Disclaimer: I do not own Persona 3—or any version of the Persona series, really. I just own this rather shameless piece of work.
Other Notes: Later in this chapter, the idea of Shadows'/Personas' physical and elemental skills attacking the target's mind rather than the actual body is based on what I recall of Apathy Syndrome victims as well as from watching Persona 4 cutscenes regarding Shadow kills. There's no evidence left on the body, to the point that in the latter the police believe it's some unknown poison doing the work. So it occurred to me that while Shadows can attack their targets physically, like with Akihiko and his broken ribs, they mainly target the mind. Which makes sense the more I think about it.
Also, creative liberties are taken regarding Personas again, this time on their state on the physical plane and ability to interact with their users. Because Persona-surfing should be a thing. Oh well. If Persona 5 allows Personas to cause Magical Girl—er, Thief transformations, then I can dream.
Symbiosis
Chapter Ten
As the next full moon night approached, Minato steadily prepared, gathering supplies and splurging on new equipment via the odd deals given by Officer Kurosawa. He had no idea how the man acquired such weapons and armor, but he wasn't about to ask when it was so useful. Especially since visits to Tartarus were a surprisingly lucrative endeavor, though he wasn't about to ask where the Shadows got all that money to drop anytime soon, either.
By the time May 9th rolled around, Minato heeded Tamamo's warnings to get plenty of rest the night before, staying up the next night to be ready for anything.
"I don't remember how things should go," she had admitted when he asked. "It's a little fuzzy—I mean, I remember a train and definitely a strong Shadow, but… Well, I just know you'll inevitably be called out sometime during the Dark Hour… You could probably catch a few hours of sleep, maybe, but you might get a rude awakening…"
Minato declined. He knew himself well enough to know that he wasn't exactly a graceful riser. There was a chance that if he got too deep into slumber that he would just ignore any calls to action when they came. He liked his sleep, dammit.
(And okay, yeah, he could probably just ask Tamamo to help wake him. But he hadn't needed her to act as an additional alarm since he was around twelve and it was kind of embarrassing to consider needing her again, like he was still some kid. He relied on his Other for some things, but he still had his pride.)
So, just as before, Minato stayed awake in his room during the hours leading up to midnight, occupying himself with classwork or simply listening to music. When the Dark Hour hit, he sat at his desk and looked out the window, spotting the glow that Tartarus emitted and wondering what Shadows would run amok.
Not long after, he was jolted out of his musing by an alarm sounding throughout the dorm. With wary calm, he stood and left his room, heading down the hall and wincing when he heard Junpei fall out of bed with a thud in his room.
A muffled "Ugh, what the hell?" followed, then the quick shuffling as the alarm continued blaring overhead. Minato, figuring his classmate was wide enough awake to handle himself, went up the stairs two at a time. He passed the girls' floor with hardly a glance and stopped short of the fourth floor and command room, waiting for his teammates to join him before he entered.
Belatedly, he wondered if they would be ready for this "ordeal". The last one had come with barely a warning, true, but would the days of preparation and training for this one be enough?
"Don't think like that," Tamamo chided. "Just do what you can. The others will follow."
Her words were comforting, but he still had his doubts. Would they?
They'd managed to climb a good few floors in Tartarus, fighting what Minato soon labeled as "Guardians" and making it to a strange barricade that kept them from progressing further. They fought together well enough, still far from clockwork precision but infinitely better than their first visit, and each could summon their Personas to fight now.
But Minato would be the first to agree with Junpei that he wasn't exactly "leader material". He focused too much on his own actions, letting the others do as they pleased. When he gave a command, Mitsuru had had to relay it to the others more than once because he hadn't said it loud enough. Then, on the off-chance that he was paying attention to their actions and bothered to raise his voice to give orders, they would ignore what he said for some reason or another and he wouldn't bother to reprimand them because he felt uncomfortable doing so to people his own age.
He'd asked Mitsuru, once, how she could take command of her peers so easily, but she didn't seem to understand. Though she monitored their progress and health through their runs, she didn't catch all that went on. She told him that he was doing fine and had even asked him to volunteer what time he could to the student council, to clean up odds and ends while she was busy with other projects because he "knew what it was like to be a leader".
Sighing, Minato asked, How do you know that?
"Well… I guess that is a little oversimplified. You guys are just starting to work together so there'll be power plays and the like… And your power makes you stand out in all the good and bad ways."
"His power". He felt like he was hearing that more and more often lately. His power. A special power. A unique power. The Wild Card.
He should have never signed that stupid contract.
"Oh, there you are!" Yukari's voice called up to him from further down the stairs. She and Junpei quickly climbed up to his step. "C'mon, it must be urgent. They don't use that alarm often."
With barely a nod, Minato joined them in racing up the last few steps, barging into the command room where Mitsuru and Akihiko waited.
They were debriefed on the situation by Mitsuru, who was quick to emphasize the possibility of a powerful Shadow waiting for them. She also warned them of the need for discretion.
"Most people don't know the Dark Hour exists, but if half the city is destroyed, there will be panic." It said something about Mitsuru that she could talk about the hypothetical mass hysteria of a public in such a calm way. "That must be avoided at all costs."
Junpei jumped onto that thought, looking eager. "In other words, we need to kick some ass, right?" And Minato could only hope things would be that simple. "Well, count me in!"
Yukari gave a put-upon sigh. She sounded a little like Tamamo in that instance, only less fond. "Junpei…"
Mitsuru took that time to ban Akihiko from joining them, much to the boxer's chagrin. Then, Akihiko appointed Minato as leader for this operation as well, which Mitsuru easily agreed with.
Goddammit.
"Wait for me in front of the station," Mitsuru instructed once the bickering and decision-making was over with. "I'll be there as soon as I can."
When Mitsuru arrived on her fancy Dark Hour-proof motorcycle, she promptly informed the three field operatives that their target was located inside a currently dormant monorail. Junpei was notably ill-at-ease at the idea, to which she assured them that electronics, save for some specially-built devices like her bike, were inoperable during the Dark Hour. So, ostensibly, they had no reason to fear being run over by a monorail (unless they took too long and the Dark Hour ended, but that was another worry entirely).
Minato immediately got a Bad Feeling—capital letters and all.
"Ah, so I've finally infected you with my paranoia," was Tamamo's dry comment in response to his alarm. "It only took ten years."
Any hope that we can lure the Shadow off the train?
"I…" His Other paused. "It's possible? If I recall correctly, it's rooted deep in there, but given the incentive, it might go to you." She sounded doubtful. "I don't know how, though. The tracks are suspended high above ground and it'd be more dangerous to run on top of the monorail cars than inside them. Unless you've got another idea?"
Minato's mind whirred. He could feel Tamamo's incredulous and astonishment even before he answered, Kind of a crazy one, but yeah. A little bit.
"Hey, Iori," Minato called in a hushed tone as the three walked along the path towards the still monorail.
Junpei made a grunting sound instead of turning around. "What's up?"
"…What do you think about the idea of Persona-surfing?"
Junpei's head snapped towards him then, clearly intrigued. Even Yukari seemed to catch his words from her place in front, looking partly curious and mostly mortified at the possible answer.
A beat later, Junpei said, "I'm listening…"
Both boys ignored Yukari's groan.
Minato finished explaining by the time they neared the monorail, and the train car loomed over them from their spot on the tracks.
"Can you all hear me?" Mitsuru's voice sounded from the transceiver.
Yukari answered, "Yes, we can." She peered up at the stopped monorail. "We just got here, but I don't see anything out of the ordinary…"
"The readings are definitely coming from that monorail. Proceed with caution, and stay together."
The three shared a look; Yukari's was infinitely more wary than the other two. "Um…"
"What's wrong?"
"Well," Junpei began, "we've kinda got a plan we'd like to try, Senpai."
"A plan?" Mitsuru repeated. A long silence followed. Eventually, she spoke, "Arisato, you're in charge over there. If that's your decision, then…" The transceiver filled with static with her sigh. "Be careful, you three."
Minato didn't let his eyes stray from Junpei, who had averted his eyes, jaw clenched, the moment Mitsuru mentioned Minato's role as leader. Speaking slowly, carefully, he said, "Junpei. You're up."
"Is this really such a good idea?" Yukari asked. "I mean, if there's a Shadow in there, then shouldn't we head in to stop it from preying on any transmogrified people?"
"If there's one thing I've noticed about Shadows," Minato replied, "it's that they don't seem to like Persona-users. They're drawn to us to try to feed off of us… I don't know how they get people out of their coffins, but I can imagine we'd seem like easier prey." He ignored her wince, shrugging. "Besides, train interiors are small. We'll have less of a chance to hit any innocents if we lure the Shadows out."
"I—I see." The pallor on the brunette's face told him that she did. "…Great. Okay. Let's do this."
Junpei, who appeared to cool down a bit, lifted his Evoker to his head. A gunshot later, Hermes appeared, allowing Junpei on its back. Its wing-like appendages flared when he was situated, clinging somewhat awkwardly to his Persona.
"Stay above the monorail," Minato said. "See if you can draw any Shadows out. Yukari and I will support from the next track over."
"Got it," Junpei agreed. He yelped when Hermes suddenly pushed off, reacting to his will, slowly at first before picking up speed as they ascended.
Minato lifted his own Evoker up to his temple. Another gunshot and pale blue fog dissipated to reveal the regal figure of a mythical unicorn, who stomped once on the ground, awaiting orders. He looked to Yukari, gesturing to the mystic beast with a tilt of his head.
"…Do you even know how to ride a horse?" she asked skeptically.
"No," he said. "But this is a unicorn."
The brunette's eyebrow rose. "What's the difference?"
Minato could practically feel the expression on his face become even flatter.
"…Catch up with Io," he said, climbing onto Unicorn's back. As they trotted away (because he would at least heed Mitsuru's advice to stick together somewhat), the sound of Yukari hurriedly summoning her Persona following them, Minato patted the Persona's neck in silent apology. "'What's the difference', she asks. Geez…"
"You get offended by the weirdest things sometimes," Tamamo observed.
Minato studiously ignored his Other.
Holy shit this was awesome.
The take-off was shaky, but once they hit their groove in the air, Junpei couldn't help the wild grin that took over his face. "Persona-surfing", Minato called it. Fucking awesome was what it was!
Adjusting himself on Hermes's back, Junpei readied his sword. He'd only fought with Hermes in the Tartarus runs they'd done before, but he already instinctively trusted his Persona to watch his back. It was a part of him, shared his strength and lent its own in return. It wouldn't let him fall, so he felt comfortable zooming through the air above the monorail, waiting for the stupid Shadows to take the bait.
That was his role in this harebrained scheme, but he couldn't help but feel giddy. It rested on his shoulders to pull it off right and dammit, he was going to show them that he could be just as dependable as Minato! Sure, he didn't have the privilege of summoning multiple Personas (and what a cop-out that was!), but he was going to show them that he could be just as useful.
Hermes shot him a warning and he glanced back over his shoulders, grin turning vicious when he saw the Shadows leaving the monorail car below them. "C'mon, suckers!" he goaded. "We'll show you not to mess with us!"
With a thought that Junpei wasn't sure if it came from him or Hermes, they banked through the air and zoomed back to the Shadows, slicing whatever they could reach with sword and wing. Instinctively, Junpei tightened his hold, leaning in as Hermes dove and spiraled, bisecting a table-looking Shadow. The pieces fell to the monorail below and Junpei whooped as he and Hermes straightened out in flight.
Adrenaline high, he watched eagerly as more Shadows were drawn out, ready to take them all on.
As Minato and Yukari followed the adjacent set of tracks, Junpei and Hermes wove their way above the train and set the plan into motion. True to Minato's words, the Shadows were attracted to their signs of life, drifting out of the monorail and zooming after the flying duo.
As they moved, Yukari huddled closer to her Persona for stability as she eyed the monorail, bow and arrow drawn. Specifically, her eyes appeared to be locked onto the various doors, where the Shadows slipped out from. "Wait a second… it's not at a station, but the doors are wide open…"
Minato glanced her way from Unicorn's back, following her gaze to the still train. "How much do you want to bet they wouldn't have stayed open if we got in there?"
The brunette scowled. "I'm not even gonna try." A moment later, her expression smoothed over into something worried. "It really would've trapped us, wouldn't it?"
Minato didn't reply, instead returning his attention to the course ahead and commanding Unicorn on its arsenal of elemental spells.
Junpei adjusted rather quickly to flying with his Persona, whooping as they tore through the air, slicing and dicing through the Muttering Tiaras and the odd Laughing Table that pursued them. Every so often Yukari's arrow or a spell from Minato would stop one from getting close while he cleaved through the rest.
It was as they were nearing the front car that Minato called for Junpei to regroup with them—and Junpei refused.
"Don't worry!" the baseball-capped teen shouted. "I got this!"
"Iori, be careful!" came Mitsuru's warning from the transceiver as Junpei and Hermes soared closer. "I sense a strong presence in the front car!"
"Junpei!" Yukari yelled. "This isn't a game! Stop that alrea—JUNPEI!"
Without warning, something shot out from one of the open car doors in Junpei's direction. It had come so suddenly that both he and his Persona had no time to dodge. Junpei let out a strangled yell as Hermes was knocked back, whirling out of the air and nearly hitting the monorail's roof before reorienting itself.
"Junpei, get over here," Minato called again, not taking his eyes off the front car. If he focused enough, he could just barely make out movement from inside under the light of the engorged full moon. "We need to give it a clear target."
Junpei gave a shaky and incoherent reply, but it was a clear agreement from the way he directed Hermes over to the tracks where Minato and Yukari were. Yukari sent him a scolding look as he neared, but dutifully checked him over for injuries her Persona could heal.
In the back of his mind, Minato swore he heard the rattling of chains.
"It's coming," was Tamamo's warning just moments before a large, literally black and white female figure squeezed and crawled through the door nearest them. The passage was clearly much smaller than the Shadow, but it seemed to have no problem fitting itself through, its skin bending and flexing in morbid ways, like rubber.
The Shadow's torso was naked, save for the letters "B" and "J" imprinted on the skin of its breasts, while the lower half was covered by a single sheet. Its hair looked reminiscent of scrolls, thick and flat, but the way they spread behind the main body to the monorail made them look more like the cable wires. They trailed behind the Shadow as it moved closer, pulling taut as they seemed to refuse to leave the car.
The Shadow slumped as it settled across from them, but Minato had an eerie feeling that from behind its mask it was looking at him. He jumped when it chattered at them and had to suppress a disturbed shudder when it laughed.
"Dude," Junpei breathed. "That's so freaky."
With a flourish of its hand, the Shadow sent a wave of ice after them, forcing them to dodge. In the next instant, two Muttering Tiaras fluttered to its side.
"Ignore the minions," Tamamo advised. "Taking down the main host will stop them, too."
Minato relayed this to the others as he jumped off Unicorn's back, earning a sound of confirmation from both. "Kirijo-senpai, can you scan the enemy?"
"I'll do what I can," Mitsuru affirmed. "And be careful, you three! Take care to watch your surroundings; you can easily be knocked over the rails if you're caught unaware!"
"Oh, like we didn't have enough to worry about!" Yukari cried.
From that first attack, it appeared that the Shadow worked with Bufu-type spells, but Minato wouldn't discount it being capable of more. Its hair was certainly a force to be reckoned with as well, the free pieces moved autonomously and were apparently capable of stretching farther, judging by that first attack on Junpei. Fighting from a range would give them no advantage.
"Hey, Arisato!" Junpei shouted. When Minato looked, he saw his teammate on the ground now, though Hermes was still present beside him. "Check those out! I think it's still connected to the train; should we try to cut 'em?"
"Trust a gamer to notice a detail like that," Tamamo mused. "It can't hurt."
"Do it," Minato called.
With a determined yell from Junpei, Hermes spun through the air and towards the appendages. The tearing sound that accompanied the attack was enough to make Minato cringe, but the shriek that the Shadow gave out in return told him that they did something right.
"Whoa, shit!" Junpei cursed as he dodged another swipe from the enraged Shadow, having earned its ire with his actions. Despite the attention, a smirk stole its way across his face. "Did I make ya mad, ugly? Well, too bad!"
He punctuated his exclamation by swinging his sword at another oncoming attack, batting it away like a true sportsman.
"Ice, light, and dark moves will be ineffective," Mitsuru reported dutifully only moments later. "Unfortunately, I couldn't glean much more information than that."
It wasn't much, but…
"That's enough," Minato murmured, absently reaching within himself and the Personas he carried. Unicorn was adequate for blocking Bufu spells, but it was more healing-oriented, with magic spells he added through Igor's fusion services. To deliver a heavier hit, he would have to use…
With a fancy twirl of his Evoker that had his Other sighing in exasperation, Minato summoned a quickly growing favorite of his: "Jack Frost!"
A diminutive and round snowman-like figure sprung into existence, bouncing forth from the blue mist that brought it to reality. With a cartoonish fierce gleam in its eyes, it zoomed after the effeminate Shadow and wound back its fist, letting it fly forth to sock the Shadow in its torso.
The Shadow gave an agonized cry before lifting a hand and flicking its wrist in Minato's direction in retaliation. There was no other physical movement to accompany it, but he still felt the attack land, striking his shoulder and making him stumble back several steps.
Tamamo cried out in pain. The sound was so foreign that it took him a moment to identify it.
What happened!? Minato regained his lost ground, eyeing the railing he was trying to avoid as Jack Frost caught the Shadow's attention. He felt more than saw as a gentle light bathed over him, soothing the sharp sting that had been left by the Shadow's attack, and gave an absent nod in thanks towards Yukari.
"I actually felt that," Tamamo said, stunned. "You haven't been targeted by a physical skill by a Shadow so far, so I hadn't expected that, but…" She gave a tinny, almost hysterical, laugh. "I guess this is how you guys survive things like Cleave. I mean I knew the elemental spells didn't leave marks on your bodies after you took that Agi to the face once, but to think Shadows really do attack your minds like this…!"
She was babbling, words coming out faster the longer she went on. While normally Minato could ignore it, could think of it as background noise to fill the silence when headphones weren't allowed, her emotions were rising with her voice and mingling with his own.
Tamamo!
The sudden snap of his voice seemed to shock her into silence. Good.
Calm down. I get it. Shadows affect the mind in more than one way. He tried to focus on keeping his thoughts calm and reassuring. I'll do my best out here, but I think you know my head even better than I do, so…
His attempt at levity seemed to work as he felt her panic subside.
"R—Right. Sorry. I… I was just surprised. I've felt pain again before, but…"
Whatever she would have said after was lost as he dodged another strike, watching the Shadow's hands and other body language carefully to move out of the way when it was directed at him. Jack Frost delivered another punch before hopping away as the Shadow slumped further.
Minato's heart jumped. That was a good sign, wasn't it? They were close to beating it!
Confident, he dismissed Jack Frost as a tendril of the Shadow's hair struck at it, stepping to the side as his Persona disappeared and the attack shot past him. A Garu spell from Yukari brought the Shadow's attention to her, leaving it wide open on the side that Minato knew Junpei was on.
"Iori!" he called, forcing his voice as loud as it could go (which wasn't all that loud, considering, but it got the job done). "Finish it!"
Hermes rose up, swirling in the air as it ascended, then dropped, letting gravity do the work to add the force to its attack.
In the moment Junpei's Persona made contact, slicing down through the Shadow's shoulder, Tamamo shouted, "Look out!"
Minato lifted his short sword on instinct. The piece of the Shadow's hair that had attacked him earlier (that he ignored the moment it missed, stupid, stupid…!) hit the blade with surprising force, a final desperate attack even as the Shadow shrieked and dissolved into black mist. Though he managed to parry the blow, the sheer amount of power behind it shoved him back despite his attempts to hold his ground.
His side hit the railing hard and, before he could even think to grab it, the momentum dragged him over.
His eyes widened as his world was suddenly flung upside-down.
"Oh, shit!"
"Minato-kun!"
Junpei and Yukari's voices cried out, mingling in the night air as he fell.
Strangely, all Minato could think at that moment was how Yukari's voice sounded exactly like Tamamo's had on the day his parents died. It brought back unpleasant memories, that frightful shout, all jumbled and flashing through his head in the space of a moment.
His parents' burning car. The blood on his hands. The terrifying roar and screech of metal as it was crushed. A flash of gold; the spark of the fire? And then—Tamamo's voice again. An apology?
A figure shot out over the railing and for one wild moment Minato thought one of his teammates had jumped. But the figure soared after him with more grace than a human body possessed in freefall, all burnished gold and black, and snatched him none-too-gently from the air. He let out a choked sound, the breath knocked out of him at the abrupt action, and he struggled to regain it as they flew back up to the tracks.
Hermes set him down, and Minato felt his legs give out on him, bringing him to the ground. As he tried to breathe, Minato realized that his entire body was trembling. Distantly, he noted that Tamamo was in no better a state. Her presence in his mind felt numb.
"Minato-kun!" Yukari exclaimed as she and Junpei ran up. Without hesitation, she pulled out her Evoker and summoned Io, letting her Persona immerse him in the light of Dia. It soothed away the worst of his violent shaking until only a minor tremor fluttered through his hands.
For a long moment, the trio only stared at one another, equally shocked and speechless by what transpired.
Then, Yukari took a deep breath and released it in a large gust. "Geez, what the heck was that for!? Scaring us like that! Pay more attention to your surroundings next time!"
Her voice seemed to jump-start them all and Minato dazedly put his composure back together. If his breathing shook as much as his limbs did, neither of his classmates mentioned it. Not trusting himself to stand just yet to put them on equal footing, he bowed his head low from his spot on the ground to Junpei, who started at the acknowledgment.
"Thanks," Minato said, voice hoarse. He cleared his throat. "For the save."
Junpei rubbed the back of his neck, looking sheepish. "H—Hey, it's no problem. I was just moving on my own, y'know… 'sides, it's the least I could do since you're our leader and all…"
"Not to mention making up for when you ignored orders earlier," Yukari piped up, sufficiently calmed enough to resume her usual snark.
"Aw hey, Yuka-tan…!"
"For what it's worth, I think you've more than made up for that," Minato said quietly, earning the attention of his teammates. "You pulled off that plan pretty much on your own… And I might've been designated field leader, but without you two, I definitely wouldn't have gotten anywhere. Special power or not."
After all, that unique power may have potentially given him the ability to be a one-man army, but said army could not exist without the bonds of the people around him. The stronger his bonds with others, the stronger his ability grew, wasn't it?
The transceiver beeped. "I'm glad you're all safe," Mitsuru said and, for once, her normally steady and confident voice was steeped in emotion. Relief. "I don't sense any Shadows lingering in your vicinity. Head on back… You've earned a good rest tonight."
They gave confirmation that they heard before staying still a moment longer. Then, Junpei stepped forward, holding out a hand to Minato. "C'mon, dude. I dunno about you, but I'm ready to just knock out."
Minato grasped the other teen's hand, letting himself be pulled to his feet. He nearly stumbled as he rose, but he was kept carefully upright and given time to adjust his footing. It was only when he was sure he could stand on his own without faltering that he let go, tucking his hands into his pockets.
As the three walked back down the monorail's tracks, Junpei spoke up again. "And you can call me Junpei, y'know. Going by Iori just kinda reminds me of my old man…"
Minato eyed him curiously as they walked, catching the faintly bitter undertone to his words. He didn't say anything, however, simply nodding. "Minato, then."
"Oh! Then you can call me Yukari," was said brunette's input. "I'm not really one for the whole 'last name politeness' stage."
He chuckled. "I've noticed. But all right, Junpei. Yukari." And because the memory was too much to resist, he added, "Nice to meet you."
It earned him a pair of perplexed looks, but he merely waved off any attempts of questioning on their parts as they made their way back to the station.
He'd had a close call, and yet he felt strangely lighter.