(I have a cruel love for Zero; he was the one person I wanted to see snap. xP)
Your shift at the hospital kept you from rescuing Zero. You knew it wasn't supposed to rain for a while and that he would be fine, however. Working at the hospital was less tiresome than hours in the television, so you hoped to use this day to rest up a bit. You eased your mind and focused on your job.
At least until about an hour before you were off.
"Souji? Can I ask you a question?"
Alice had apparently shown up while you were working. Happy to see her there, you told her to ask away.
"Um... have you seen Zero today?"
Why would she want to see Zero? Did he know something about a patient? If that was the case, you knew Alice of all people wouldn't want to ask someone she didn't know for help; that's why she came to you and not a stranger at the hospital, after all.
Rather than jump to any more conclusions as to why she was there, you flat out asked her why she needed him.
"I was just, um, here to visit," she muttered.
You obviously couldn't tell her he was in the television (let alone that you left him there), so you tried to explain that you hadn't seen him all day. You convinced her that he wasn't at the hospital at all. But if there was anything you could help her with...
"Oh, no, that's okay," she said. "It's nothing big."
You could sense that she wasn't going to tell you any more than that. Still, you thought it was refreshing to see someone you knew at work, considering Zero wasn't there. You went as far as thanking her for talking to you.
She laughed a little. "Um, please don't tell anybody I was here, okay?"
You agreed. You didn't know why it was a secret, but it was a secret and you would respect that, despite your curiosity...
-.
You had a gap between your classes on Wednesday. Your anxiety had only risen since the previous day, and wanted to stop and get something to eat. You didn't frequent the lunch room due to how much everything else cost, but you went there anyway on that day and found a small variety of restaurants; from them, you chose to buy a hot dog, as it was one of the cheapest things available.
Though the packed tables in the dining area, you noticed that Emi sat alone at one of them, working on homework while eating some sort of sandwich. Why would she, of all people, be alone? You went to her table and asked if you could sit there.
"Oh, of course you can, Souji!" she said with delight.
Still, you weren't sure if she was all right. You started lightening the mood by telling her you were relieved to see her in a sea of people you didn't know.
"I know whatcha mean," she replied. "I've only been at this school as long as you. It's almost hard to talk to people when you don't know if you have anything in common. That's why I'm glad you came to the arcade with me." She smiled.
You joked about how your DDR skills had much room for improvement, and you assured her you liked going to the arcade.
"Yeah, hey, who was that guy you brought?" she asked. "That dark haired guy who was playing against Zero. Why doesn't he ever come to the arcade?"
The main reason was probably that he was serious about his studies, but you weren't sure why he didn't play in his free time. Maybe he was too good at the game?
"I see." She said. "He's a smart guy, isn't he? Then I guess he's the same guy that um... that tutored a friend of mine." She spoke rather quietly; you knew which friend she was referring to.
Would you prod any further or dodge the subject? It was hard to choose. You told her if she wanted to say anything, she could.
"Well, it's just that... she used to come eat lunch with me every Monday and Wednesday. I tried to kind of forget about it, but then that Robert guy..." She shook her head. "But if he likes DDR, don't tell him to stop! I mean, if we were all friends, maybe he could come eat lunch with us, too. And your other friends who were at the arcade. We could all probably get along and hang out."
It was worth a try, you told her. You were just happy to see her try to cheer up a bit. You began to munch on your slowly cooling hot dog.
"Thanks a lot for listening to me, Souji," she said.
Mid-bite, you noticed the link between you and Emi grow stronger. You were glad the two of you became closer.
Though it was awkward for time to freeze while you had that hot dog in your mouth. Unsure of how long you had actually been holding that hot dog, you quickly chomped on the food when you were able to move again.
Emi laughed. "You were hungry, weren't you?"
You smiled awkwardly. The two of you conversed for a few more minutes until you left for your last class.
-.
Once through the television again, you warped back to the hallway you last saw. It was as dark as it was when you left. You slowly cracked open the door...
"Which is more desirable, to live a life of pain, or not to live at all?"
The Shadow was lecturing Zero, who was seated in a chair. He leaned back with his arms crossed, as if he was a rebel student. Like the first floor, this room was filled with several empty chairs (besides the one Zero occupied). The Shadow, dressed in the dark cloak with the hood that shadowed his face, was lecturing at the front.
"You make it sound so cynical," the real Zero said.
"But you see what the problem is," the Shadow said. "People live only to resent pain, to dodge hardships, to survive. Surely, you believe the same thing. Will you become a follower of my organization?"
"I'll pass," Zero replied.
"Then... would you prefer being the leader?"
"What?" His voice was threatening.
"You know as well as I that humans live in fear of death," his Shadow said calmly. "You live in fear of the death of others. You hate to see people desperately cling to life only to lose it. That is why," he held a cup of questionable liquid, "you could lead them into a blissful death."
"I won't."
"Why?"
"Because," he started, pausing to think of an answer, "people must choose whether they want to live or not. I can't choose for them."
"You would choose death if it was up to you, wouldn't you?" His voice began to hiss a bit. "You don't want people to suffer. When you see hopeless patients slowly losing themselves, you want their misery to be over. You want them to die faster."
Zero stood from his chair and walked to his Shadow. "You're full of nonsense."
"You have to understand me," he said, meeting Zero in the middle of the room. "You and I are exactly the same."
"There is nothing we have in common."
Once they stood face to face, the clone lifted his hood, revealing a head that looked almost exactly like Zero's, save for the trademark glowing yellow eyes that Shadow copies possessed. The original gasped and stepped back in surprise.
"That's... impossible!"
"Are you surprised to see someone as unique as you standing before you?" The Shadow asked. "You know that no one is like you in this city; the only explanation is that we are the same."
"We can't be the same."
"Then how do I know what you're thinking? What you're thinking when you look into the suffering eyes of patients and tear-stained faces of friends who beg for their loved one to come back? Don't you want the pain to be over? Don't you want your pain to be over?"
"Stop talking," he shakily commanded. "You don't know what I'm thinking; you're wrong!"
The Shadow swiftly gripped his neck and forced his mouth open to gasp for air. He held the cup of liquid above Zero's mouth. "Join me," the Shadow ordered, "join yourself... or die!"
As he poured red liquid in Zero's mouth, the man choked and coughed it onto his Shadow; out of surprise and disgust, he released Zero, who fell onto the ground. The real Zero supported himself on his hands and knees, continuing to cough for a few seconds. He stood back up before shouting a protest. "You're not me!"
The Shadow dropped the glass and let it shatter on the floor. The Shadow began to laugh lowly; his laughter gradually became more and more insane as he transformed into a monster beneath a strong, dense aura. You saw Zero pass out before the Shadow, which is when your team rushed to his side. Zukin quickly carried him to the back of the room.
The monster uncurled into a scaly ghostlike creature with tattered dark skin. The cloak he possessed was draped behind his back like a cape; beneath it, his Shadow wore a lower garment that resembled half of a robe. His messy hair was as dark as his skin and equally blotchy in color. His hands were transparent to you; rather, his arms extended and faded toward the ends. His mouth remained open in a crooked, painful position.
"By staying alive," he told your team in an unsteady voice, "you're only being put in danger."
"We're here to save Zero!" Yuni shouted. "We're not gonna run away!
"You won't be able to leave," he threatened, "I'll kill you all here."
Each of your teammates began to summon their Personas. You looked at Zukin, who already had Ouze with her.
"I cannot sense any weaknesses or strengths," she said. "You will have to try everything."
Your teammates were armed with Personas having fire, physical, and electric attacks (taking into consideration that a person's Shadow was immune to Tsutomu's dark attacks). You thought that they possessed enough offensive attacks, so you summoned a Persona to support them.
"Ishtar!"
You made sure to constantly restore the stamina of your team members. Salvation was a costly move, even with Ishtar's spirit power conservation, so you were ready to overuse Mediarahan whenever needed. On the sidelines, you guided your teammates to unite their powers.
Working in Tsutomu's physical moves was a challenge; Rage had some addiction to burning fire moves and, had it not been for the female Persona's stealth, she could've been charred many times. You instructed the two men to collaborate in using physical moves rather than elemental attacks.
Shadow Zero hadn't done much offensively, but he was able to move quickly and dodge many moves (Benkei had been unable to land any punches; it seemed he was as impulsive as Rage). When he was hit, he would hide beneath his cloak for protection. After brushing the light Tsutomu away with a wave of his long arm, his swung his arms to the ground and two scythes extended from his wrists.
Close combat was out of the question... you shouted and told your allies to get away!
It seemed like Yuni was done for at that point; you had to rely on Rage and Akira's elemental powers. Knowing that Yuni and Tsutomu were safe if they stayed back, you brought out Norn to assist Benkei's fire as before.
You ran to Rage's side and instructed him to ration his strength and use small fire spells while you would use large wind spells. He grinned and eagerly used Agi and blew a huge wave of fire at Shadow Zero with the help of your Persona's windy Garudyne. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Akira run out of the way. Rage looked guilty.
"Sorry!" he yelled. Akira gave him a jokingly angry look and continued to use Lu-Yan's Zionga.
Shadow Zero looked weak, but fiercely slashed all six of you in a huge swing of his bladed right arm; all your three of your teammates and each of your Personas took a hit. Everyone yelled in pain before hitting the ground.
Before even knowing how your teammates took the hit, you knew you had to bring back your healer. You glanced and saw that they were unconscious, and their Personas were gone; you had to use Samarecarm to revive both of them. Once they were were healed, Shadow Zero saw your movement and began to swing at you, so you switched to Norn again to blow him away with Garudyne. He struggled to brave the wind, and Akira took this opportunity to electrocute him.
Rage rose slowly and asked you if you'd like to aid him again. You repeated the merged Garudyne and Agi, but Shadow Zero saw it coming and moved far away from his original spot. He was in the middle of the room; you didn't want to use the same attack or all the chairs would catch on fire.
Rage wasn't thinking the same thing.
"Get back here, you wuss!" he shouted before blasting a huge fiery wave in the Shadow's direction. While the chairs blocked Shadow Zero's escape routes, they did quickly catch fire. The entire place could've burned down if this progressed.
To put out the fire, you told your teammates to retreat and you called Loki. His Mabufudyne sent ice through the whole room; it melted and the fires were gone. You also froze Shadow Zero with Niflheim.
"Souji!" Zukin shouted. "You need to watch your power! You must find a way to rid him of his cloak; that is how he is able to defend himself. Your attacks aren't doing as much damage as they should when he has it on!"
You had just used two of the biggest attacks at Loki's arsenal. You decided to stick with Ishtar until the fight ended. You left the rest up to Akira and Rage. But how would anyone get around the cloak?
Shadow Zero broke open his icy prison and screamed. "This pain," he hissed, "is this how it feels to be on the edge of death?"
"We'll put you outta your misery soon enough," Rage told him. He and Akira launched blasts of fire and electricity at the raging Shadow.
Shadow Zero swung again with his scythe arms and launched a load of chairs in both of the men's directions. You used Ishtar's Mediarahan ability to restore them to full health. You wished more than ever that she had lower-cost moves; given how much you wasted your spirit power, you didn't think you could last another heal.
Shadow Zero had to take a moment to recharge. Akira and Rage shoved several chairs off of themselves and went back to fighting again. Zionga's mass of electricity was borderline deafening, even from the distance you stood. It held him in place, and with the chairs out of the way, Rage called Benkei and charged before burning the Shadow again.
You noticed Shadow Zero was about to deliver another fatal blow to the men, and you told them to get out of the way!
Akira seemed to notice the Shadow's movement and began to dart away, but Rage had a one-track mind. You continued to shout commands at him once the electricity dissipated, but he wasn't going to make it out of the way in time. You knew your spirit power was running out, so you pulled out your sword and planned to take a hit for him. You ran for the disturbed Shadow and defended yourself with your weapon.
Shadow Zero yelled before inflicting his attack; someone had struck him from behind. You came to a halt and saw that his cloak had ripped apart by something sharp, and it fell from his back.
But everyone was in front of Zero. Who could've...?
"Don't forget about me, pretty boy," you heard Yuni say.
No! She had no ranged attacks! What was she getting herself into?
"Yuni, stop!" Akira shouted. "Get out of the way!"
She and Tsutomu ran around Shadow Zero. "I'm here to help, and you guys look tired." She hid behind Tsutomu, and the two split up.
But Shadow Zero took swung both of his arms in a circle around his body and struck both of them. Tsutomu faded and Yuni was launched into a wall.
"Yuni!"
"Akira, don't stop now," Rage yelled. "We gotta finish him off."
"Just a little longer," Zukin said, "he doesn't have much strength left. His attack will take long to build up again; you must hurry!"
You would only get in the way of elemental moves, so you called to your teammates and ordered them to help you with an all-out physical attack. Quickly, they rushed to the large Shadow; you three pummeled him with sword slashes, punches, and gunshots.
The Shadow's posture fell with his strength. Rage bashed him in the head with his shield, and Shadow Zero finally surrendered, fading back into the smaller version you saw before.
"That's enough."
You three, tired and exhausted, noticed that Zero was up again. You all moved out of the way so he could see his dark side. Knowing the Shadow was defeated, Akira and Zukin ran to check on Yuni. You and Rage remained around Zero's side as he came to terms with his other self.
"That girl over there was hurt because of me," he began, "because I couldn't face the fact that I can't stand pain. Because of that, I caused even more trouble. But I'll stand up now, and accept you for who you are; you're the part of me that wants all the suffering to be over. You're the part I convinced that death was an escape from suffering, so much so that we started to believe it to be the right solution. I'm not proud of it, but I won't deny it anymore... you're me."
The Shadow nodded and floated in the air. He faded and reappeared as an angel wearing white and purple outfit with a purple sash around his waist. He had near-black violet wings and hair of the same color that covered his eyes. He had long hair, tied in a ponytail behind his back.
The angel became a card that floated down to Zero, who caught it in his hands.
You and Rage ran to his side, concerned. You asked if he was all right, having been in the television for days.
"I'm fine," Zero muttered, likely lying a bit. "Where is that blonde girl?"
"Uh, she's over there," Rage replied. "But dude, we gotta get you both outta here."
"Give me a minute," he demanded. He stumbled over to the injured Yuni, whose eyes were open.
"She's quite weak," Zukin said. "We can't seem to help her."
"Just get me outside, and I'll get better, right?" she mumbled. "I just need to rest..."
If you had any strength left, you would've given it to her.
Zero fell on his knees, just before Yuni. He placed his hand on her forehead.
"What are you doing?" Akira asked him.
Zero ignored him. He closed his eyes and dropped his head a little, breathing deeply. The angel you just saw appeared behind Zero; you and the others backed away, surprised. The Persona put his hand over Zero's. Their hands glowed, and Yuni stirred a bit more.
He was healing her!
You were all ecstatic to see her feeling a bit better. She struggled to sit up, but you knew she would be okay.
"Wow, thanks, Zero," she told him.
His Persona faded and Zero ducked lower, holding his head. Yuni caught his falling body and Zukin bent down to try to help him up.
"He has been here too long," Zukin said. "We should leave."
Zero had passed out again. Akira silently volunteered to carry him over his back, and your group rushed out of the dark dungeon.
(There won't be a chapter next week; I'm taking a break just because my writing has been getting shoddy when I rush and it's taking time to fix it. xP I already proofread this chapter once, then just now I went back and fixed more things 'cause so much just needed to be improved. That, and I just want a week off. :P)