Persona 3 FES:
"Advent of the Fool"

LOAD DATA
1. DATE: 4/23 (Th) Tartarus

PLV4 - DJKL

LOAD THIS GAME?
YES -
NO

LOADING...

LOADED.

4/23 (Th) - DARK HOUR
FULL MOON IN: 16

TARTARUS
THEBEL 2F

"Anyone else notice how we've barely seen any Shadows yet?"

The question was a rhetorical one, but it still needed to be said. DJ, Junpei and Yukari walked through the halls of Tartarus, glancing down the corridors to see if they could find any Shadow wandering the halls. Oddly enough, the only ones they had managed to find so far were a few Cowardly Mayas and a few Shadows named "Muttering Tiaras" and "Magic Hands".

But their numbers were nothing like from before.

"Didn't we clear them all out on this floor?" Junpei asked, clutching his sword tighter.

"But the floors change every night, plus this is the Shadow's nest for God's sake." DJ rebutted, scratching his head. "There should be more Shadows than this..."

"This is rather worrying..." Mitsuru spoke as the group headed towards the flight of stairs to the next floor. "Even if there are less Shadows, I still advise you all to be cautious. You never know what you might encounter on the next floor."

The three nodded. They kept walking, although DJ looked a bit... thoughtful. Mainly because of a little talk he had with Igor a little while ago.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room."

DJ blinked as the new reality around him emerged. The Velvet Room was still as blue as ever, with Igor staring at him with those huge eyes of his.

"'Sup Igor." He greeted with a wave before taking his seat. "Elizabeth, Theodore." The two attendants smiled and greeted him back. "Nice to see you came back from your little trip."

Igor's smile grew and he let out a chuckle. "Why thank you young man. I don't usually leave the Velvet Room, but it was a matter that simply couldn't be stalled."

"Don't sweat it." DJ shrugged it off before a serious look appeared in his eyes. "Look, I need to make this quick since time goes on normally right now. I need a few answers." Igor's grin turned into something that looked more like a smirk.

"Ask away... Wild Card."

"...For the past few days" The disc jockey started. "I've been having these weird visions about cards floating in front of me, each one with a different Arcana."

"Ah~, your Social Links." Igor mused, earning a nod from DJ. "These "visions" are a representation of the emotional bond you build with your friends. It should also help you keep track of your Social Links."

"What do you mean?"

"Social Links have ranks, depending on how deep the bond is. The max rank it can go is ten. If that happens, you'll have a bond that can never be broken."

"...Okay, another question." He leaned forward. "Can something happen to my Social Links? Like something bad?" Igor smiled.

"Yes actually. A Social Link may reverse if your relationship is strained. And a reversed Social Link may even break. And a broken Social Link is impossible to restore."

"Geez..." DJ frowned. "What about the Arcanas that show up with them?"

"You've noticed how Shadows have their own Arcana to them, correct? Well Personas and humans are the same. The heart reflects what that person's Arcana shall be. In your case, it's the Fool, represented by the bond you have with your team."

"Makes sense... I can't have a Social Link with myself... But can I have Social Links with two people with the same Arcana?"

"Hmm..." Igor put a hand on his chin. "It's difficult to say. There may be a few cases in which it's actually possible, but not always. Take your Magician Social Link for example."

"...What does Kenji have to do with this?"

"Your friend Junpei is also of the Magician Arcana, but you only have a Magician Social Link with Kenji."

"...Okay, I guess..." DJ scratched the back of his neck. Social Links still confused him a bit, but he was on tight schedule here. "Okay, next up... Wait, what do you mean Personas have Arcanas too?"

Igor smirked and waved his hand in front of the table, making a set of tarot cards appear. "I believe it's time I told you my true role here... It is my job to create new Personas."

"...Za?" The DJ deadpanned, blinking.

"My assistants explained that you have the ability to summon multiple Personas. Last time you came here, you encountered three new Personas and you allowed them to enter your heart, like the white jester behind you."

"Three? What do you mean? I only summoned-"

!

"...Behind me?" DJ muttered in confusion before looking over his shoulder...

Only to nearly fall out of his chair when he saw a familiar white face smiling at him.

"Hiya boss!" Jack Frost greeted DJ, oblivious to his panting and terrified form. "Nice to so you again!"

"What are you doing here?!" DJ yelled, earning a laugh from the snowman and the two velvet assistants.

"The same thing these guys are doing." The jester said, jabbing his thumb behind him. DJ looked over the snowman, only to see... A blue woman and girl with wings?

And Orpheus too. He was just floating there, staring at DJ.

"What the heck is going on?!" DJ shouted, no longer managing to keep his balance and falling on the floor. Jack let out a laugh reminiscent of "Hee"s and "Ho"s before helping the boy back up.

"Your Personas have the ability to manifest themselves here." Igor explained. "Think of it as if you were going inside your own head."

"B-B-But... They weren't here last time!" Igor chuckled before motioning him to sit.

"It's an ability that recently developed due to your gathering of new Personas. You see, while you fight, Personas will awaken within the sea of your soul, where you must then accept them into your heart."

"But I only accepted Jack!"

"Consciously yes." A woman's voice behind him made him jump. The blue skinned woman walked up to him. "You allowed Pixie and I into your hearts subconsciously, during your battle with the Shadows."

"I can do that?" DJ asked, blinking.

"Yes. You can."

"However," Igor snapped DJ's attention back to him. "You can only get so many Personas this way. That is where I come in." DJ watched as the set of cards from earlier floated into Igor's hand. "Each Persona has an Arcana. For Jack's case, it's the Magician Arcana, which your Social Link has already strengthened. However, to gain even more powerful Personas, you must fuse them."

"Huh?"

"Increasing your Social Links will allow me to fuse Personas into completely new ones, and of different Arcanas. Depending on your Social Link's rank, the Persona may even be strengthened and come out even more powerful."

"But... don't I have to give up my Personas for it?"

"Yes. But do not be alarmed." Igor said, noticing DJ's worried look. "Fusing Personas does not mean they are gone forever. Many Personas... evolve, so to speak, and you can bring back Personas used in fusion with my assistants' Compendiums."

"Really? That's great-"

"For a fee of course."

DJ swore he heard the sound of glass breaking. And it was not a Social Link.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Ah, yes." Elizabeth said while giggling. "I believe the saying is "Nothing in this world is free", correct?"

"I believe so, my sister." Theodore said with a playful smile.

"...You people want me to pay you?" The residents of the Velvet Room nodded. "...Why in the sweet name of all that is good and holy do you people need money?!"

"Personal reasons." Elizabeth said simply, playing with a lock of her hair. "We never know when it might come in handy..."

"B-B-But... That makes no sense!" He whined. What would these people need money for?! Don't they live in a world between realities?! "You people are insane, you know that?!"

"Perhaps..." Igor laughed. "But let's move on... Now I don't normally do this, but there is something I'd like you to have." DJ stopped his mini-rant to seeing Elizabeth walk towards him, carrying something in her hands. She tossed whatever it was to him and he caught it easily.

To his surprise, it was a PSR.

"A PSR?" DJ asked, looking at the device in his hands."How'd you guys get one of these?"

"..." Elizabeth was silent. She turned away, whistling. DJ suddenly did not want to know how she got her hands on one of these.

"This version of the PSR is nearly identical to the one you have on now." Igor explained. "However, this one has been modified to give you the statistic of all your current Personas, not just Orpheus."

"Wow." DJ said before removing his old PSR and putting on the new one. Ignoring the pain in his wrist when he turned it on, he stared at the new screen. Where Orpheus's stats once were was now a list with four names on it. "Hot damn... How many Personas can this thing display?"

"The same amount that you carry within your soul." Igor explained, smirking. "One hundred and seventy."

"...Hot. Damn." DJ whispered as he let Igor's words sink in. A hundred and seventy Personas... He glanced back at his Personas. Jack had his ever present smile and was playing with his hat. The two newcomers, Apsaras and Pixie sat on the floor quietly, although Pixie gave DJ a small smile with a light blush on her cheeks.

As for Orpheus...

The disc jockey stood up from his chair and walked over to the mechanical man. Orpheus was floating next to the door, watching him as he stopped in front of him. The Persona towered over DJ, who stared back with a somewhat stoic look on his face.

It felt like they had been staring at each other for hours.

"I take it you don't talk much?" DJ asked, a smirk forming on his face. Orpheus said nothing and continued to stare. "I vaguely recall you saying something on our first night together... Or was that just my imagination?" DJ frowned when he saw the Persona wouldn't answer him. "Alright... Have it your way." He looked back at Igor and clicked his tongue in annoyance. "I still got a few question, but I've been gone for too long. I'm gonna have to go now."

Without even waiting for a farewell, DJ turned around and left, stepping out of the room.

TARTARUS
THEBEL 3F

"This bites..." DJ thought as he looked down the hall, looking for any Shadow activity. "If I stayed there too long, Mitsuru-senpai was bound to get suspicious... I got some info on Social Links, but I still have too many questions... Like who were those two guys I saw when I first summoned Orpheus and..." A slight pain surged through his skull when he recalled a large black beast with a metal jaw."...why hasn't that thing shown up again...?"

"DJ! Look out!" Yukari's voice brought DJ out of his musings and just barely saved him from getting decapitated by a Muttering Tiara that had managed to sneak up on them. An arrow flew by his head before he noticed several Muttering Tiaras, Cowardly Mayas and Magic Hands surrounding them.

"Crap! When did these guys show up?" He muttered, backing up to regroup with his team.

"Like ten seconds ago!" Junpei yelled at him, holding his sword like a baseball bat. DJ really wished he'd find a more orthodox use for that thing... "Weren't you paying attention?!"

"Um... Za?" He said sheepishly, earning glares from his teammates. Even though he couldn't see her, he was sure Mitsuru was glaring at him too. "Okay, I zoned out. My fault. Sorry." His teammates responded with an angry sigh before they all turned to glare at the Shadows.

"So how are we gonna do this?" Yukari asked, looking at DJ expecting something. The leader bit his lip and glanced around.

"Well most of them are weak to fire, so I guess you and Junpei can handle the Magic Hands and Cowardly Mayas." He said, stopping his attention at a Muttering Tiara. "I'll get these little flying menaces for you two."

"Works for me!" Junpei smirked before jumping towards the Shadows, Evoker in hand. DJ only heard the sound of a gunshot before turning back to Yukari.

"Yukari, keep him out of trouble. If he gets hurt, don't hesitate to use that healing spell of yours." DJ smiled when the girl nodded. Without a second thought, Yukari turned around with her bow raised, swiftly taking out a Cowardly Maya that was about to lunge at Junpei.

DJ whistled as he watched her take off after the capped boy and then turned around to see what he got stuck with. Three Muttering Tiaras and-

He quickly ducked and smirked. A hand-like creature tried to get the jump on him and only ended up jumping over him. Before it could get up, DJ slammed his foot into the monster, hearing it splat into black goo.

"Alright boys," He started, glaring at the other three Shadows. "we can do this the easy way or the hard way." The Muttering Tiaras hissed as their eyes glowed red. The disc jockey swiftly jumped to the side before he was caught in the fiery inferno. As odd as it sounded, he couldn't help but smirk as he lifted his Evoker up to his head. "Okay then... Jack Frost! Bufu!"

The Shadows scattered as soon as the snowman appeared. Unfortunately, one of them wasn't able to avoid the flurry Jack had shot out and it let out a violent hiss as it felt the ice claw away at its dark flesh. DJ didn't waste a single moment before running up and kicking the Shadow, smirking when he saw it dissolve into a pile of nothingness. He raised his head and saw the other two Shadows, charging at him. He dodged the first one's strike, but the second one ended up managing to scrape his left arm.

DJ hissed as he felt the wound sting, but was even more surprised when he felt the first Shadow grab onto his right arm, sinking its tendrils deep into his flesh. The boy's eyes widened as he felt the blood drip down his arm. He kicked the Shadow off of him, and while it did separate the two, DJ ended up making his wound even worse.

"Shit..." He muttered, looking at his new wound and back at the Shadows. They circled around him, occasionally floating a bit higher then usual, as if trying to make themselves look bigger. However, DJ ignored them and looked over at Yukari.

As Junpei blocked an attack from one of the Magic Hands, Yukari stood not too far away from him, firing multiple arrows at the Shadows. A Cowardly Maya tried sneaking up on her, but it proved to be a vain attempt as she quickly turned on her heel and shot the Shadow in the mask, destroying it instantly. The girl gnashed her teeth in frustration as she readied her bow again. They were all doing pretty well, but there were still quite a lot of them.

"Hermes! Cleave!" Junpei ordered, his Persona obeying, tearing through a Muttering Tiara. So much for DJ handling them. They kept popping up out of nowhere. The capped boy jumped out of the way of a fire spell and slashed his sword at the caster, slicing it in half. He sighed in relief as he glanced around. There were just a few more to go.

DJ growled as he straightened himself up, pressing his Evoker onto his head. "Pixie!" He shouted, pulling the trigger. He noticed his team members look at him in shock before quickly going back to their fights, trying not to concentrate on the fact he summoned another new Persona. Speaking of the new Persona, Pixie looked down at her user with a worried look on her face. More specifically, she looked at the wound on his arm.

"The PSR says you know Dia, right?" He asked her, earning a nod. "Great! Dia!" The Persona nodded and closed her eyes. Blue spheres floated from her to DJ's wound, closing it in a few shirt moments. The disc jockey let out a sigh in relief until he felt a surge of pain in his arm. "Crap... The wound closed but my arm is still sore... Guess Pixie's Dia isn't as great as Io's... I wonder if Apsaras' is any better?" Pixie disappeared and DJ turned his attention back to the two Shadows around him. One of them charged at him, clawed tendrils bared as it screeched. DJ prepared himself before seeing a blast of wind hit the Shadow, destroying it instantly.

Yukari sighed in relief as Io's presence left her. Thankfully, Muttering Tiaras were weak to wind attacks too. DJ gave her a grateful thumbs up before charging towards the last one, while she readied her bow and aimed at the last Shadow Junpei was dealing with.

DJ ran up to the Shadow and tried kicking it, but it ducked underneath the kick and tried to slice his leg off... Only to recoil in pain once it struck the metal limb. The boy smirked before kicking it away from him and raised his Evoker. "Jack! Bufu!" Jack emerged in a bright light and held his arms out, sending a flurry of ice at the Shadow. It let out a loud screech as it felt ice climb up its tendrils. "Orpheus! Bash!" The mechanical man appeared in front of the Shadow instantly before dropping his lyre onto the Shadow, destroying it.

The disc jockey sighed in relief. "All good on my part. You guys?" He asked, turning around to see Hermes slice through the Shadow Junpei was fighting. He sighed in relief and let his sword rest on his shoulder. DJ walked up to him and patted him on the shoulder. "I'll take that as a yes." Junpei chuckled as Yukari walked over to the two boys.

"So, do we keep going higher this time?" She asked, a worried look on her face. DJ put a hand on his chin and thought.

"I think we should." He started. "We won't get anywhere if we just keep climbing up to the third floor and going back. Thanks to the lack of Shadows-"

"Until, like, two seconds ago." Junpei interrupted him, earning a glare from the leader.

"...we managed to climb up a lot faster than last time. I'd bet we could at least climb up two more floors." DJ paused and bit his lip. "Any objections?"

"I'm game." Junpei said, scratching his cheek. "Besides, this sure beats sitting around doing nothing waiting for the Dark Hour to end." DJ and Yukari nodded in agreement. The Dark Hour was still young, so they had to take advantage of the time they had.

"Okay then gang, let's go."

...

...

...The Fool was interesting.

Igor smiled as he watched DJ and his friends climb the staircase to the next floor, where a small amount of Shadows were already present, waiting for the group. The two velvet attendants stood beside him, watching the disc jockey intently as if he was some kind of Saturday morning cartoon.

Igor had to admit, his old friend did a really great job clearing out the Shadows. Sure, a few still ended up spawning up here and there, but their numbers were still incredibly inferior to how they were before. Those two Hounds of his must've had a blast tearing through those monsters for the past few nights.

He chuckled before snapping his fingers, the image in front of him disappearing from sight. Elizabeth and Theo let out rather loud childish groans before moving slightly away from Igor. The master of the Velvet Room rolled his eyes and waved his hand in front of the table, causing his old tarot deck to appear before him. It wouldn't hurt to give a quick glance into his newest guest's near... future...

That... That wasn't possible.

Igor could practically feel his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets out of pure astonishment. Even his almost always present grin faltered as he saw what was in front of him...

And then his grin came back, even bigger than before.

He let out a snicker, which evolved into a chuckle, which eventually turned into full blown laughter. The attendants cast a confuse glance at him, but before they could see what made him laugh so hard he waved his hand again, making the cards disappear.

This universe was just full of surprises. I mean, he considered it possible, but he never imagined it would actually happen. And it wasn't just... It was...

"Hehehe... The more time I spend thinking about this Fool, the more I realize just how insane this universe has become."

TARTARUS
THEBEL 5F

"Io! Garu!" Yukari shouted, pressing the trigger on her Evoker. Her Persona rose into the air and fired a blast of wind at a Muttering Tiara, although it wasn't enough to kill it. Before it could react however, DJ kicked the Shadow towards Junpei, who brought his sword down, on it, finishing it off. The three panted before letting out a collective sigh in relief. "Man I'm tired…"

"Believe me when I say you're not the only one…" Junpei said, straightening himself. "Hey Mitsuru-senpai, you think we should go back?"

"It would be for the best." She said, getting DJ's attention. "While I must commend you all for making it this far, you're all too out of shape to go any further."

The disc jockey clicked his tongue in annoyance, which did not go unnoticed by his team. "We'll never find out more about this place at this rate…" He muttered, crossing his arms. While the others were feeling tired, they had to agree with him. "If we have to climb all those floors every night, we'll be stuck in a rut…"

"…I think there is a way around that." Mitsuru said, making all of them stop. "The access point on this floor has been giving off some rather… peculiar readings. I'd like for you all to investigate."

"...Sure." DJ muttered, tapping his foot on the ground. "We just need to find it now..." He glanced between his teammates. "...Let's split up." He said, earning a confused look from them. "We can cover more ground that way. Plus if anyone gets in trouble, we can just ask Mitsuru-senpai to call for help."

"Are you sure about this?" Yukari asked, looking worried. "What if we see... those Hounds again?" DJ grimaced. He had forgotten about those demonic little canines... Well, not the one that used his arm as a chew toy. That guy was still fresh in his memory. But now that he thought about it... They hadn't showed up at all tonight...

"Relax Yuka-tan!" Junpei said, rubbing his nose. "We've barely seen any Shadows on this floor. Even when we did, there were only like two of them. And after what we did to those mutts yesterday, I doubt we'll see them again." He chuckled, though there was something in his eyes that looked... bitter. "Besides, I can handle any Shadows that comes my way all on my own." DJ raised any eyebrow. Just who was he trying to impress, himself?

"Very well then." Mitsuru's voice brought him out of his musing. "I'll contact you all once someone finds the access point. Until then, be careful. All of you."

"You heard the lady!" Junpei said, walking ahead. "I'll head this way! I'll see you guys at the access point!" He ran off down the hall before immediately stopping and turned on his heel. "Which I will find first, by the way." His teammates rolled their eyes while Mitsuru groaned.

"Well, he's gone..." DJ muttered as Junpei left his line of sight. He turned to Yukari, who was looking at him expectantly. "I think I'll head back a bit. Maybe we ended up missing it this time around..."

"Okay." Yukari said, clutching her bow. She walked towards a turn not too far away from them. "I'll head this way."

"'Kay... Stay safe Yu-Chan!" He yelled, nearly making her trip. He chuckled as she glared at him before turning around and walked.

"Fine... DJ-kun." Okay, now it was DJ's turn to nearly fall over. He looked up at Yukari with a confused look, a complete contrast to Yukari's smirk.

"I thought I told you not to use honorifics..." DJ whined. Yukari looked away, still smiling.

"You didn't listen to me when I told you to stop calling me Yu-chan, so I figured I'd return the favor." She explained. DJ blinked.

"Oh, so that's how you wanna play, huh?" He thought, shooting her a glare. An idea popped in his head, making him smirk. "Okay." Yukari's smirk fell.

"Huh?"

"I said okay." DJ said, smirk refusing to leave his face. "As long as it's you, I really don't mind." Yukari blinked before her face turned scarlet. "Let's be honest here, you walked right into that one."

"I-I... You idiot!" She screamed before turning on her heel and storming off. You could practically see the steam coming out of her head. DJ chuckled. She was always so easy to rile up.

"...Was that really necessary?" Mitsuru asked, startling him.

"Huh. I forgot you were still there Senpai." He admitted, starting to walk in his appointed direction. "Kinda? I was just messing around with her. It helps build team morale." Even though he couldn't see her, he could imagine Mitsuru giving him a skeptical look. "Okay, no excuses, that wasn't necessary. But in my defense... Yeah, I got nothing."

Mitsuru sighed before telling DJ she would check in with the others. He quickly said goodbye before continuing his solitary path down Hell.

"I wonder if this is how those Greek heroes felt in those stories..." He thought, looking around. He read plenty of those Greek mythology stories when he was younger. It was the only interesting part of all his history lessons back when he was still home schooled... Man, how long was that again? Until a few years after his parents...

He stopped once he felt a surge of pain go through his skull. He clutched his head with one hand and grimaced.

"Calm down..." He whispered to himself, eyes shut tight in an attempt to prevent the memories from coming back. "It's all in your head... It's all in your head..." He sighed in relief as the pain went away. He opened his eyes and stared blankly at his palm. "...I can't let it get to me now. I still got a whole year to get as far away from the memory as possible." He smiled and took a few steps. "After all, what could possibly go wrong?"

Let it be known, Murphy's Law is a bitch.

He barely had time to react when something lunged at him from the shadows, taking him by the front and knocking him onto his back. He winced as whatever it was climbed onto him, pinning him down and roaring into his face... It really needed a breath mint. DJ squinted his eyes and looked at the creature... Only to be met with a rather familiar pair of blood red eyes.

Blackout did not look happy to see him again.

"You again?!" DJ roared as the Hound growled at him. Already fed up with their position, DJ lifted his foot and kicked Blackout in the stomach... Only to be surprised when he saw he didn't even flinch. He tried kicking him again, but Blackout still stayed in place. He felt heavier than before, and now DJ couldn't even make him budge! "What the hell?!"

"Blackout!" A voice coming from ahead of DJ made Blackout fall silent. DJ was visibly confused as he tried to look over the Hound towards the speaker, but Blackout's large frame prevented him from doing so. "Off! Now! We have his attention." The Hound growled, looking between DJ and the hidden speaker before finally stepping off of the disc jockey. DJ immediately jumped onto his feet and as far away from the Hound as possible.

But the sight before him really confused him.

Blackout calmly walked to a tall figure's side, Deadeye standing on the opposite side. The figure in question was very tall, taller than Akihiko even. DJ couldn't make out all the details, but he could see a suit and a long black cape fluttering behind him. He could see various pieces of gold adorning his suit, along with an emblem on his chest reminiscent of... an ax? Weird. The one thing DJ couldn't see very well was his face, being shrouded by shadows, but he could make out the short purplish hair...

He reminded DJ of a vampire... Oh shit, was he a vampire?! DJ already knew Shadows existed, vampires weren't far off the scale! And he wasn't even prepared for something like this! Maybe he could find some wood and use it as a makeshift cross!

Time seemed to stop for a moment as DJ stared at the newcomer, who smirked at his bewildered expression.

"...Hello there young man." He said, making DJ jump. Man, talk about gentlemanly. His voice sounded like someone from those old medieval films... and it had lots of baritone too. He had to give him points for that. "I have been expecting you... It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance."

"...Who are you?" DJ asked cautiously, taking a step back. The man chuckled before opening his arms wide, like a father offering a hug to his son.

"Oh goodness me. Where are my manners?" The man but a hand on his chest and bowed. "I am one of the residents of this tower. My name is Hades."

"...What?" DJ spat, a feeling dread building up in his stomach. Something about that sentence just seemed wrong... Maybe it was the fact that he was named after the Lord of the Underworld himself! "S-Seriously, who are you?! And what are you doing in here?!" Hades smirked.

"Calm yourself child." He said as he straightened himself up. He looked over at DJ and raised his hand. "I'm not going to hurt you... I'm here" He snapped his fingers. "to talk."

SLAM!

DJ jumped when he felt something large slam onto the floor behind him. He gulped, the dread growing, building up in his throat. He glanced behind him, only to see a large metal wall, blocking him off from the rest of the hall way. A second slam was heard, and DJ watched as a second wall fell behind Hades.

"...Mercy." DJ squeaked, backing up against the wall. "What do you want?! And what do you mean "resident"?! What's going on?!"

"Igor was right... You are special." DJ stopped. While the dark feeling in his gut feeling was still there, it noticeably decreased when he heard that.

"Igor...?" DJ blinked. Did... Did this guy know about the Velvet Room?

"Come closer Wild Card." He said, convincing DJ immediately. "I wish to speak with you." DJ complied, slowly making his way to the man. He noticed Blackout and Dead growl at him, making him glare back. "Forgive the Hounds... They don't take kindly to intruders."

"I've noticed..." DJ muttered, looking at Blackout before glancing back at Hades. "S-So... I've already asked this but... Who are you?"

"Your distrust is not misplaced, but I can guarantee you I mean no harm. Just be glad it's me and not the Reaper." Hades explained, trying to get the disc jockey to calm down. It seemed in vain, however, as he only looked even more confused at the mentioning of a "Reaper". "As I've said, my names is Hades. You're already familiar with my pups, Deadeye and Blackout, so no introduction will be necessary."

So he was these mutts' master!

"As for why I'm here..."He walked up to DJ, stopping about a foot in front of him. DJ gulped and tried taking a step back, only to realize he already had his back against the wall. DJ gulped and prepared for anything... Only to be confused and in pain once Hades pinched both his cheeks. "Igor told me about a new Wild Card, so I figured I'd see him for myself."

"Ow~!" DJ whined before slapping the man's hands away. "Knock it off!" He yelled, earning a chuckled from Hades. "And how the heck do you know Igor?!"

Hades took a few steps back, giving DJ some space. "He and I go way back... In a way, you could call me his brother."

"...Za?!" DJ yelled, instantly regretting his question. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Kuku... I'm not telling." He said,making DJ groan. Was he gonna have to ask Igor about this? Geez, just how much stuff did he still have to ask him?! "Now that I've introduced myself... Who are you? What is your name?"

"U-Um..." DJ scratched the back of his neck. "They call me DJ..."

"No Wild Card, you misunderstand." Hades said, confusing the disc jockey. "I couldn't give a damn about that silly alias you've been calling yourself for the past few weeks." DJ winced at Hades' new tone. "I want to hear your name." He spat, making DJ's eyes widen.

"H-How did you-"

"Child, no thought or memory can be hidden from me in this tower." He explained. "Yours, your teammates', even the ones from the woman standing in the lobby!" His smile grew. "I can see it all... Your past, your reasons... Your deal." DJ winced. "So what will it be? Just realize that if you can't even bring yourself to answer such a simple question truthfully, than you don't even deserve to be the Wild Card." Hades's smile never left him, but it became more unnerving than comforting.

"..." DJ bit his lip. His fists clenched, turning white at the sheer force he was using. "I-I... I can't tell you..." He whispered, making Hades' smile fade.

"..." Hades sighed, straightening his suit. "Very well then. In that case, I've seen all that I needed to see. I'll be taking my leave now." DJ blinked.

"W-What?!" He yelled. "What do you mean?! You haven't told me anything!"

"Do you even deserve answers after not being able to tell someone your name?" He spat, making DJ wince. "Besides... What good would telling you do" Hades let out a rather terrifying chuckle. "when you won't remember any of this?"

"WhaHMPH?!" DJ didn't even get the words out of his mouth before Hades appeared in front of him in a flash, his right index and middle finger inside the disc jockey's mouth. DJ let out a whimper a he stared straight into Hades' eyes. His big bright yellow eyes.

"Your entire presence here is based off a lie." He whispered to him, voice dripping with a hint of malice. "Don't you think you're getting a bit careless? Making such great friends? After all..." DJ winced before he practically started bawling. A sharp pain jolt through his entire body, making him convulse and shake violently. The only thing keeping him balanced was Hades, who held him by his shirt. The disc jockey could feel his vision getting darker and blurrier by the second.

"What good is making friends when you are destined to fade away?"

DJ blinked.

And blinked again.

And again.

...What was he doing exactly?

Mitsuru had told them about an access point and... Oh yeah! They had split up! No wonder Yukari and Junpei weren't with him. Huh. Funny. It felt like something was missing, but he couldn't really think of anything.

Either way, DJ kept looking for the access point, only to soon get a call from Mitsuru telling him Yukari had found it. After a few turns and a newfound headache in DJ's skull, the team was reunited, although Junpei looked somewhat miffed that he wasn't the one who found it. That was when DJ noticed what made this access point different.

Unlike the others, this one had an interface, one that also appeared on the access point in the lobby. With it, they could go from the lobby straight to the fifth floor without having to go through the other four floors! To DJ, this was just what they needed. With a pat on their backs, the team warped back into the lobby, their expedition complete.

"My my, you sure know how to pick them Igor." Hades said as he sat across from the man in the Velvet Room. Both his Hounds stood by his side. The velvet attendants stood by their master's side in a small staring match with the Hounds.

"It was not I who chose him Hades. You know that." Igor said, chuckling. "And was your usual method truly necessary?"

"Oh come now Igor..." Hades whined. "You know better than anyone that I enjoy meeting the new ones up close. It was the same with the other two..." He paused. "But this one's..."

"Different." Igor finished for him. "Believe me when I say that whispering doubt into his heart may prove to be more troublesome to him than it did to the others..."

"True... However" Hades stood up. "it's your job to guide the new Wild Cards. It is mine to place the seeds of despair into their hearts." He smirked. "I was born to make them panic, to give them the trials they must overcome... Isn't that right dear brother?"

"You and I are not brothers." Igor said simply, earning a pout from his visitor. "You and I were created by two completely different gods Hades. In fact, be grateful you were even given the name of such a powerful deity."

Hades chuckled, turning around. "Phil would be proud at how far you've gotten Igor." He whistled, calling his Hounds to him. "Goodbye Igor."

Igor watched him as he disappeared out of his sight before looking at an image of DJ on his table, his grin never fading.

"It appears that your trials are going to become even more difficult than before... Hehe! This should be interesting."

4/24 (Fri) - EARLY MORNING
FULL MOON IN: 15

"A transfer student? Already?" DJ asked Yukari as the two walked to class. The girl nodded in response.

"Yeah." She answered. "A few friends of mine from the Archery Club overheard a rumor about two transfer students coming in today. And one of them is in our class." DJ whistled.

"Hot damn... Don't you think it's a bit early for that though?" He wondered out loud, which he got an answer in the form of a shrug.

"Maybe something happened to them. You never know." Yukari replied, also confused as to why they were getting transfer students so early in the school year. School had only started about two weeks ago. DJ shrugged and the two walked ito class, giving a quick "Hello" to Junpei and taking their seat.

Pretty soon, Mrs. Toriumi came in, and any conversations that were being had stopped immediately, although DJ was more preoccupied twirling a pencil in his hand... Nice to know he has his priorities in order.

"Alright everyone, may I have your attention?" Mrs. Toriumi, getting everyone's full attention... Except for DJ's. Put the pencil down man! "We have a new student joining us today." The teacher looked at the door and nodded. "You can come in now."

The student at the door walked in, talking a piece of chalk and writing their name on the board. Many of the students had begun whispering amongst themselves, while DJ was still playing with his pencil. He ended up getting bored though, and decided to look up at the new student.

The pencil dropped.

"Hello!" The new student greeted, a bright smile on her face. "My name is Hamuko Arisato! It's nice to meet you!"

PERSONA 3 THEATER

"So Orpheus," Jack Frost said, wearing a white lab coat and a pair of large glasses over his eyes. "how does it feel to be one of the weakest Personas in the game?"

"Jack, what are you doing?" The metal man asked, already getting sick of the snowman's antics. Jack could only smile and hold his arms out.

"This is the Persona 3 Theater!" He said. "A series of non-canonical little stories staring us, the Personas, that play after each major story event! And by that, I mean this is the one moment we get to screw around with each other and no one can berate us for it!"

"Wouldn't DJ's awakening count as major a story event? And what's with the outfit?"

"Meh. That was a part of the tutorial. No dice there. And this is my scientist uniform." The snowman pointed at Orpheus. "And I'm here to because I need your help!"

"Not interested." Orpheus said, floating away.

"Wait! What if I said I could make you the strongest Persona in the game?"

"...Can you?"

"Nope. But what if I said I could?" Orpheus facepalmed and started going away again. "Aw, come on Orpheus! We need a joke for this segment! That's what this whole thing is about!"

"Can't you get Pixie to help you?" Orpheus groaned, massaging his temples.

"Miss Afraidofherownshadow? Heck no!" Jack whined. "And Apsaras is being a kill joy, as always! Honestly, that woman is driving me crazy!"

"Um, Jack?"

"I can't have fun for five minutes without her shouting for me to stop! Geez, if I'm annoying her that much, why doesn't she just get away from. I'm Jack Frost! The lovable snowman who loves having fun! I don't need to bend to the will of some blue skinned concubine!"

"Jack."

"Oh, and like she's perfect. Apsaras is a dancer the pleases gods! She's like a sex-object! A little whore who keeps on dancing for peoples' pleasure! Heck, I'm surprised she didn't sexually assault DJ when he came here!"

"Jack!"

"What?!" The snowman shouted before realizing something off. "She's right behind me, isn't she?" Orpheus nodded. Jack gulped and turned around, only to be greeted by Apsaras' angry face. "...Um, hi?"

She punched him in the face, breaking his glasses in two and knocking him on the floor. Orpheus looked at the now unconscious Persona and back at Apsaras.

"You didn't need to deck him that hard." Orpheus, said, earning a scoff from the woman.

"He deserved it for not getting his facts straight." She crossed her arms. "I am not a concubine. I dance for gods, not sleep with them."

"...Stripper." Jack muttered, earning him a kick in the side.

"Let the woman be Frost." Orpheus said. "I believe you've gone a bit too far this time." Apsaras gave the metal man a smile.

"Thanks you Orpheus."

"Geez!" Jack whined from his spot on the floor. "There are only four of us here and Silvermane is already shipping OrpheusXApsaras... I really really hope that doesn't mean I get stuck with Pixie!"

"W-Why would that be bad?" Jack shot up and turned around, only to see Pixie, on the brink of tears.

"Shit."

"W-What's wrong w-with me?!" Pixie yelled before the floodgates burst open. Jack immediately panicked.

"Congratulations Jack, you made a girl cry."

"Shut it Apsaras! Aw man, why am I being the Butt Monkey here?! I freakin' hate that trope!" Pixie turned around and ran away, still crying. "Wha- Pixie! Wait! I'm sorry!"

Orpheus and Apsaras watched as the snowman ran after the pixie. The blue skinned woman groaned and rubbed her temples.

"Pleases tell me things aren't going to get worse..." She whined.

"With all the Personas that are still stuck in DJ's sea of souls?" Orpheus deadpanned. "I doubt it."

SAVE GAME?
YES -
NO

SAVING...

SAVED.