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.
I'll keep the intro brief for this, but I'm stating now this is yet another lone perspective chapter, hopefully, my brain will stop running in circles and kick it into high gear to cross the stupid finish line. I wanna say I apologize for the mediocrity I've hit you with for maybe the past three chapters. Work, school related, and family stress really effects my mindset to the extent of me losing motivation at times especially when everything is winding down to summer. I'll due my best because I don't want these to suck anymore by my standers. This is the only novelization of SMT: Persona on the site and I don't want it to disappoint and I don't want it to be a disgrace. I just want it to work. I know my additions are not related now and honestly the only additions are of the Four Signs, the Jacks Bros, the Alignment Dogma, and the revelations. The Dogma and revelations are built on the game itself in ways that I do not want to go into, the addition of the Jacks Bros and the Four Signs is to demonstrate the power of the compact, and introduce the recurring duo because I plan for them to be in the following novelizations. With that aside, welcome to Persona: Be Your True Mind, Chapter Nineteen.
Chapter Nineteen: Mana Castle Part 1: Suzaku
Eriko was hypnotized for a minute at Naoya's leading movements. Her love was at the head of the pack as usual, taking up his position as he normally would. "Brave leader, you have adapted to that title more so than I initial thought. You are our leader, no second thought about it. You'd put yourselves in harms way to save us, you use us all to the best of our abilities, and you take charge when the time is right. Kei may be bit uppity when it comes to pacing ourselves on this journey, trying to be the deuteragonist and Reiji may act the part of a rebel anti-hero, but you are the hero, especially to me, your love interest."
Eriko's novelistic thoughts were shook at Maki shifting to Naoya's right. Eriko's eyes narrowed. "Then, there's the rival to my love. Maki…she is not of our world and Naoya still chooses to protect her as she is. It may be shallow for me to say, but it can surely be just the image of Maki that drives his strides to guard her, just as it is for Masao. He cares for her well-being as much as Masao as well. They known each other for years so it is understandable and I know the love "V" has become a love "Y" almost with my addition to them, way back when in freshman year. Maki loves Naoya, Masao loves Maki, and Naoya…is an uncertainty. Add me into the diagram and I'm merely another line drawn towards Naoya." Eriko grimaced. "Does he care for Maki than me? Does my hero, enjoy this…Maki…does he reflect her attraction or…does he show a callousness as he does with me? I…"
Eriko sneered at Maki, a blatant surge of resentment running through her. "What's this? Is it jealously or loathing? I never feel this way…I…try to think of everyone not just myself…why am I feeling bitterness? Is this Chaos? Am I drifting into Chaos?"
Persona: Be Your True Mind
They entered the castle, Mai's compact in Naoya's hand. "So, this is our keystone, huh?" Naoya asked to no one in particular as he blocked the glare of the glowing doors with his hand.
"Let's try fitting the compact half into the pedestal, Nao-kun." Maki suggested pointing.
"Well, that's obvious, airhead!" Eriko covered her mouth as if she had spoken aloud. "What was that? I would never say such as thing! Relax, Eriko, do what Naoya does…think of everyone else…don't focus on Maki….Maki your untitled rival and unbeknownst love interest to Naoya…Maki who has the greater chance to winning the heart of your hero, your white knight because she's be friends with him for longer…that bitch! No! No! NO! Stop it! Stop it! Act normal Eriko don't let the alignment change. I don't want to lose my mind! I don't want to experience this Chaos that I have seen!"
Naoya approached the pedestal, readying the compact for insertion in the indentation.
"Wait a moment, Todo…" Kei stated, halting Naoya to a stop.
"Sup' Nanjo?" Masao asked. "We have to get this show on the road if we want to stop Kandori."
Kei was uneasy, he waved himself off. "Never mind, I was…mistaken you could say…carry on, Todo."
"Kei's questioning the norm is bad, something is going to happen. I hope it's not a trap for whoever puts the compact half in. I don't want Naoya to be hurt then he'll…require healing…which I cannot provide…" Eriko's bitterness returned as she grasped hard at her right arm, resentment for Maki and depression returning to her mind. Her thoughts were beating her conscious in this game to prevent the Chaos.
"I'm going to set in it then, Kei." Nao hovered the compacted over the indentation.
"Be careful, Nao-kun…" Maki whispered.
Eriko looked away. "Think of the others…do not lose priority…Naoya…Don't let it be a trap…"
Naoya nonchalantly inserted the compact half. "Done and done!"
With the setting of the half, the glow of the doors ceased and they swung open, revealing darkness. Then a prominent light flashed and gone was the pedestal and with it the compact.
"What the hell?" Naoya mouthed.
"Wh-what just happened?" Masao questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Second that question slash statement?" Brown exclaimed flailing his arms in the air.
Kei sighed at the stupidity as Maki and Eriko exhaled their deep breaths. "This is what I suspected would happened. There was no avoiding it."
"I'm sure that bastard Kandori's laughing himself hoarse right now." Reiji growled leaning against the wall with his arms folded. "We played his delivering boys and got exactly what he needed."
"Like, what do you mean?" Ayase, asked.
Naoya nodded in understanding to himself and then answered Ayase. "Kandori wanted the compact. Right, Kei? That's what you were thinking."
"Yes, Todo, since Mai wouldn't come out, he needed someone to get it and bring it to him."
"Wait, Nanjo, if you knew this all along…why didn't you tell us?" Masao asked.
"As I stated it's the only way to get to him."
"Why though, Kei?" Maki asked. "If he just needed the compact, why would he let us in?"
Eriko clapped her right palm to her face. "Ignorance is bliss and arrogance is deadly…his ego must allow him to think that he stands a chance against all nine of us with the compact now. Honestly, how could she not understand." She had given up with the game, her now-realistic calm, unbiased perspective, nature, and expression were twisted into facades for the Chaos to dwell under until her true features could break back out.
"Well, Sonomura, Kandori is inviting us in. The man has a very high opinion of himself."
"Meaning he has the ego twenty-times the sizes of Brown's." Yukino quipped. "And that's saying something."
"I guess we have no choice but to play along with Kandori." Naoya reluctantly said. "Everyone stay close together, we're moving in, without a doubt Kandori has someone or something waiting for us on the inside of these doors."
Eriko's true mind shined, piercing the Chaos, sweeping aside the Chaos briefly as she recanted her thoughts of jealously for the time prior to having to prepare for battle. "Naoya, brave leader, my love I believe you will lead us well and I hope that I can keep my repressed jealous repressed instead of uncorked. Let us see what is in store…"
Persona: Be Your True Mind
Eriko's eyes needed to adjust to the dark room apparently as wide as the castle itself, yet surprisingly vacant. "Why have this space with nothing to occupy it?"
"Nao-kun…" Maki shivered. "I have a bad feeling…" She inched next to him and Masao, Eriko glaring.
"I do to, Todo. Walking straight into the darkness is not the best plan." Kei stated.
"I'm sure he's aware of that, Nanjo…and…Maki…why is it so difficult to want to oversee her as the others…this jealousy has arisen from nowhere."
"No lanterns or flashlights…" Naoya mumbled. "Ayase!"
"Like, yeah!" She replied unenthusiastically as she latched onto Brown's arm.
"Give us a torch with a Fire Skill."
Ayase scoffed, preparing her whip, apathetic in her words and actions. "Like, here, Persony…" Before she could crack her whip to evoke her flame dancer Hori, a brilliant pillar of fire erupted in front of the nine.
Maki grasped her heart. "We have company, Nao-kun." She said, reminded of the three other instances when a mass of a certain element appeared.
Naoya unsheathed his katana from the back of his waistband. "Okay, everyone get ready, with three of the Four Signs dead this has to be the last one! Eriko, what can we expect from what you remember off-hand?"
The flame dazzled and flickered, soaring up to the ceiling inch by inch. The bonfire expanded, creeping across the ground and illuminating the majority of the dank and empty room. As the orange and red folded apart, burst two elegant vermillion wings, a fire shawl draped over and laid across the now-exposed torso. A nuzzle of pinkish fur to contrast with the vermillion was under the breast. The egg of fire released the furless, sharp talons, similar to giant rooster feet, from their coating, along with a giant fluffy mass of pink protruded from the rear with a mess of vermillion peacock feathers unfolded from the fire in the fashion of a fan. Five streaks of fire lashed about, swaying with the remaining heat and flame resting atop the head and neck of the beast. The jackets around the streams extinguished, unleashing five tails as tall as the beast, nearly to the limits of the room's heights. Each held a distinctive color: azure, turquoise/black, vermillion, silver, and gold.
Eriko's pause at Naoya question was to examine the demon as it awakened to battle. "Feathers as red as blood, no doubt this is-"
A cackled as raging and fierce as fire pierced their ears. The flame helm shielding the upper portion of the beast wizened into the vermillion fur neck that was jointed to the wondrous beak of the bird; a pink plume with matching lone feathers ran from the pinnacle of the debonair bird.
"Humans, you all make me laugh!" The female bird chuckled to herself. "With Bai Hu, Gui Xian, and Long gone, I, Zhu Que, am the last remaining of the Four Signs of the Chinese Constellation! I am the strongest of the four and instructed to personally guard Master Kandori's throne room from the likes of you measly humans!"
"Eriko…" Naoya hissed, hoping the demon to not notice.
"In Japanese, we call her Suzaku, she specializes in fire."
"Oh, a clever girl!" Suzaku mocked, laughing. "Did you figure that out all by yourself or did my light show give me away? HAHA!"
Eriko frowned. "It is all I could gather…she's nothing special."
"Thanks, Eriko." Naoya seriously thanked. "Well, if you're the last Sign, you're the last guardian Kandori's got."
"Meaning we take you down, birdo," Masao dragged his thumb passed his jugular. "Kandori's ass is ours!"
"It is bizarre! The nine of you mortals accomplishing the feat of defeating my brethren! Thunder, ice, and wind are versatile and deflectable, but fire is the most dangerous to play with it!" Suzaku beak became agape, a fireball igniting in her throat.
Eriko turned to Naoya. She expected him to assign them orders, but remembered the common counter to fire would be water. "Water equals ice which means Naoya would most likely instruct Maki to attack or counter dependent on how quick he is on the draw." Her shallow left-field disdain had filled her completely. "Chaos…am I completely aligned with it yet?"
Naoya grew commanding, adapting to his confident tone for the battle as he normal did. "Maki! I want you to meet her halfway with the strongest Ice Skill you can!"
"Gotcha, Nao-kun!" Maki was pumped, throwing her hand to the sky. "Now I can test my new Persona! HELP ME!" A velvet blue aura surrounded Maki. "JACK FROST!"
"HEE-HO!" The walking-talking snow man shouted, spinning to give Suzaku a peace-sign. "Alright-hee Mistress Maki-hee, I'm ready!"
She pointed to Suzaku. "Jack Frost! Bufula!"
"HEE-HO!" Jack Frost threw his open-palmed hands forward, firing a mound of ice and snow at Suzaku.
"FLAME BREATH!" Suzaku angled her agape mouth to the ground, shooting a stream of fire equivalent to a flamethrower. It struck the floor, bending in a line. Ascending from the line was the remainder of the raging flame, creating a lasting wall as a shield of defense before Suzaku. The Bufula struck the wall, the ice and snow reduced to a mediocre steamy mist and gentle drizzle, nether of which dazed or doused the flame started.
Eriko grimaced. "Her ice had no affect against the fire…Naoya would then take this into account and cycle through who would be best suited to extinguish the flame. With ice down, the only other option is…wind."
Jack Frost sweated, his snowy complexion turning to condensation and water instead of salty sweat. "Mistress Maki-hee…I don't do so well-hee with fire-hee…"
"What do you mean Jack Frost?"
"I'm weak to it, Mistres Maki-hee…so I better take my leave-hee! Bye-hee!" Jack Frost vanished to Maki's surprise.
"He's weak to fire? What is he talking about?"
"It means if I had incinerated the imp, he'd be a puddle, girl!" Suzaku cawed pass the fire wall. "Imagine immobilization and your innards wanting to wretch themselves from your abdomen due to the excruciating pain! That is the danger of being struck with your weakness, girl, as you are soon to witness! MARAGIDYNE!" Suzaku flapped her wings, sending a shower of enormous fireballs cascading down upon the Persona-Users heads.
Naoya did not have time to issue his plea to evade. The fireballs struck without warning or slowing. They struck random locations, briefly exploding on impact. Each were strewn about, licked and brushed by the intense heat and flames. As the fireballs erupted as their creator had arrived, they left traces and patches of the ever-lasting fire to scorch the tiled floor. They were now in a battlefield of fire, the majority scrapped and a lone deeply injured.
Eriko groaned. Her leg was in agonizing pain. A portion of her gray-colored skirt was burnt away, the skin of her calf and shin were blackened as ash. An Agidyne fireball had swept across her leg before colliding abreast to her. She was unlucky enough to take the brunt to her dominant leg for mobility, posture, and stance. She no longer could stand, the pain was far to intense. She was unable to tell if the burns were second or third degree or greater. It didn't matter she was hurt bad and immobilized with a mess of flame laying right next to her to greet her with an uncomfortable heat and orange glare.
"How could I be so stupid? Damn it! This pain is unbearable! I'm useless! How can I be everyone's guardian angel if I can't dodge something as huge as a boulder?" Eriko loathed herself, annoyed at her incapableness and uselessness. "Maki at least tried with ice, at least can heal away these nasty burns…my rival twice as useful as I am, all I could do is tell Nao she uses fire. What use am I?"
Naoya staggered to his feet, taking note of Eriko's momentary-crippled state. The others were not as bad especially Ayase's whose Persona most likely granted her a great resistance to fire due to Hori's base element usage.
Suzaku cackled. "Ah, the leader stands! I suppose my Maragidyne was not enough to broil all of you entirely, but no worries, boy! I'll grill all of you soon enough! HAHAA!"
Naoya glared, covering his face with his left hand, the cloudy white mist enveloping him. "I'll blow out your grilling fire! HERE IT GOES! SEIMEN KONGO!" Emerging from the white mist was the blue man Persona, beating his chest with his fists.
"A big blue ape-man, how droll! HAHA!"
Naoya pointed a sturdy index finger at the flame well ahead of him. Seimen Kongo arched his arms, readying them at his sides, wind spinning around each knuckle.
"SEIMEN KONGO! BLOW AWAY HER FIRE! MAGARULA!" Seimen Kongo cried a human battle cry, it unleashed a barrage of punches in midair. He fired off a giant wave of greenish compressed wind at the fire wall. The dancing and crackling flames flowed unevenly at the overpowering currents of wind batting against and across them. The Magarula warped the fire, fanning it into halves, split down the center.
Suzaku heard the stir of the other Persona-Users recovery, enjoying the squirms and grunts of the weaken Eriko and amused at Naoya's feeble effort to fan her fire. "I have to admit your Magarula is on par with Long's, but even if he amplified it with his Mind Charge, my flames will last as long as I live!"
"Or as long as you focus! SEIMEN KONGO! PULINPA!" Naoya order and his Persona shrieked, bellowed with all his might, sending numerous visible sound waves passed the tunnel the Magarula made in the fire wall to connect with Suzaku's unsuspecting form.
"AHHH!" Suzaku cawed as the shriek reverberated in her head. The fire wall, shawl, and remnants of the Maragidyne dissipated as she screamed.
"I parted the seas to open the pathway to knock your guard off! Focus is the only way to maintain your fire, right? Same with our Personas! Now, you're wide open!" Naoya looked over his shoulder, eyeing Masao and Brown.
"Maki, go to Eriko quick! Kei get ready to buff! Yukino your to guard Kei! Ayase keep back, you Fire Skills won't be much use here! Mark! Brown! Give those new Personas a whirl!"
"No problem, Nao! Let's get funky!" Masao thrust his axe-wielded hand in the air. "SUSANO-O!"
Brown averse to remove his fingers from Ayase apprehensive grip, hefted his spear upward. "Leave it to me, N.T.! TYR!"
"Whoa! Hold up, punk! What about me?" Reiji complained.
"Reiji, watch there backs!" Naoya exclaimed, giving the scarred teenager a trusting glance.
Reiji's curled lips of anger, met Naoya with an understanding nod. He crossed his arms and observed, waiting to intervene when needed. He scowled, shutting his eyes as the brilliant velvet light emanating from Brown and Masao, their respective evolved Personas appearing: Susano-o golden branched sword-wielding, purple-bodied, and skull-headed and Tyr, cape-wearing, axe-wielding, and mechanical handed.
"Both of them are going to attack with their evolved Personas? Can they penetrate her skin? If it is anything like her fire, I doubt it." Eriko fidgeted, Maki kneeled beside her where the fire once occupied.
"Don't worry, Eriko-chan, I'll fix you up good as new!"
"I DON'T doubt that…"
"Here's a little twist on a trick ol' Shen Long pulled back in the subway! POWER CHARGE!" A spring of energy surged underneath Susano-o. "Now! SUSANO-O! BRAVE BLADE!"
Brown coolly dragged his finger under his nostrils, parodying Masao's earlier throat-slit and his mannerism. "Birdo is going down and then Kandori's ass is ours!"
"Piss off, Brown! You have to come up with your own comparative or insultive nicknames!" Masao snapped.
"That's doesn't sound like Masao-kun, at all too!" Maki protested, Eriko unhealed.
"Ah screw it! TYR! ZANDYNE!"
Susano-o launched his rapidly spinning sword at Suzaku whose wings were bent inward. Tyr raised his axe up, a giant-sized ball of green Zan energy appearing. Tyr swung his axe downward, casting the Zandyne ball into Suzaku.
The cacophony of painful caws and squawks suddenly stopped. "PANIC AND CONFUSION CAN ONLY LAST SO LONG! AGIDYNE TSUBASAS (A/N)!" Suzaku's bent inward wings fluttered to her sides, ignited in a raging blaze. Her left fire-holstered wing blocked the oncoming red-aura coated branch sword of Susano-o. Her right elegant and fiery matching wing held the Zandyne in place, it not detonating.
"Her fire truly can protect her…with her recovery from the confusion, she stopped are only chance…unless…THAT'S IT!" Eriko waved Maki back. "Hold on!" She raised her rapier to the side of her head, a velvet and scarlet mixed mist wrapping around her. "She's open with her wings occupied!"
"Nice try, bitch!" Reiji shouted, his own scarlet and velvet mist surrounding himself. "But with your pitiful wings keeping Asshat's and Inaba's attacks from reaching your oh-so-delicate body, you're completely open!" He threw an uppercut. "HELL YEAH! BRES! TWIN SLASH!"
"Reiji has the same idea as me, but a mere physical strike won't suffice!" Eriko thought, slashing her rapier. The sword-hand knight Persona was all ready in his stance, rushing at Suzaku's open chest.
Bres planted his two consecutive slashes, digging in and cutting a firm "X" mark in Suzaku's breast, staining her vermillion fur with her legitimate red blood.
"How…dare…you!" She weakly yelled. "You tainted my-"
"Save it!" Eriko interrupted. "COME TO ME, NIKE!" Her goddess of victory, armored and haloed angel arrived on the scene, her wings all ready in preparation to unfold. "ZIONGA!" At Eriko's order in her injured state, Nike unfolded her curled in wings, letting her own full wingspan reach it's limits. Her face-plated head recline backwards, creating and letting loose the powerful electrical jolt from the heavens down on Suzaku's skull.
"AHHHHHHHHH!" Suzaku screamed in agony, the high voltage Zio Skill, running through her entire body. The electricity jostled and cooked her like the bird she was. The currents reached her talons and discharged through the ground, leaving her smoking, the flame guarding her wings gone and patches of her fur fried and charred with the "X" sword wound, bleeding her out. With the removal of her fire, the Brave Blade finished it's course, cutting into and out of her left wing, spraying blood on herself as it rounded back to Susano-o. Tyr's Zandyne detonating the instance the fire faded, blowing away a decent chunk of Suzaku's right wing as the Power Charged Brave Blade had cleaved.
"Nice job, Eriko!" Naoya gave her a thumps-up. She blushed.
"Way to go, Eriko-chan!" Maki cheered. Eriko frowned. "Now, let me heal you!"
"Hold it, little mouse!" Suzaku coughed vermillion droplets. "Smart girl, guessed my weakness…you'll have no more luck in defeating me, humans! I will now show you why I am the strongest of the Four Signs!" The golden-colored tail feather bent itself reaching to Suzaku.
"Bai Hu nullified the resistance his opponent had to his strength and attack all of them at once!" The silver-colored tail feather joined the gold. "Gui Xian buffed himself and put his opponent's on his playing field!" The black/aquamarine-colored tail feather joined the silver. "Long was simple, annihilating and decimating his prey in one technique!" The azure-colored tail feather joined the black/aquamarine. "I implement elements from all of them to kill my enemies!" The last feather, the vermillion-colored, stood at attention with the gold, silver, black/aquamarine, and azure.
"Everyone, brace yourselves!" Naoya ordered. "She gonna hit us harder than last time!"
"MATAKAJA x7!" Suzaku flapped her wing covering herself, with seven layers of white aura, garnering magical amplifications from each. "Buffing myself and razing everything in my path is my strategy! Good bye, children! AGIDYNE!"
Everyone gasped, a behemoth fireball four times the size of Suzaku was conjured and launched into the center of them. With no time to react, the Agidyne bombed the floor, exploding as the Maragidyne fireballs. Eriko covered her face, noticing Suzaku had sent it initially to her, revenge for damaging her with the Zionga. She took the brunt of the explosion as she had before with the Maragidyne. Everyone was struck in the back due to their thin attempts of evasion. Kei, Yukino, Masao, Brown, and Reiji were laying almost lifelessly due to connecting into the wall housing the erected doors that lead to the room. Naoya fell at Suzaku's feet, a majority of the explosion brushing a portion of his lower back and pushing him face-first forward. Maki was flopped, her limbs tangled around herself, she was conscious with Naoya and Eriko, but distress was painted in her pupils, Eriko could tell. Eriko had the worst of them all, the Agidyne scorched from left fingertips to shoulder. She managed to keep the flames from disfiguring her face, but the second set of burns haggard her. The pain had escalated, her focus was no longer beating to the rhythm of self-preservation, she wanted the pain to stop.
Her thoughts were quivering as her lips were. "I…my…my leg…my arm…I-I…the f-f-feeling…is…racking…the heat won't stop…coming…"
Suzaku cackled. "Seems the little mouse has had a taste of her weakness! HAHAA!"
Eriko gazed into Maki's eyes that matched her sting. "She must be paralyzed….l-like..ow…l-like Suzaku was when I used my Zionga…"
"Well guess my decimating attack didn't pull like my Maragidyne! You humans may have a decent tolerance to survive this long but I'm going to kill you all one by one! I'm tired of this battle! I'll start with you, mouse girl! I'll put you out of your misery!" Suzaku prepared her wings and tails, the aura pulsing.
Eriko's weapon tried to slip from her fingers. "I can't focus! Too much pain! If I don't cast a Dekunda, she'll die!"
Naoya moved to a knee, sluggish in his speed. "No I cannot allow that! Not with Naoya in such a state!" She slashed her rapier. "NIKE! MATAKANDA!" Nike unfolded her wings, dimming the Matakaja aura around Suzaku.
"A paltry Matakanda reduces my magical boosts minimally, girl!" Suzaku recharged with a single Matakaja. "It was a helpless effort for a helpless girl! You are useless! Out of the nine of you, you we're daft and were wounded by my firepower! Your Zio brought me anger to devastate your party and this mouse," Suzaku cawed at Maki. "Her weakness is her death! Let my fire cremate you and the crackle of your pyre be the funeral dirge! FLAME BREATH!"
Suzaku breathed the amazing flame breath at the defenseless Maki, who was just returning to mobility.
"MAKI!" Naoya cried, the horizontal column or fire zooming over his head at his sisterly friend.
"NO!" Eriko slashed her rapier again. "NIKE!" She screamed with the little clean oxygen in her lungs.
Naoya's eyes widened. "ERIKO!" Nike was sent to hover behind the coping Maki, taking the extent of the Matakaja x7 Flame Breath to her back. The near endless flame stream, spewed and overlaid Nike's posterior. Following the physics of Personas, as what is done on the Persona is done on to the User. Eriko was crying hot tears and yelping in defeat as her school uniform was burnt away and her back relentless scorched. "This is for Naoya's…and Maki's sake…not myself..."
The Flame Breath ended, Nike vanishing as her User had collapsed. The pain overcame her consciously and her fatigue drained her of whatever stamina remained. "I…can't…leave…them…now…I refuse to die like this…" Calling Nike to be a human shield for Maki was her last ditch effort.
"ERIKO-CHAN!" Maki exclaimed concerned, jostling her. "Eriko-chan, please, wake up!"
Naoya's hands shook violently with rage. "MAKI! HEAL HER! EVERYONE ON YOUR FEET!" He stomped his own foot, a scarlet mist materializing, listening attentively to Suzaku's hearty laughter. "I'LL RIP OUT YOUR GODDAMN VOICEBOX!"
Eriko heard Naoya's poisonous, malicious words. "No…don't drift to the Chaos…brave leader…no…my…love." Her mind went black as she lost total consciousness, images of Maki and Naoya flashing. Her brain occupied her sleep with a dream of a memory Eriko used to entertain herself with. The memory of the origins of her euphoric affection for Naoya Todo.
Persona: Be Your True Mind
Eriko Kirishima was not pleased. Arriving as a transfer student as a first year to St. Hermelin on her first day was not going well. She found her homeroom number, Room 5-A, and she was unsure were exactly it was. She was running late leaving her house and did not have the necessary time to search the entire first floor for her room. So, Eriko was hoping to get the attention of one of the rushing students to quickly point her in the right direction. There was only a sole problem.
"Is that chick with the red hair supposed to be that transfer student?"
"I heard her father's some bigwig executive and took his family abroad were she traveled the world and studied overseas for primary school."
"She's just a snob. Look at her, that silly ascot that she thinks makes her looks fancy. Let's ignore her…homeroom is due in soon."
Eriko's ears perked at each comment she heard. The students around her of all years were making such remarks and comments that they believed she wouldn't hear. Most of which pertained to her father, who was not rich according to any standards. He did travel around the world with her mother and her, where she did study abroad and overseas for primary school, but her father chose to settle for a reason in their hometown. He did want to keep shuffling his family from place to place, not just for work or business, education, or pleasure. It disgusted her that not a single one of them gave her a chance to introduce herself before sauntering off, ignoring her as some had stated, because she dressed formally unlike most of the girls she'd seen.
"Wonderful…I haven't even been her for twenty minutes and everyone all ready seems contemptible and shallow…" Eriko sighed, ready to give up and look for herself when…
"Hey, you look a little lost. You want some help finding a room?" It was calm male voice behind her.
She turned to see a boy as tall as her with wild ebony black hair and a lone simple earring in his ear. He seemed easy-going in appearance and a smile was on his face.
"Does he not know who I am? Might as well take the help before he realizes…" Eriko nodded yes. "Uh, yes…Room 5-A, please, I'm running a bit late."
His face was surprised. "Really, Room 5-A, that's my homeroom. Follow me, I'm running late too."
Eriko followed him closely down the hall. "He's running late and chose to help me…how selfless…"
"By the way, my name's Naoya Todo, my friends call me Nao, but you can call me anything you want. Everyone else already does."
"Naoya…well he certainly is charming and is the only person who was not inadvertently rude to me. Of course by this point he should recognize that I'm a transfer student…I mean why else would I need help finding my homeroom…"
"So, what's your name?" He asked, casually, stepping up his speed.
Eriko matched it, taken aback for the moment. "Uh, yes…Eriko Kirishima, thank you Naoya…"
"Eriko, huh? That's a nice name."
Her cheeks reddened. "It is quite common…"
"Well, her we are Room 5-A, if we're lucky Mr. Watanabe hasn't arrived yet. If not let's sneak in the back just in case. He doesn't like it if you're not inside five minutes to the designated time."
As they slid open the door on the back end, Eriko noticed a girl in a red ribbon, with brown hair framing her face standing next to a boy wearing a yellow tuque; they were standing, waiting for Naoya, she presumed.
"Ah, here it comes…'So I'll see you around Eriko, enjoy your stay at St. Hermelin…It's unfortunate. He was the only one to care and not judge."
"Yo, Nao! Watanabe's missed his train I heard, your home free, dude!" The yellow-hat wearing student stated, excited.
"Phew! Lucked out…oh…Eriko," Naoya stammered. "These are my friends Masao Inaba and Maki Sonomura. Guys, this is Eriko Kirishima.
"Nice to meet you, Eriko-chan!" Maki bowed politely.
"What's up?" Masao greeted.
"Oh, yes, hello, Masao…Maki." She bowed to each respectively. "Three people who didn't realize, I do kinda stick out with my ascot. Not that I'm not happy…"
"OH, I didn't think to ask, but are you new here Eriko?" Naoya asked taking a sit in a desk.
"Why, yes I am…" She turned soured. "Maybe I was wrong…"
"So, did you just move here or…?"
"Are you serious, Todo?" A sophisticated voiced boy, wearing glasses and neckerchief with the number one on it asked.
"What's that suppose to mean, Nanjo?" Masao countered.
"Yeah, Kei…" Maki added.
"She's the new transfer student, Eriko Kirishima. With your ill-bred mind enlightened, I leave you, monkey. Good bye Todo, Sonomura, Kirishima…" Kei walked to his seat in the front row.
Masao was riled up. "I swear the next time that bastard calls me a monkey I'm gonna kick his ass."
"He's not worth it, Mark…"
"So, Eriko-chan, you're a transfer student?"
"Yes…" She solemnly said. "Is she fascinated?"
"So, where'd you transfer from?" Masao asked, sitting backwards in his chair, genuinely interested. Naoya was too.
She half-smiled, taking her own seat. "It's a long story…not a specific place per say…" She regaled her newfound friends with the countries and seas she had visited due to her father's transferring due to work and personal choices. The three legitimately confessed to not knowing that St. Hermelin was getting a transfer student, let alone one who had traveled the world.
"We try to avoid rumors around her after Hidehiko Uesugi and Yuka Ayase decided to be partners in crime for the first month of school." Naoya stated.
"OH, yeah when those two came together, some weird shit was spread around her." Masao said.
"They're honest, they asked me questions, not a single one judged. They actually enjoyed the stories…" Eriko felt compelled to ask a question. "I don't seem like a snob to you three, right?"
"Of course not, Eriko-chan!" Maki insisted. "We just met today! Don't let the things some of these girls say get to you!"
"Yeah, most of the crap they spill is fed and birthed from the shit Brown a.k.a. Hidehiko and the hundreds other rumormongers this school has circulate and telephone." Masao explained.
"Plus, even if I did know you were a transfer student and heard all the rumors spread, you'd looked like you were struggling and I wouldn't have felt right leaving you there."
"Really…he's…so…sweet…" She blushed. "Well, what you did really helped, thank you, Nao."
"No problem…if you needed more directions Maki, Mark, or I will help you out."
"Yeah, no worries, and we'll help you avoid the dicks and bitches." Masao said, grinning stupidly.
"And if you want Eriko-chan, you can join our table at lunch?"
"Lunch?" Eriko repeated, her spirits dropping. "I knew I forgot something."
"Something wrong?" Naoya asked.
"Yes…I was in a hurry this morning and forgot to grab my lunch money…" She grimaced.
"Don't worry, I've gotcha covered…" Naoya swiftly retrieved his wallet from pocket and pulled out 1500 Yen and handed to Eriko without question or protest. "Here you go."
"Ah, thank you again, I'll pay you back."
"No need, it's fine, really…"
"Are you sure?"
"Uh-huh,"
"Absolutely selfless, handsome, and he's charming…I think I may be in love…I hope he likes the occult…" Her face was flushed again.
The morning had begun horribly. The student body in the entrance hall ignoring Eriko and passing her off as the rumors had portrayed her: a pompous, pretentious, snobbish princess. As the days died, so did the excessive, over-exaggerated rumors and Eriko felt more welcome by everyone not just her newly made friends of Masao, Maki, and Naoya. She did not want to wish harm on any of them, she believed in the mystical, demons, and the occult. It fascinated her and she wanted to be able to guard this friendship made, oversee and protect her friends. Meeting Naoya, the first decent and humble person of St. Hermelin kick started her heart into overdrive. He had demonstrated, kindness and selflessness to her which to Eriko were qualities of importance in her mind. She had feelings for this boy because of his nature and actions, it was rooted affection she couldn't overcome.
"DIARAMA!" Maki's voice shattered the dream. "RECARM!"
Persona: Be Your True Mind
"Eriko-chan, wake up! Please, I healed you! Your burns are gone!"
"That dream…it was a memory…" Eriko felt the pain leave and the clothes return, helping herself up to Maki's worried face. "I'd forgot Naoya wasn't the solo welcoming and warm person."
"Eriko-chan! Thank God, you're okay!"
"Eriko!" Naoya exclaimed, his scarlet mist transferring to a white and dissipating.
She stood with Maki, everyone else was prepared to fight to the end, weapons in hand. "I can see things clearer now…"
"So, the hapless girl survived! Here this boy was making empty threats because he thought you were dead and the mouse girl was crying in hopes her healing Skills fixed you!" Suzaku cawed, the Matakaja glow still surrounding her.
Eriko picked up her discarded rapier, bringing it to the side of her face. "I see that my jealousy is misplaced, I cannot forget a friendship even if she holds the heart of Naoya in her hands. They are as brothers and sisters, friends since youth. I cannot insert myself in between unless Nao chooses me or her until that is the case I refuse to let the jealousy rise and conquer." She glared a Suzaku, everyone silent.
"Eriko…" Naoya whispered.
"Please, allow me to do this, Nao."
"Please, child! You may utilize my weakness, but your are useless! You'll be crippled and I'll enjoyed watching you squirm as I burn away your group here within a blaze!"
"I will protect my friends! I am their guardian angel! COME!" The velvet mist enveloped her, soaring as to the ceiling top, the height of Suzaku. "I'll no longer be biased and jealous towards my friends! I'll think of everyone! Not just myself! I'll be like Nao and in the future, whatever will be will be! I cannot be the judge to my destiny!" Eriko lashed her Rapier forward. "PERSONA!"
A shatter of glass heard in Masao's mind. "Thou art I and I am thou! Thou has proven thyself worthy of the power of Judgment! Thou hast have a revelation of the heart and demonstrated awareness of thyself and others and thou and their wellbeings! Thou hast earned her Ultimate Judgment! Nike hast become Michael, the Chief of the Angels!"
Nike's polished silver armored broke away from her form, emitting a awesome ethereal light from her uncovering. Emerging from that light and releasing Nike's body as an empty shell was Michael the Archangel, a man seven feet tall, wearing nothing but a loincloth and leather shoulder pads. His skin was slightly bronze, glistening even in the darkness with a holy aura. His wings reached to his sides at ten feet, far passed the tips of his fingers and feet. His eyes were a pure white, no irises or pupils to show color or character. His jaw was firmly set shut, his hair platinum blonde, cut short, and spiked up. He held in his hand a silver spear matching the sheen and texture of Nike's previous armor and was the length of his entire body.
Suzaku gawked, stumbling. "HUH? WHAT'S THAT?"
"YOUR DEMISE! MICHAEL! DEBILITATE!" Colorful auras of blue, green, yellow, red, and white shimmered around Suzaku at the jab of her spear, bearing away her Matakajas and her own evasiveness, power, magic, and defenses. "YOU ARE FINISHED! HEAVEN'S JUDGEMENT!" Michael stabbed forward in a lunge, lighting from the heavens charging it to release a supreme yellow and blue, electrical sparks and streaks escaped from the spearhead and blunt end. He took aim and launched his spear, the heaven's energy embracing it in flight as it's ran Suzaku through the heart. The electricity flowed fully into her as before, except she began to unleash the yellow and blue sparks and streaks from the spear lodged through her, electricity still discharging from the spearhead on the other side. The voltage shock expanded, capturing Suzaku's beautiful fur until she combusted, her particles sliced clean apart and zapped by the transcended lightning. The spear returned to it's master's welcoming hands as Suzaku's screamed, her wings, talons, torso, neck, tails, and head breaking down to basic materials and flying away as vermillion dust.
Michael disappeared, leaving the battle complete and the Persona-Users victorious. He had brought his heavenly judgment to obliterate Suzaku from the inside out with the righteous thunder that trumps all flame. Eriko saw a card float down in the recesses of her mind, depicting Michael brandishing his spear and extending his wings.
"Eriko-chan…that was so...cool!" Maki was ecstatic.
"Glad to see your Persona has made progress too Eriko." Masao gave her a thumps-up, glancing at a flabbergasted Brown and a pondering Kei.
"Congratulations, Kirishima, it seems you are the fourth of us to have our Persona evolved." Kei complemented.
"Yeah, and each time it happens, it hurts my pride…" Brown sobbed, wanting attention which Ayase chose to give him.
"Like, it's all right, yours is cooler…" She patronized.
Yukino sighed. "I'm not gonna even gonna scold you. It should be obvious."
Reiji spat. "Feh, nothing special! If she wasn't immune to Light and Dark like all the others, I'd have wiped her out in one Mudo."
Eriko breathed relief. "We won and I feel at ease…Naoya's choice is not a game and is not my call. I won't force him to make a decision and I won't hassle him in trying to pick me. As for Maki, I hope she never has to hear the coldness in my heart, soul, and mind ever again. I want to be her friend whether she is the real thing or not."
"Okay, everyone, I'm healing us!"
"Then, when Maki is done, we'll take a five minute break to gather ourselves and then Kandori is next! He's up those stairs waiting for us and we're bringing the fight to him!" Naoya explained.
Eriko wanted to go to him, express exactly what she felt. "Now and is not the right place or moment. When this is done, I'll apologize to the real Maki for the things I've thoughts and I'll show my love to Nao. If he chooses Maki it won't harm our friendship. There'd be not a thing to discuss. We'll always be friends, we'll always think of everyone else including ourselves. Masao may watch his back and Naoya may watch his, but I'll watch over everyone!"
Persona: Be Your True Mind
A/N: Wings it should be.
I seriously don't want to talk about this chapter anymore. I just simply want to state it took a long time because I had to REWRITE THE ENTIRE THING THREE DIFFERENT TIMES! None of which were technical difficult simply me being a stubborn prick and not liking how ANY of the introductions or the battles came out. I busted my ass, shaving off, adding in, mixing up that fight scene because fire is so fucking hard to work with. It was a nightmare. I AM SO SORRY! I cannot believe this took this long! I struggled with this, but the next one will not be the case I PROMISE. That one is two scenes mostly taken from the game with a fight scene from a returning character to replace the crappy boss that you would normal fight. It's also a major plot point. Either way, I hope you enjoyed Chapter Nineteen of Persona: Be Your True Mind and I'll see you next time for Chapter Twenty: Mana Castle Part 2: Takeda Round 2.
Brown: Man what is with these revelations! I thought this was my shtick!
Me: *Facepalms* *Sighs* Brown, just because your Persona evolved doesn't mean it was going to be exclusive to you.
Masao: Yeah, Brown, you can't hog all the character development!
Brown: But you guys get all the awesome ones! I get a armless superhero with an AXE!
Kei: Mine is is my dearly departed butler and friend mechanized…
Masao: Mine is a roided-up tribal dude with a huge sword and hair problems
Eriko: Oh I'm part of this. *Ahem* Mine is the Chief of all Angels
Brown: Well, at least mine is cooler than hers…*Mopes*
Me: Here's a cookie, now shut up about it. Peace out everyone!