Author's Note:

Sorry, for the delay with this chapter. Apparently trying to write around Christmas is not exactly the best time to write. Wow, I can't believe that this story has so many views. Thank you everyone for the support.

Disclaimer: Persona 3 and its characters belong to Atlus.

Here's chapter six. Enjoy!

Ch. 6

Tower of Demise

Dark Hour

Hamuko clung to her brother.

The two Arisatos were currently in Minato's room, sleeping in Minato's bed. Due to how Hamuko's belongings needed to be moved and that a new bed was needed, the twins had to make due in the mean time and share the same bed. They didn't mind though. When they were younger, the two would sleep together in the same bed.

So here they were sleeping, completely exhausted by the day's events. Not caring for the dark green glow that was brought on as they slept. Their sleep would have continued to be peaceful and uneventful if not for-

"Hi, how are you?"

Hamuko's red-brown eyes shot open. She detached herself from her brother's side and slowly got up. Hamuko groggily looked around to find out the source of the voice. It took only a short second as she turned to face the room's center.

Her eyes widened.

Him again…? How did he…?

But, yet here he was. The same boy that Minato and she first encountered when they entered the dorm was standing right in front of her now.

The boy stood there. He was still dressed in his striped clothing, so there was no doubt that it was the same boy. He even retained his mysterious smile which was now on his face.

When she faced him, the boy tilted his head slightly and giggled.

It was then that Hamuko decided to wake up Minato. While he may not enjoy being woken up so late, this was something that he had to see too. She turned around and faced her brother.

"Minato-nii…Minato-nii, wake up." She whispered, as she lightly shook his shoulder. At first there seemed to be no response, so Hamuko tried again. "Minato-nii, get up!" She shook a little harder this time.

The blue-haired teen slowly began to wake up. His grey eyes blinked a few times before remaining open. He looked up at his sister.

"Hamuko…? What is it? Don't you know how late it is?" Minato groaned as he slowly began to get up from his sleeping position.

"I know. But, look." She tilted her head in the direction of the mysterious boy.

Hamuko saw her brother get into a sitting position. Afterwards, Minato then tilted his head in the direction that his sister indicated.

Minato's eyes suddenly widened.

"You again? He asked, surprised.

The mysterious boy nodded; the smile never leaving his face as he did so.

Hamuko was now facing the boy as well. "Okay…But, how did you get in here?" She then said.

But, instead of answering her question right away, the boy instead chuckled.

"*chuckle* I'm always with you," he answered.

Hamuko felt a shiver down her spine. Always with us…? The thought only seemed to disturb her. She was then going to ask on what he meant, but was quickly silenced when the boy spoke again.

"Soon, the end will come." He replied. "I remembered it, so I thought that I should tell you guys."

"Wha-?"

None of what this boy was telling them was making any sense. First, there was what happened the day that they arrived at the dorm, then how he now said that he was always with them, and finally, he was talking about some end. When would the boy start making any sense?!

Hamuko was too focused on her thoughts to say anything more, but soon her thinking was interrupted when her brother spoke out.

"What do you mean by 'the end'?" She heard Minato ask.

The boy titled his head. "Well, the end of everything." But then he looked off to the side. "…But to be honest, I don't really know what it is either." The boy frowned in disappointment.

However, the boy did not remain like that for long. He looked back at the two twins on the bed.

"Oh, it looks like the both of you have awakened to you power." He said. "I must say though that it is quite the unusual power. A power that takes many forms, yet is bound by none. And the fact that it is present in two people seems to make it all the more unusual."

"Still, this power could lead you to your salvation or destruction, depending on the path you choose."

The boy quickly vanished. Hamuko and Minato then looked around furiously, trying to find where the mysterious boy went. But they didn't have to look that long as the boy then showed up near the foot of Minato's bed.

"Do you remember the first time that we met? I expect you to honor your commitment to the contract, as you are forever bound to it." The boy said, before he disappeared again and reappeared once more in the room's center.

"I'll be watching you, even if you forget about me…Good-bye."

The boy disappeared.

Hamuko sighed.

"Thank goodness, he's finally gone." She breathed in relief.

"Yeah."

The auburn-haired girl turned to face her brother. She saw Minato's face and was able to see a slight frown on it.

Upon noticing Hamuko facing him now, Minato looked at her as well.

"But, I doubt that we'd ever forget someone like him." He said.

"Mm. No kidding." She softly replied.

The room then fell silent.

Hamuko shuffled uneasily within the bed covers; she didn't like this uncomfortable silence. "Minato-nii?," she asked.

"Yes?"

"Let's just go back to sleep." She said. Hamuko then watched Minato's face for a reaction. At first it looked as if Minato might pursue the subject of the boy, however he closed his eyes and sighed.

"Yeah…let's just go back to sleep." He answered. She then saw Minato lean back down onto the bed and lie down. Hamuko silently nodded. She too then went on to join her brother and lied down.

Hamuko snuggled up to Minato. Once she felt comfortable near him, she tried to return to sleep by closing her eyes.

But, the mysterious boy's visit stirred up questions in her mind.

What is this 'end'? Why does our power seem so special from the others? Does he only appear to Minato-nii and me? And what does he mean that our power can lead to our salvation or destruction? Ugh…

Hamuko tried to push these things to the back of her mind. She simply didn't feel like confronting these questions after having such an eventful day. She didn't want to think about some 'end' that might happen nor did she care much about her newfound power. No doubt that Minato and she would discuss about the issue, but for now Hamuko just wanted to sleep.

-XXII-

April 21, 2009

Early Morning

Great. Now I'm starting to act like Minato-nii with his sleeping-in habits.

Hamuko tried to rub the sleepiness out of her eyes. She heard Minato give a yawn beside her. This morning seemed to be hell for them both.

It didn't help either that the boy's cryptic message was nagging at her either.

Sure in the morning when they both woke up, the twins talked over what happened, just as anticipated. However, nothing was resolved nor answered. The only conclusion that they came to was that at the moment there was nothing they could do. This greatly irritated Hamuko, as she hated doing nothing and being left in the unknown.

But, there's still a chance that maybe the boy might show up. After all, he did show up again last night when we thought that we'd never see him again. But then again…he may not. Urgh! I hate this!

She looked over at her brother, who was now listening to something on his mp3. Hamuko determined that Minato was probably thinking too. After all, whenever he listened to his mp3, it meant that he was thinking deeply.

"Hey, are you guys okay? Did you get any good sleep?"

Hamuko looked to her left to see a concerned Yukari.

It seemed that Yukari had decided to leave again with the two twins. Hamuko recalled Minato asking for the reason, but Yukari simply claimed that she just felt like it. So the brunette was with them in the morning once again.

"Uhm, we're fine." Hamuko answered. "It's just that we were thinking about us being a part of S.E.E.S. last night, so we weren't able to get that much sleep."

That was another thing. Hamuko wasn't sure how this whole Persona vs. Shadow thing was going to work. The details were all that specific from yesterday's talk. She didn't know what to expect. And it didn't help that Minato was stubborn about the whole issue. But, still, her answer to Yukari's question was half truth. This S.E.E.S. ordeal was an issue, but it wasn't what kept her brother and her up. Of course Hamuko wasn't going to give the complete truth about seeing some boy in the middle of the night. No one would believe it. So she remained silent on that.

Yukari then looked up briefly at the sky before looking at the two again.

"Oh. Yeah…about that. I want to thank you guys." She said.

The two Arisatos, as Minato had turned his mp3 off, looked at her with their undivided attention. Yukari continued.

"I know that it was a tough decision and that you guys weren't exactly given a choice, but…I appreciate it. Akihiko-senpai's injured right now, so it made me feel uneasy to work alone with Mitsuru-senpai. But having you guys around makes it easier and I also trust in you guys more. So…thank you. It means a lot to me."

Hamuko felt genuine sincerity in Yukari's thank-you and she could tell that the girl truly appreciated having their presence on the team. Hamuko flashed a smile. "Don't worry, Yukari-chan. You can rely on me! I won't let you down!"

Yukari smiled and giggled at the auburn-haired girl's response. The brunette then focused her gaze at Minato to hear if he was going to say anything. Hamuko also turned to face her brother in order to hear his answer.

Minato rubbed the back of his head.

"Mm. Yeah, well, even though I'm not that all for this whole thing, that doesn't mean that I'll not do my best." Minato let his hand drop before he then flashing a thumbs-up with a straight face. "You've got my support and I'll do whatever I can."

Hamuko couldn't help but giggle at her brother's actions. It was amusing to see her brother try and act cool. However it did not go unnoticed and Minato glared at her.

"Hey, I'm just voicing my honest opinion. The least you can do is take me seriously." He frowned.

"Hah hah ha… Sorry, Minato-nii." Hamuko gasped. "It's just that you look cute when you're trying to act cool."

"C-Cute?" His eye twitched.

Yukari and Hamuko then both laughed at the expression on Minato's face. It was just too priceless to not. The two girls continued to laugh for a good time as they walked towards the school, but when they neared the school gate they managed to stop.

"Well anyways," Yukari started, "I just want to say again that I'm thankful for you guys' help. I know that you won't let us down. So, let's do our best together!" She then flashed a smile of her own at the twins. The two Arisatos each gave a smile in return.

It was then that the school bell rang, indicating that class was going to start soon. The three juniors picked up the pace of their walk. The last thing that the Arisatos needed was to be late for class.

-0-

Lunchtime

Yukari put a hand to her mouth, "*yawn* I thought I was gonna fall asleep in there." The girl emphasized this by soon stretching out her arms.

The two Arisatos gave a nod as well before they were stretching around in their desk chairs. It wasn't easy to stay awake listening to Mr. Ekoda's lectures. It also didn't help that their fatigue seemed to linger. But for some reason or other, they did not give in to the temptation of sleeping. No matter how tempting it was.

"Yeah," Junpei agreed, "A little midday siesta sure beats listening to Ekoda's preaching about the greatness of some old books I've never even heard of." Which was just what Junpei did.

The others rolled their eyes in exasperation. Junpei never ceased to amaze them.

The four of them were currently gathered around Minato and Hamuko's desks, talking. However their talk was then cut short by the sliding of the classroom's front door. The four juniors, along with others in the class, looked towards the door. Their eyes then simultaneously widened.

They did not expect to see Mitsuru come in through the door. They saw her briefly scan the room for something before her gaze settled onto their group. Then she slowly started to walk in their direction.

Some students that were near the door instantly moved from their spot as soon as Mitsuru neared. Hamuko and Minato each inwardly shivered. Who knew that their senpai commanded so much respect? Or was it fear?

Either way, their senpai did give off an intimidating air.

It wasn't soon after these thoughts entered their heads when suddenly Mitsuru was standing right next to Yukari. The senior's eyes focused on the twins, seemingly ignoring the other juniors in the group.

"Can I have a minute?"

Hamuko and Minato looked at each other through the corners of their eyes before focusing on their senpai.

"Sure. That's fine, Senpai." Minato answered.

The red-head nodded before then explaining.

"Come to the lounge when you get back to the dorm. I have something to tell everyone. I'll save the details for later. See you there."

After she finished, Mitsuru turned on her heel and left. The classroom door slid shut.

A small, awkward silence filled the group.

"Er…that was fast." Hamuko stated.

Yukari folded her arms, "She's probably busy with things like Student Council, unlike us." A slight harsh tone detected in her voice as she said this.

"Whoa, Yuka-tan,"Junpei whistled, "Do I sense some hostility goin' on?"

Yukari let her arms drop and she faced Junpei. "Well, it's not that I don't like her…It's just that…She's just…" The pink-clad brunette fumbled over her was trying to find some way to explain her dislike of the red-haired senior without sounding petty. But she just couldn't find the words to help her.

Hamuko's red-brown eyes softened in sympathy. She could tell that Yukari was feeling uncomfortable over the subject. Hmmm…She kinda reminds me of Minato-nii when she's like that. She thought as Yukari's behavior reminded her of her brother whenever he would be put on the spotlight and he'd feel uncomfortable.

Quickly, Hamuko decided to help her out.

"There's nothing wrong with that Yukari-chan." Hamuko reassured. "Besides, Senpai does feel like she's…different from the rest of us. I don't know how to explain it either, but she seems to have this mysterious aura around her. Or at least that's what I figure."

Yukari looked at her and gave a look of gratitude, relieved that she wasn't the only one to not feel uneasy around the senior.

"Anyways," Minato now spoke up and looked at Junpei, "It isn't your business, Junpei. You were eavesdropping so really the conversation doesn't apply to you." When he finished, Minato took a bite out of his melon bread and then took a sip from his Cielo Mist.

"Aw, come on, dude!" Junpei protested. "You gotta keep your ears open, you know. You can learn so many interesting things just by listening."

"Says the one who slept during Classic Lit." Minato bluntly countered.

"Okay, okay. You got me there. But, in my defense, I meant by listening to something interesting. Ekoda's lectures are anything but that." Junpei replied. Then he looked down at Minato's desk and saw the food that was on it.

"Speaking of hearing interesting things…," Junpei licked his lips, "I'd be interested to hear if you agree about sharing a piece of that melon bread of yours."

The others looked at Minato as he only pulled the bread closer to himself. His eyes then narrowed in distrust at the cap-wearing teen.

Hamuko sighed. Oh, Minato-nii…

She looked up at Junpei, who currently had a confused expression on his face. "Uhm…Junpei…?" She said.

"Yeah?" He looked at her.

"Don't ask that again." She warned.

"B-But, why?" He argued.

"Weeelll…How do I explain it?" Hamuko put a hand to her chin in thought. "Uhm…uhh… how 'bout I say it this way", she began, " Junpei, imagine trying to take a bone from a starving, rabid dog whose only food was just one bone. That's how my brother is with his melon bread, so if you try and take it…well… like a rabid dog he'll go for the jugular. But, since Minato-nii's not a dog, he'll just end up kicking your ass."

"Damn straight." Minato answered as he took a sip from his Cielo Mist. He then sent a glare Junpei's way to finalize the effect.

"Y-Yeah, o-okay." Junpei shivered. "I hear ya."

Yukari simply shook her head at this whole thing. Granted she appreciated that she wasn't being interrogated by Junpei, by how did this conversation ever delve into melon bread and kicking Junpei's ass?

-I-

Afterschool

"A-About earlier…It's not that I don't like Mitsuru-senpai or anything, y'know? I just…I don't know…I just feel that" Yukari sighed.

Hamuko and Yukari were walking through the Iwatodai strip mall. The reason for their going back to the dorm together was because Yukari didn't have to go to archery practice, which left her with nothing for the afternoon.

However, she met up with Hamuko at the lockers and so she asked if they could possibly do something together. Hamuko agreed as she herself had nothing to do too. Her reason was that Junpei had somehow whisked Minato away for something, leaving her by herself. And so the two girls left the school together and were walking through the strip mall.

As of now they were just talking about different things, but now it seemed Yukari wanted to reassure Hamuko that she had nothing against their senpai. The red-brown eyed girl simply shook her head.

"You don't have to explain," Hamuko waved off, "I'm not like Junpei. I won't bug you for an answer."

"Thanks. But yeah, Junpei…" Yukari groaned. "Why does he always have to talk about things that aren't even his business, huh? It also doesn't help that he says it in the creepiest, most perverted way possible. I swear he's like the poster boy for sexual harassment." She rubbed the bridge of her nose. Hamuko nodded.

Yukari then looked at her, "Hey. Did you seriously mean it that Minato-kun could probably beat the living daylights out of Junpei?"

The other girl looked at her, before turning her gaze to the afternoon sky.

"Yeah, he could." She answered. " I know Minato-nii may not look like much, considering that he's a little scrawny and all, but he's pretty strong in a fight. He could wipe the floor with Junpei."

So, I've noticed... Yukari thought, recounting that one night during observation when she...

The brunette instantly turned her thoughts towards something else, not liking where her previous trail of thought was leading. Yukari then decided to change the topic back to Junpei, trying her best to not focus on that memory.

"Heh, if only you guys were here last year. Last year, Junpei…"

-II-

Evening

Minato was sitting on one of the dorm's couches. Right now he was watching the T.V., but all he was seeing so far was some news coverage about Apathy Syndrome and the number of victims that totaled currently. So he turned it off.

Wow, I never knew that it was that much of a problem. I wonder why we never heard that much-

The front door then clicked open; Minato looked in the direction of the noise. He saw his sister and Yukari standing there.

"Yo," he greeted. The two girls greeted him in return.

The blue-haired teen got up from his seat and made his way to them.

"I was waiting for you guys. What took you so long?" He asked.

"Nothing, Minato-nii. We just stopped by the strip mall, that's all. It would have been nice if you could've joined us." Hamuko answered.

"Sorry, it's just that Junpei wanted to tell me about something and he was insistent about it. I couldn't exactly back out of it, so I hung out with him for awhile. But, for some weird reason, he said that he had something urgent and he left. Though during the whole time we mostly just talked. That's all." Minato said.

"Anyways," he continued, "We should head up to that room on the fourth floor. Both the senpais and even Ikutsuki are up there."

"Awwww…really?" Hamuko whined. She saw her brother flash a look of sympathy at her, before he nodded. He wasn't looking forward to it either.

-III-

After going up the stairs, the three teens opened the huge door leading to the Command Room.

They were greeted by the sight of Mitsuru, Akihiko, and the Chairman already in their seats. Mitsuru looked up.

"Welcome back." She said. Akihiko looked at them also.

"We were waiting for you. There's someone that we wanted to introduce to you guys."

"Huh? Introduce?" Yukari questioned.

The grey-haired senior got up from his chair and went to the door. He opened it and went outside for a few minutes.

But it wasn't long before the senior returned back. Akihiko stood in the doorway and looked behind him.

"Hey! Hurry up!" He shouted.

Shortly afterwards the room's occupants heard something come up the stairs, as well as muffled speech.

"Hold your horses…Geez; it's not that easy to walk up these many stairs after carrying my entire luggage here. Gimme some slack."

Now why does that voice seem familiar?, the juniors wondered.

Soon it was very apparent why that was.

"J-Junpei?!" She shouted, gaping at the new arrival. "…Why are YOU here!?" It was then that she froze. Oh god…There's no way that…Oh god, NO!

"Wait, don't tell me that-" Yukari dreaded what the answer was.

Akihiko looked between the group of dumbstruck juniors and Junpei. "Well, it seems that you guys already know each other so that's taken care of. But as of today, Junpei Iori will be staying here in the dorm."

Junpei gave a huge grin and chuckled, "Wazzup?"

The juniors continued to stare in disbelief before Yukari spoke out once again, "He's staying HERE?! You've gotta be kidding me!" Minato and Hamuko remained shocked.

Meanwhile the senior lifted an eyebrow. He was confused by the juniors' actions; he personally didn't see the problem with having Junpei on their team. Besides, isn't it great that they have another Persona-user? But, anyways…

"I bumped into him the other night," Akihiko explained, "He has the potential, but he just awakened to it recently. So I told him about us and he agreed to help us."

"Well…that's surprising." Minato mumbled.

"YOU have the potential?!" Yukari exclaimed; her mind unable to comprehend how someone like Junpei (JUNPEI!) had the potential. Her brown eyes then looked at Junpei, "For real?!"

Junpei rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Heh, heh, yeah. Senpai here found me cryin' like a baby at the convenience store, surrounded by a bunch of creepy coffins. I don't remember much about the whole thing, but…man was I embarrassed!"

He then smiled. "Senpai said that it's, ya know, completely normal…in the beginning. Like, bein' confused and not remembering anything. Did that happen to you guys?" He looked over at the group.

"Nope."Hamuko said.

"No." Minato followed.

"Pssshh. Big deal." Junpei muttered. "It happens to everyone else. Right, Yuka-tan?"

"I…"

"See!" He exclaimed. "I'm not the only one…But man was I surprised to found out about you guys. I had no idea. Glad to see some familiar faces though. After all, I would feel a little lonely being by myself."

"Hey, Junpei. Is this why you ran off all of a sudden today?" Minato said.

Hamuko looked at her brother and thought over what he just said; suddenly a little light bulb in her flicked on.

"Ohhhh…Now I get it." She looked up at Junpei. "Is this the reason why that one time you said something but you stopped before saying what it was?"

The capped teen looked at them. "Yeahhh…sorry 'bout that dudes. It's just that Senpai told me that I shouldn't say anything. So I didn't, besides it made up for a nice surprise anyways in the end."

"Some surprise…" Yukari groaned.

Junpei then beamed a radiant smile, "Well I bet you guys are all stoked too, right?! Havin' me join the team!"

Hamuko chuckled. "Yeah. Let's do our best!"

"Huh? Oh, sure, y-yeah..." Yukari hesitantly answered.

Minato simply nodded.

And suddenly as if he was never there, the Chairman's voice came from the background. "Well then, it seems that everyone is here. Please sit down; I would like to have your undivided attention."

The standing juniors and Akihiko then began to walk towards the seats and each one eventually settled down. After they were done, they all looked towards Ikutsuki.

The Chairman cleared his throat and started to talk.

"Ahem. Now for a long time, Mitsuru and Akihiko were the only Persona-users that we had. But, as of now, that number has jumped up to six. Therefore, starting tonight at 12:00 a.m., I'd like to commence the exploration of Tartarus."

"Finally," Akihiko said with excitement, "We can now explore that place."

However, Minato, Hamuko, and Junpei were now at a loss at what that place was.

"Tartarus…?" Junpei asked. "What is that? Sounds like a weird name for a toothpaste."

Minato looked at Ikutsuki, "Mr. Chairman, what is this place anyways? You didn't say anything about that yesterday." Across from Minato, Yukari looked at her fellow juniors.

"You guys haven't seen it yet?" She said.

Minato looked at her now. "Seen what?" Hamuko also looked at Yukari for an answer too.

Ikustuki pushed up his glasses and answered. "Forgive me, Minato-san. It seems that the subject slipped my mind yesterday. But, it's no surprise that you have not seen this place as it only appears during the Dark Hour."

"Huh? Dark Hour?" Junpei suddenly questioned; however he was ignored as Akihiko then went over the subject of Tartarus.

"It's just like with the Shadows. This place is where we train as that's the Shadow's nest. We weren't able to do this before as the place is crawling with them, but now…" A look of bloodlust passed through his grey eyes. "Now, we can."

Junpei looked at Akihiko with shock. "Whoa… You mean we're going into their nest? Sweet!"

Hamuko though looked across at her senpai.

"But, Senpai…what about your injury?" She asked, concerned over his health.

Mitsuru then gave a fierce look at said person, "Now that Arisato-chan has mentioned it…Since Akihiko hasn't fully recovered yet, he will come with us to the entrance."

Akihiko looked away and frowned in disappointment. "…Yeah, I know."

He then grumbled about how Mitsuru didn't let him do anything. However, Mitsuru was able to pick this up quickly and she glared at him.

"Excuse me?" She asked.

Akihiko looked up to her in panic. "N-No. N-Nothing. It was nothing."

She gave a sharp nod. "Good."

Everyone in the room sweat-dropped over the exchange; Ikutsuki merely gave a huge sigh.

"Well, I wouldn't be too worried, Akihiko. Since we're dealing with the Shadows, Tartarus isn't something that we can avoid. Eventually, we will have to return to it each night so long as it appears."

Mitsuru faced the Chairman now.

"And what of you, Mr. Chairman?" She questioned.

Ikutsuki's shoulders dropped in defeat. "I will stay here. As you know, I cannot summon a Persona."

With the Tartarus explanation seemingly finished, Junpei's eyes were filled with excitement and wonder. He then looked at his now fellow teammates.

He smirked, "Relax, dudes! I got your backs!"

Minato, Hamuko, and Yukari had blank looks on their faces.

"I'm not sure about this…" Yukari said.

"Yeah, Junpei…Uhm…" Hamuko added. Sure she believed that Junpei would no doubt be of some help, but to completely entrust her safety in his hands…

"Why does that give me a bad feeling?" Minato commented.

Junpei gave a blank look at them in return.

"Well thanks for the vote of confidence!"

-IV-

The small group of teenagers finally arrived at their location from the train station. They stopped at the entrance with Minato struggling in the back. He was carrying the black duffel bag that contained all of S.E.E.S.' equipment, as Akihiko was injured. Junpei wasn't allowed to carry it as its contents were valuable. So of course such an important task should only fall to someone responsible; Minato was the prime candidate.

At first he complained and asked that Hamuko help him, but was met with the excuse that he was stronger and more suited for the job. He grumbled and called Hamuko a "lazy woman", which prompted a smack from her.

However, he finally managed to catch up with them.

Meanwhile Junpei was scanning the area, gaping at it.

"This is it? THIS is the place you guys were talking about?! Why HERE?"

His eyes continued to look the place over; trying to find anything unnatural.

The place that the group was standing before was none other than Gekkoukan High. To be specific, they were standing before the locked school gates.

Akihiko took out his phone and flipped it open.

"Just a few more minutes," he muttered, "It's almost midnight."

-V-

The light display on Akihiko's phone showed 11:59 with a few seconds to go. The seconds quickly passed by and soon the phone flashed 12:00 before turning off.

The darkened screen reflected the dark night sky with the crescent moon hanging above. But, the sky and moon did not remain like this for long.

The eerie green light of the Dark Hour soon descended; bathing the atmosphere in its glow. The moon suddenly turned a creepy shade of green-yellow.

This transformation did not faze the S.E.E.S members as they were already accustomed to it. But, what did faze them was what happened next.

-VI-

A deafening rumble sounded throughout the whole area. Soon, tall walls began to rise up from the school, engulfing the entire building. Various parts of buildings and staircases jutted out from the main tower and twisted to form bizarre forms. The layers and blocks of it lapped over one another in chaotic directions. A red fountain of sorts was flowing from one of the tower's sides.

A loud cacophony of noise echoed in the silent night. The groans of the metal

The tower continued to rise up and groan as it grew larger. This monstrous transformation ended when the tower had ultimately reached up towards the sky with the yellow, crescent moon looming above.

A/N:

- Originally, I was planning to write the rising of Tartarus and the first expedition into one chapter, but I then realized that it was way too long for just one chapter. So hence the next chapter shall be the first trip to Tartarus.

- I can't believe that Persona 5 is going to come during winter 2014! (Or at least in Japan…) I wonder what the story and characters will be like. The theme is interesting enough and I heard that it will be pretty dark. However, I do hope that some conclusion is brought to P3xP4. Such as with the case of Minato/Hamuko and if Elizabeth/Theodore is able to free them. Their story can't just hang out in limbo, as there are still a few things that still need to be touched on. But, I have no doubt that Persona 5 will be a great game either way.

- Anyways, please review, fave/follow, or give feedback. Very much appreciated and I thank you guys for the support for this story and for reading this chapter.