped Norn. The crater expanded and shot upwards at high speed engulfing the whole goddesses in a comet of Hama power that burned away at her with it's acidic wash and bathe of light until nothing remained.
The Unmei no Kiri dissipated at the defeat of it's wielder and Kei stood there, Yamaoka gone and his broadsword on his back. He was still crying. In his mind his Aizen Myouou card Igor predicted his Arcana with turned into Yamaoka sitting on his hover-board, his staff leisurely resting on his right shoulder.
Yukino approached him, everyone staying back and not saying a word at what they had seen along with Kei…except for Brown. "Nanjo, what's up with jacking my style?"
"Uh…Kei," Yukino said.
"Yes," He replied.
"Um, I know it's probably not the best time to say this especially after seeing a real personal memory from the past…"
"Here it comes…even if they predicted our futures. There was another man in Yukino's."
"I appreciate you."
"W-w-w-what? You appreciate me? Why?"
"Well, you saved our lives right now. You're really smart, you were able to figure out every mystery we've encounter so far, you have a strong heart. I mean you've been able to stay with us and follow-through with everything we've done even with the death of the most important person in your life with you. And…you're a…" Yukino blushed. "A true hierophant and a nice guy."
Kei blushed with her. "She doesn't hate me? I'm a nice guy…with a strong heart. She appreciates me."
"What brought this so suddenly, Yukino?"
"I don't know, Kei. I could just…you know…feel something was up with you…like some inner turmoil or something like that. You seemed so commanding, like you were trying to prove to Reiji you were best suited for leader and then I remembered that your not liked by over half of us…so I decided to…say what I feel. Don't think I'm weird or any-"
"I would never think your weird, Yukino. For the record, I appreciate you for you kind words, your kind heart, and…for being you."
"Yo, love birds! Are we going to save Nao or just sit here listening to your awkward banter!" Masao exclaimed.
"Yes, ahem, let us proceed."
Persona: Be Your True Mind
A/N: Winds of Fate, Mist of Fate
I hate this chapter. I hate it with a fiery passion. I've now realized who the MOST DIFFICULT character to write for is. Originally I thought it was Ayase, but no it's Kei. I just can't grip his personality, it's probably because he's meant to be the voice of the protagonist in the game, you know explaining the story and shit. You can really tell this chapter was shoe-horned in and overall my own filler. I liked my concept of foreshadowing to Persona 2, but I hate everything else. The description of the goddesses, the flash back, the inner thoughts. I can't feel Kei's character and I'd tried my best to make it make sense why Yamaoka is Kei's Ultimate Person, because they're the same and that shit, but if I get negative reviews for this chapter, I wouldn't be surprised, this is easily my worst chapter at of the whole story, then again my self-esteem is ridiculously low so I could be over thinking that this is crap, but that's probably not likely. Whatever I should just stick to source material and not add a lot of pointless additions, but the problem with that is that the actual bosses in the game that act as guardians which I replaced with the Ssu-Ling are craptastical and aren't interesting our useful to work with at all. Then with the Black Market if this wasn't here, we would've went from trapped to Harem Queen to warped back to the top floor back down to Harem Queen, plus she's called the HAREM Queen wouldn't there be a lady oriented boss fight. It sounded cool and made sense in my brain and I'm rambling now. Either way, I can't say I hope you enjoyed this chapter, because I didn't and I'll see you next time for Chapter 15: Black Market Part 3: Chisato.