A.N. (2/6/24) - I'll try to see if I can change to update regularly if possible. Maybe every other day or a chapter every three days.

Journey (4) - Old Enemy

Now that their numbers have increased, there were more opportunities to investigate Tartarus with both Akihiko and Shinjiro leading the exploration efforts. Mitsuru wanted him to join them as well, but Nagi had a different task that he had to accomplish.

"You sure it's around here?"

From an observer's point of view, it appeared as if Nagi was talking to himself. In reality, he was speaking to the other presence dwelling in his mind. Rather than communicating in words or thoughts, he received a vague confirmation in the form of a nudge in his mind.

One thing Nagi was unsure about was exactly how different his Persona was compared to the rest of his team. He knew that his circumstances were different, and that his Persona couldn't really be considered one when you considered how she was created. Because of that, there were several moments when she displayed unique abilities that did not conform to the normal idea of what a Persona user was capable of.

"Are you certain? I'm pretty sure that it was supposed to appear at the Iwatodai Dormitory."

Again, the same feeling of confirmation assaulted his brain.

He winced. "Sheesh! Alright, I'll at least check this place out." Taking a glance around him, he took in the sight of the other people. "Although I should probably find a place out of the way. I guess the mall still has people even at night."

Paulownia Mall.

If what his Persona was telling him was correct, then this alleyway should be where the current entrance to the Abyss of Time should be. Even though it was a different place compared to what he remembered, it kinda made sense once he had time to think about it. After all, the Abyss of Time was supposed to be the hole created from every time Tartarus emerged from the ground. Although it was hibernating at the moment, the distance between here and Gekkoukan High School wasn't that far. And during the Answer, one of the doors did open to a memory version of Paulownia Mall.

"Well, I could just wait until the Dark Hour occurs and see if I can enter it. But since you can tell where the entrance is, does that mean you can also open it?"

He received a confirmation from his mind.

"Then let's just jump in and see what we're looking at."

From his hand, a pale blue feather descended onto his palm before giving off a dim glow. While he wasn't as good with magic compared to Daisuke's grandfather, he did eventually learn how to open doors into alternate spaces without any complex rituals or accessories. Awakening his Persona only amplified that ability further.

Using the feather as if it were a blade, Nagi sliced at the air in front of him and watched as a tear in space opened before his eyes. The ease in which Nagi was able to do so clued him in immediately at the abnormality of this place, and he jumped through the rift once it was clear that it was safe.

Emerging from the rift, his feet sunk into sand as he landed on the other side. The Abyss of Time did not look anything special, a vast expanse of sand with nothing in sight other than a few doors a small distance away from him.

"Well, that pretty much confirms that it exists."

Except what was he supposed to do with that knowledge? Approaching the doors, he attempted to open them only to reveal that they were shut tight. As far as he knew, there was nothing else in this place other than the doors.

Since the Abyss of Time was linked to Tartarus, he thought that if he were to investigate this place then he could find some kind of advantage that would help their investigations into the tower. However, so far all he has proven was that he had no idea what he was doing and that this was too complicated of a problem for him to figure out on his own.

It was a good thing that he wasn't alone then.

"Freedert!"

Calling forth the being in his mind, the spirit of a young woman appeared by his side. Even now, she remained silent despite communicating with him in his mind. From what he was able to understand, he realized that she was asking permission from him to act.

"Do you have a plan?" Nagi asked, only to receive a nod. "Then by all means, go for it."

Raising her arms, her eyes closed as she concentrated her power. Nagi could feel the air stirring as something began to change.

Suddenly, pillars of crystal began to sprout from the ground as they all converged in the center of the desert. An elegant necklace with a red gem wrapped around the neck of the main crystal, and an elaborate golden clock hand appeared along its side.

Nagi recognized it instantly. "The Second Hand of Time?"

Also known as the 'Guardian of Time', it was one of the Hikari family's greatest artworks that supposedly had the power to grant wishes. While it did have some kind of ability that allowed it to do so, it was actually due to it possessing the ability to manipulate time. Its power was so versatile that the artwork could even bring the dead back to life or curse others to lose their lives.

It was also the true identity behind his Persona.

"You're moving your main body into this place?" Nagi guessed. "Is that safe? I thought you were trying to conserve as much power as possible?"

Instead of answering, she waved her arm once again. Instantly, the main crystal began to glow brightly as the entire area became illuminated with a brilliant light. Blinking the spots out of his eyes, Nagi finally saw that the Second Hand of Time had changed. While the difference in appearance was minor, it had nearly doubled in size from what it was previously. Not only that, but the red jewel embedded in the middle of the main crystal was gleaming brighter than before.

"What did you just do…?"

His words were cut off as the sound of rumbling began to fill the air. The sand beneath his feet started to shift, and Nagi warily gazed around him expecting trouble.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"

It was a wordless roar that was accompanied by a burst of sand as a monstrous being emerged from the ground. Caught off guard, Nagi stumbled backward even as his companion flew forward to defend the two of them.

A burst of power came from his Persona, and the entire environment turned white as ice and snow suddenly replaced the desert setting. The air exploded with force as the lithe and petite woman clashed with the new enemy. As the fight continued and the two fighters clashed, the winds howled, the sky darkened, and the snow fell harder until it slowly turned to hail.

He took in the sight of their opponent. It was a menacing figure, with chains rattling across its body as it flew across the battlefield. A familiar appearance, and one that Nagi could never forget.

"It's the Reaper!"

The Reaper howled once again, and Nagi realized that it was about to do something dangerous. Almighty energy began to condense in front of it until it was unleashed in the familiar form of a Megidolaon attack.

There was nothing he could do to stop it.

"Retreat!"

His Persona faded away as Nagi frantically pulled out the feather he used to get here. Cutting the air in front of him, he desperately dove straight into the crack right as he felt the Reaper release his attack.

The force behind it propelled him forward so that he emerged back into reality flying through the air until he crashed straight into a wall.

"OOF!"

Slumping to the ground, it took him a second to recover from his crash landing and reorientate himself. Alive and unscathed, he was back in the same place he entered the Abyss of Time. Since it was an empty alleyway, there was no one around to notice his current state.

Taking the time to calm down and settle himself, Nagi slowly straightened his back and addressed his companion.

"Alright, what was that all about!?"

But he received no reply. His mind was silent as he felt the other presence residing within it move deeper into his psyche. Whatever she did inside the Abyss of Time must have drained her more than he thought.

Seeing that he was not going to get any answers at the moment, he sighed to himself.

"Geez, how will I explain this to the others?"

}-{

Returning back to their current headquarters and explaining himself to Mitsuru, he changed his story, taking out the parts regarding what occurred inside the Abyss of Time and only mentioned that he got hurt fighting a particularly strong Shadow. The fact that he returned only after the Dark Hour occurred helped add credence to his story.

"You can't summon Freedert!?"

Of course, he had to explain that his Persona wasn't responding to his calls at the moment. Using the Evoker did nothing except give him a painful migraine, and the feeling was similar to whenever he drained his psyche from using his Persona too much.

He winced. "That seems to be the case. I won't be able to patrol for the next few days at least, so you might wanna ask if Akihiko or Shinji can take over for me. Sorry for the trouble."

"No, that's not the problem! Are you okay, Kujikawa-san?"

Concern.

Nagi shouldn't have been surprised that Mitsuru would feel worried about him, and yet he was still caught off guard nonetheless. Seeing her distraught look, he forced himself to unfreeze and respond. "Y-Yeah," he answered. "I'm fine, I just need some time off for a while."

"Take all the time you need. In fact, don't even think about going out in the Dark Hour for the next week at least. That's an order if you haven't figured it out yet. Don't even think about arguing with me on this."

"Roger that."

Seeing that he was agreeing with her, she slowly relaxed. "I'll update the others on your situation, but just make sure not to overextend yourself like this again. Next time, have one of us back you up if you're going out for the night. This isn't a game, and we can't risk our lives recklessly."

Those last words in particular stuck with him even after Mitsuru dismissed herself. He was so close today to getting killed by the Reaper and only managed to escape by the skin of his teeth. If he had been slower or if his Persona hadn't managed to stall the Reaper long enough, then the results would have been disastrous.

"Still, I need to ask her later what she did that was so important to cause such a reaction."

From what he recalled, the Reaper was supposed to be some kind of security system that responded to threats for places where Shadows gathered. Because of its role as a defense mechanism, it actively pursued targets or ambushed them.

If it only appeared in response to the appearance of the Second Hand of Time, what exactly made it so threatening that it triggered the Reaper's appearance?

Thoughts like that passed through his mind as he went to sleep. That night, his dreams were that of a snowy background with shades of blue. The sound of a clock ticking began echoing within his mind.

I think that's enough references from the previous story. The next couple of chapters will focus more on the P3 side of things.

Since this is mainly inspired by the new P3R game, I'll be using this chapter as a starting point to include a new mechanic for future chapters. There might be a few time skips as well since I'll be moving the story closer to the main story soon.