Author's notes:
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Nightly: Thanks for your two cents. Minato meddling in the affairs of Yald can lead to some pretty interesting things. The guy is already unstable from what happened in his past, so it'll only get worse from here. Thankfully he's grown a few inches since his SEES days so he'll at least tower above Akira but not by much. I suspect by the time Akira is 25, he'll be even taller.
Putting on his black uniform, Akira dressed himself for his first day of school. His mind a haze with exhausted eyes, reflection mirroring back the burnout state of his heart, no akin to the words of the long nosed man from his nightmares. Just as he had been relieved of his worldly duties in the waking realm, he had slipped into a deep sleep that sent him under, into a place that was beyond human comprehension. Adjusting his turtle neck in the bathroom mirror, he could still somewhat feel the withered jail uniform that cling to his form underneath. It wasn't as if he was wearing it in reality, but rather its stubborn presence never left, like some sort of persistent brand that had been etched into his soul by the demon-like entity that had called him there.
Turning on the faucet, splashing crystal cold water onto his face, he shook himself from his musings. Now was not the time to ponder about the monsters that lurked within, but to face ones that existed in reality. School, exams, homework, and the fear of expulsion, as he grabbed his academic materials and headed down stairs.
"Huh, so you actually got dressed." The old store owner, Sojiro Sakura snarked, handing the boy a hot plate of curry, its luring aroma was tempting. The sweet scent of coffee and spices danced in the air, creating a flavorful atmosphere.
"I can at least do this much."
"Well let's see if you keep this up," Handing Akira a glass, the old man narrowed his eyes, skeptical. "Remember, if you flunk out of Shujin there will be nowhere else for you to go." Opening his mouth to voice out a protest, instead the raven haired boy decided to wash down the rest of his curry. Swallowing his pride quite literally, he thanked the cafe owner for his food, heading out to the train station.
By the time Shujin transfer had arrived at the right station, the skies outside had come down with pouring rain. Gray skies clouded over the once sunny skylines of Tokyo, washing away any color from the world. Pacing himself to a nearby edge of a storefront, he hid himself from an unintended shower.
Watching the new Fool from afar, Minato studied his prey. Icy eyes piercing through the downpour. Specs of snow crystals forming at his feet from the outpour of his energy. He had hidden himself in an opposite alley, following the boy all the way from the cafe. Even from here, he could feel his potential, the potential to awaken to a persona. Focusing his eyes, he could sense a shadow hovering above him, ready to burst at any moment.
"Come on, give me something to work with…" The bluenette mumbled to himself, a quick exchange between a blonde male and the Fool after the departure of a black car with a girl inside. It was then that something caught his eye. A new energy, a single gram of distortion among the uniformity of reality, that prickled at the back of his neck.
"Damn that Kamoshida! Thinking he's some king of the castle!"
"Is he really that bad?"
"Hell yea he is! Bastard thinks he owns the place! You've at least heard the rumors haven't you?"
"Hm, no. I just arrived here today."
"Oh…so you're that new transfer student. Word of advice? Don't go near that guy, he's the biggest piece of shit in the whole damn school."
"I'll keep that in mind. By the way, you know a fast way to get to the academy? We'll be late at this rate."
"Sure, come on. The rain's gonna get worse if we stay out. We can cut through that way. Might just make it in time."
With their brief exchange of dialogue, the two disappeared down the darkness of a decrepit alleyway. Moving from his place of hiding, Minato gave pursuit but just as he had caught onto their scent, it had suddenly disappeared from the world around him. What was more, the distortion from before had completely vanished without a trace. Eyes widening, a surge of frustration willed up from within, leading him to slam a fist against a wall, denting it in a loud thud. Pieces of concrete flew, while the bluenette gritted his teeth, letting the two slip away under his watch. He was being careless.
"God dammit…" Mumbling, searching, digging through the piles of junk that littered the area to no avail, he finally gave up and marked the spot as a suspect location. This wasn't like his previous experiences. Would the Fool come out of here again, or would he vanish entirely, he wasn't sure, and so he chose to park himself at the school's entrance for now, surely a student facing immediate expulsion would hurry back…if he survived that is.
Akira reeled back, avoiding a fatal blow to his throat from an iron sword, backing against a wall. His glasses cracked on the ground, a metallic sensation bubbled at the back of his throat. An expression of anguish plastered on his face, hearing the cries of his new friend on the floor. Beaten, slammed, crushed under the feet of a deranged shadow king, he felt his body freeze at the sight of a blade hungry for flesh.
"What are you doing!? Just go already!" Ryuji lasted through the pain, a fist jabbed straight into his side, forcing him to hack up bile.
But the Fool did not move.
"How sad. Is your new friend going to abandon you already?" King Kamoshida pursed his lips, staring into the frightened Wild Card's eyes. A mixture of fear, hatred, and disgust all blended into one yet he did not move.
To say Akira was scared was an understatement, his body was nailed in place by his own inability to make a decision, his own powerlessness overtaking any semblance of pride he had left. When the king had first arrived, the Fool had fought back stubbornly yet now he was as cornered as a dormouse beneath the paws of a starving cat. This was when he wished things would have turned out differently. Varied regrets flashed through his mind: the court trial, his probation, even the decision to transfer to Shujin, all lead up to this horrific fate. But there was one thing that lingered in his mind, a thought he refused to believe, a notion that he did not make the right choice. The choice to save that woman was his own and his own alone, unlike these other factors that pushed him this far, and thus…
"Let go.." A foreign force entered his psyche, overtaking his previous hesitation. Possessed by a dark shadow, he commanded louder this time, stealing the attention of the lustful king.
"I said, let him go!" Opening his mouth, shouting at the top of his lungs, he demanded the ruler let go of his prisoner. If the decisions he made would lead to his death, as long as he believed he did the right thing, then he would go down with his pride intact. At the moment, he had no other options than to be a distraction. Throwing his school bag at the knight in front of him as a faint, rushing to slam its massive form down with the help of gravity, he grabbed its iron sword and threw it at defenseless Kamoshida who stepped out of the way.
"Ryuji! Now!" Reaching out a hand out for his blonde friend, the Fool was met with the slash of another sword that came barreling down on his head, swiftly connecting with a pillar of azure flames that ate away at the remaining guards. Fire danced, wind howled, giving way to a red regal form clad in dark raven wings.
"G-guards! Execute these fools, now!" slipping behind two knights, licking his wounds, Kamoshida avoided another blast of wind in his coming direction.
Lifting an arm to cut through air, Akira gripped his white mask with the other, commanding his persona, sending rays of darkness, melting the first knight before it could transform, while its twin sent a torrent of embers at the Wild Card who blocked with the wing of Arsene.
"EEkkkk! How dare you avoid my flames heehoo!" Floating across the air, the lantern-like shadow screeched, having a dagger jammed straight into its eye socket, followed up by a kick, sending it tumbling like a football into the ground, breaking.
"Not so powerful now are we?" Picking up the crushed pumpkin pieces, the Fool tossed it at Kamoshida's feet, a new sense of ire appearing in his dark eyes.
"I-insolent…!" Dashing away, the king waved his hand, bringing more guards to make his escape, leaving the Wild Card cornered in the room. However, instead like before, Akira wore his pride on his shoulders, crossing his arms, regaining some of his old self back, smiling to himself. Yes, this was power, the power to defend himself and his decisions. Tearing through numerous more pumpkins, he dashed around the castle like the wind, his body light as a feather, freedom at last. For it was better to die than swallow one's pride.
And so, darkness of a prideful Fool met the scorching flames of an equally irate king of lust.
Sensing a presence arriving back in the world again, Minato perked up from the music of his headphones, seeing too familiar figures materialize from thin air. Blinking once, then twice, his eyes widened at the abrupt shift in the air, a heavy presence now blanketing the Wild Card which was previously defenseless. Meanwhile, the blonde next to him had also developed a faint shadow by his side. Discovering this new detail had the man biting his nail, a sly grin cutting across his face, his once dead eyes now a maddening shade of frosty blue.
"Yes…hahha. It's the beginning isn't it?" Cackling in the dark corner of a building, an old surge of adrenaline overlapped with the sweet nectar known as hope laced his mind, like a deadly drug he had long been craving since his last high. They were here, he was here, the bait that would lead him to salvation was right before him. A small laugh escaped his dry throat, then he stopped, going back to his stoic self. Perhaps it was too early to celebrate, he needed to determine the nature of this god first, laying low to collect information would be his best option for now. Furthermore, he needed to deduce the power it had used to shift this new Fool from reality.
You have returned to the real world
A robotic voice caught Minato's ear, originating from the Wild Card's smartphone. Interest already peaked, he listened in on their conversation.
"What was with all that anyways? That castle, and Kamoshida, and that weird cat! The hell's going on!?"
"Ryuji, calm down, we don't want the public to hear us."
"Still, don't you want to know what was going on? It was like that entire place was hell bent on trying to kill us. And not to mention those powers you h-"
"Hey! What's going on? Aren't you two Shujin students?"
Two police officers arrived on the scene, cutting the two's exchanges short, making Minato want to personally go and snap the two men's necks. He was so close to receiving more of this nectar that he craved. And the conversation only escalated from there.
"What are you all doing out this late? Shouldn't you both be in class?" One of the officers chided, Minato noted a defensive look forming on the blonde's face, gearing up for no doubt, a stupid excuse.
"No! We're not. There was this huge castle and-"
"Castle? There aren't any castles around here, kid! Are you sober? Let me see your bags."
"Oh come on! I ain't lyin'! We were just at Shujin and it was a huge castle!"
"That's it, give us your names and student IDs."
At this point, Minato could visibly feel the second hand embarrassment radiating off the Fool's face. This wasn't good, if the police contacted the school now then the possibility of expulsion for his new meal ticket was way too high. And so he decided to take matters into his own hands.
Charging up a micro burst of energy in his hand, he aimed it like a sniper rifle at the nearest car, bursting its front tire with a stray pop of green wind, causing the driver to lose control, sending the vehicle careening into the side rails protecting the pedestrians with a sickening crash.
THUD
"Whoa what's going on?!" Somebody shouted
"A car just lost control, eekkk" followed by another voice.
"Everyone get back from the accident! We'll be blocking off the area and phoning the hospital!" Cried one of the officers, letting his partner check on the driver, shielding the scene from any outside interference.
"Is that guy alright?" Watching from the sidelines, Akira felt his father's medical training spring into action, seeing an unconscious man slung against his car's windshield.
"You two should head back to school. We'll contact the hospital the driver escorted to the hospital ambulance." Now a sizable crowd was gathering around the scene. Catching one last glance at the driver, Akira was sure he was breathing and judging from the weak impact, the man was likely only knocked out.
"Let's go Ryuji, we'll have to explain to the school anyways"
"H-hey wait up!"
Together, the two students took the shortcut back into the alley, disappearing. When they were both alone, Akira stopped to catch his breath.
"Come on bro…slow down! Did we have to run that quick? Not like we've done anything wrong." Panting from the sprint, feeling the injuries from the castle finally catch up to him, Ryuji was sure he had been close to breaking one or two bones.
"You say that, but our uniforms would have drawn a lot more eyes with that crowd." Akira narrowed his eyes, "Plus that car accident happened just as we were about to have the police call the school on us."
"Oh yea, you're the transfer that had the probation order right?"
"Yes. And a call from the cops would have significantly worsened our situation. You for skipping and me for basically going against my court terms." Really, it felt a little too convenient, how the car came careening with the barely injured driver and distracting the police. Perhaps this too was fate in some way. Maybe the mysterious demon in that blue room orchestrated this, or he was going crazy from the stress.
"Yikes, it's one thing after another, huh? I hope the driver was ok tho. It looked like that car dug in pretty deep."
"He didn't look like he was suffering. I'm presuming he only acquired light injuries but I wasn't able to tend to him to know for sure. We'll let the real pros take care of this." Akira crossed his arms, "For now we sneak back inside the school, and if anyone asks, say we were caught up in an unsuspecting accident. They'll at least lighten the blow from the staff."
Sneakily climbing the entryway to the school, Akira opened the doors to Shujin, entering with his partner in crime. Once inside, they made their way to their separate classes, leaving a single bluenette at the school's entrance.
Clapping in the empty lot, Minato smiled to himself. "Nice one, little boy. You definitely know your stuff." The opening he gave had worked marvelously, with the newest Fool even taking advantage of the situation himself. The man could only think of the possibilities later on. And with that he departed, leaving no trace of his presence.
When Minato arrived back at his motel, gathering all his belongings. Shoving toiletries, sneaks, and his few electronics into a bag. It was the basic essentials for any traveler on the go, keeping as little as possible to not drag down their frequent nomadic lifestyle. Once he had dropped off the keys from the front desk, he headed in the address of a flyer he found, arriving at a set of modestly sized apartments near the Yongen-Jaya area. Pushing open the doors, he was greeted by a sleekly dressed office worker in his mid thirties, dark hair slicked back, in a clean gray suit.
"Greetings, Minato Arisato, I presume?" Outreaching a hand to the bluenette, this man was a shrewd individual, "We received your call the other day for our vacant unit. My name is Asano Gina, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"I concur. Thank you for receiving me so kindly to your office, Mr. Asano." Minato acknowledged, locking Asano in a firm handshake. "I recently moved to this area from my hometown, so I was wondering where I could find a suitable place to stay. All for the right price of course." At his last words, the worker's eyes sharpened, matching the icy gaze of the seasoned persona user. Then, he spoke with a heavy voice, the atmosphere of the room changing.
"For the right price, we can book you a stay free of worry. No need for formal identifications or background checks are necessary…" It was in this moment, Minato noticed the subtle traces of dark tattoos hidden under Asano's arms, along with an expensive watch several times the price of the average luxury car.
Pulling out multiple stacks of bills, Minato presented it to the shady worker, "Here's the down payment. You can process the rest at a later date per our agreement."
"Why thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Arisato. We'll make sure you have the most pleasant of stays. Will the extra service package be included as well? We offer the first month for a complimentary discount." Happily handing off the bill stacks to a female assistant, the smile on Asano only grew, revealing his true nature. Venom dripped from every word he spoke, clasping his hands, trying his best to please his new customer.
"If it means shielding our dear guest from the coppers, we'll do anything in our power to stop them. No patron of our organization will be touched if you are under our protection, so you can be free of worries."
"Ah, I thought as much. It's why I chose you guys over everyone else in this dump. Now let's see what my new lodgings intel, shall we?"
"My pleasure."
Following the worker into a side building, Minato was sure he had caught the attention of multiple people in that office, all eyeing him with a sense of either wariness or an equal hint of suspicion. Both parties waited for an opportunity to backstab each other when the time was right. Such was the culture of the biggest organized crime ring in Tokyo, the mafia was not a force to be trifled with.
"Akira Kusuru, what is the square root of six hundred thirty?" Sharply pointing to the board, the teacher gestured to the equation at the center.
"Twenty five point zero nine, nine!" Hand pressed against his cheek, the Fool blurted out, bored.
"Who was the inventor of the steam engine?"
"Thomas Savery"
"The net effect of photosynthesis, chemically, is reduction, leading to the formation of which products?"
"Oxygen and carbohydrates." Answering question after question each staff member tossed at him throughout the day, Akira's quick wit stunned those around him into pure silence. Out of the hundreds today, he had only gotten a few wrong, and those were testers usually reserved for the third years at the academy. Relaxing back into his seat, the Fool ignored all the annoyed whispers and awed glances his peers shot his way.
"Are you kidding me? I thought this guy was a good for nothing delinquent." One boy whispered to his friend in the back.
"Don't tell me he's actually a hard worker. Now how am I going to come up with an excuse to not place last in the midterms?" Another cursed, hoping the new transfer would at least bump his terrible score up one place to not be at the school's bottom tier.
"Shhh quiet! He might still be a crazy criminal. What if he uses his brains to plant bombs inside the school?" Finally, a girl shushed the others, forming a palpable atmosphere of fear.
"Really? Is that what you all think?" Just as Akira was about to completely cut out the noise, a single reply snapped him back to reality. Ann Takamaki was her name, a foreign blonde labeled as the school's third biggest pariah with him being the first. She comforted the Wild Card, "Don't listen to their bullshit. They're just jealous that you're not who they think you are."
"Much appreciated. But I doubt even me becoming the messiah wouldn't stop them from talking crap in my face." Chuckling bitterly, Akira knew regardless of his accomplishments, or personal skills, his criminal status had already been set in stone. And so he resigned to it.
"Don't you at least want to get a word in?" Sounding more jaded than the transfer, Ann gritted her teeth.
"What hope do I have? Anything I say will be used against me. That's what I learned coming from court."
"So you're going to keep silent..?" A sense of disappointment formed in her voice.
"No. Rather, I'm going to live my life in parallel. I refuse to accept others' perceptions of me when I can build up my own vision." Thinking back to that moment in the castle, the Fool knew now that if he let go of his pride to please the expectations of others, then it would be his death. And so he clung to that stubborn pride, rebelling against the image society had thrusted upon him. Criminal, evil, degenerate, scum, all these labels mean nothing when he refuses to accept them. "If I argued against my case here, then it'd be no different than admitting they have ground to stand on."
Eyes downcast, somber words escaped his mouth, Akira turned away.
Exiting the school gates, slinging his school bag over his shoulder, Akira was about to leave when he noticed Ryuji walking to him with an extra bulky Shujin bag. Strange, he didn't look like the type to bring so much study material.
"Yo, you free for today?"
"Have something in mind?" He was planning to go back to the cafe to hit the books, but he was fine either way.
"Wanna go back to that castle again? I just can't shake the feeling that it has something to do with the Kamoshida at Shujin too. And yea, I know the entire thing felt like one big fever dream…but" Rubbing his bruised arm under his uniform, the former track star knew how real the pain felt.
Akira studied the blonde, noticing the contents of his friend's bag being some pain killers and what appeared to be a model gun. "Gemme your arm, I'll treat it before we head out. You're going to wreck yourself if you get beat up like that again."
"H-huh? You mean you know how to do that stuff? Wait, you're gonna head back there just like this?!" Wide eyed, Ryuji was sure the Akira would have called him crazy for trying to go back, yet he didn't appear phased in the slightest.
"I won't lie that castle gives me the creeps, but like you, I'm also curious." Not that Akira didn't want to experience the same thrill of summoning Arsene again. In fact, he was becoming addicted to the idea of being able to run wild. His probation be damned.
"Well if we're going with that, then we'll need to retrace our steps somehow. The last time-hey what are you doing?"
Taking out his smartphone, the Wild Card had already suspected there was something strange about it. An app he could not delete, and a navigation notification from yesterday signaling to them of their return to the real world. He was sure of it, tapping the ominous icon with the crimson eye, following the directions to input the right keywords; the hair on the back of his neck rose at the sudden surge in power within his body, accompanied by the distortion of the atmosphere around him.
You have arrived at your destination!
"Whoa? What the heck just happened-!" Ryuji's jaw almost dropped, staring down the same stone fortress towering above him against a poisonous warped sky. "T-t-the school! It changed into a castle?!"
"Come forth, Arsene!" In a surge of azure flames, the legendary thief manifested behind Akira's back, waiting loyally for a command. "Call back." Closing his eyes in a deep exhale, his persona retreated deep within his mask. "So it still works."
"Isn't that the thing you summoned before…holy shit your clothes changed just like before too!" Shouting to the sky, Ryuji's voice traveled throughout the front gates of the castle.
"Aside from the summon, my body feels lighter than usual too. What a curious phenomenon. Could it be some form of magic? Or perhaps it's some type of mental effect. Maybe I should bring a heart monitor to track-" Lost in deep thought, either idiot realized the commotion they were causing which made Minato cringe from his hiding spot, his hands stained from crushing several ichor filled shadows. He was working to save their asses from being ambushed by a knight horde at the moment.
"Hey quiet you two! You'll alert the shadows!" Finally, a small voice cut from nowhere, revealing a tiny black, bipedal cat. Minato cocked an eyebrow at the curious creature. Being dragged into this dark hour like space through an app was new to him but a talking cat plushie was bizarre. Then again, he had seen weirder things throughout the years. Swinging his hand balled up into a fist, he back punched a knight trying to perform a sneak attack, instantly vaporizing it into a pile of ichor.
"Monamona, you're here too?" Ryuji greeted the cat, who didn't look too pleased to see either of them.
"It's Morgana! Didn't I tell you to be quiet? I came out because the shadows were acting up and to think you would come back when you both barely got away last time."
Minato keyed in on some pretty juicy details. So the Wild Card barely made it out and now he was going back in so quickly? Was he so eager to be torn apart by the shadows?
"We came because we wanted to understand more about this castle. Just what is this world? It doesn't appear to be our school in reality." Akira cut to the point, between his strange dreams, new powers, and this parallel universe, he was sure they were connected somehow. No way in hell was he sitting back when all this weird shit was happening around him. If the courts wanted him to suffer for the year then he'd make the best of it.
Morgana sighed, "Well to put it simply? This castle represents the distorted desires of a real person, you two called him Kamoshida, yes? It's a parallel reality conjured up from one's psyche. He likely sees your school as his personal castle."
"That's crazy. This entire place is another world?" Trying to comprehend the gravity of their situation, Ryuji was wracking his brain.
"So it is connected to our Kamoshida." Akira mused, but he was cut off by a blood curdling screech from within the fortress's walls.
"GAHHHHHHHH"
"What was that? Is there somebody still in there?"
"Calm down. This happens on a regular basis here, you two were just lucky you didn't encounter it the first time you came here."
"Still, we can't just leave'em like that. Say, can you take us to where those cries were coming from?"
Minato shadowed the group inside the castle, now understanding the basics of this new dark hour-like dimension. From the conversations of the cat and the two students, he gleaned that a 'palace' was the result of someone's twisted heart, and the ruler was their shadow. This made the bluenetter wonder, what would happen if one were to destroy the castle, would this result in the crumbling of Kamoshida's desires? Or would it affect the school in reality somehow? Multiple hypothesises floated in his mind, this cat clearly knew more than it let on, which made him smile even more. He had hit the jackpot in tailing this new Wild Card.
Going through door after door, hallway after dark stairwell, Minato watched the Fool struggle with the basics of dungeon crawling. From summoning, sneak attacks, and finally the essentials of becoming a skilled thief. Just why was this cat so obsessed with the idea? Not to mention the strange outfit the Fool had, of which it claimed to reflect the user's heart. Looking down at his own normal jacket and dress shirt, Minato was actually disappointed they didn't change.
"Hmmm, there are a lot less shadows here than I expected." Morgana stood next to multiple cells, holding broken, injured and collapsed students. They had just memorized the visages of all those who were being tortured by the evil king.
"Was it like this last time?" Akira turned away from the sunken faces.
"No, there were definitely more around. In fact, I've barely spotted any after I led you guys here."
"Damn that Kamoshida…" Ryuji whispered, being the only one that gazed into the abyss.
"Anyways, that ruler was pretty pissed with you guys from yesterday, so it's better to get out while we can. You two should know now that these guys aren't real."
Slashing away another horde of soldiers with a single wave of his blade, Minato only left the weaklings behind. There were some in this castle that were way beyond the Wild Card's current level. He gave them time to memorize those student's faces, he brought them time to lounge around. However, on the inside, his blood boiled at the blatant disregard for their own safely by remaining in the open. And then it only got worse from there, as they left the cells to be caught by the shadow ruler himself when trying to escape.
"Well, look at what we have here? The two rats from yesterday are at it again. Tch! Do you both have a death wish? Or did you not learn to not intrude in my domain!"
BANG!
Raising the model gun in his hand, Akira shot at Kamoshida, landing a cheap shot, shocking the king, making collapse to the floor.
"Gahhh! Why you little! Guards go after them! Now!"
"Ryuij, Morgana, now!" Dashing in the direction of their escape route, running away from the lethal confrontation, his two buddies followed suit. Avoiding a silver blade by smacking it away with Arsene's wings, Akira launched multiple balls of blackness at the knights, hitting two more silvers. Collapsing them to the ground, allowing Morgana and Ryuji to make it to the other side of the castle lobby while Akira aimed for the last stretch. Reaching out to meet his friends, the Wild Card was met with a rude awakening, feeling a thunderous pain shoot up from his back, face hitting the ground, being suddenly tackled by a horned bicorn.
"Akira!" He could hear Ryuji shout, only to have two more knights ambush him and Morgana from behind, pinning them down too.
"How dare you attempt to take my life!? Did you really think you could get away with those cheap shots you just fired? Scum should know their place, kneel down!" Slamming his foot on the Fool's back, Kamoshida grabbed a sword from one of his shadows, raising it up high.
"What the hell do you think you're doing you piece of shit! Let him go!" Beating the floor with his fist, Ryuji grabbed junk from his school bag, throwing it at the shadow ruler.
"I see you'd rather go first. Of course you would, I bet you're the reason these losers even came back in the first place."
"Screw your bullshit! You think you're some big shot just because you got guys backing you up!? You're the most messed up person I know! Once we get out of here I'll make you pay for what you did!" Throwing another book at Kamoshida, Minato could tell the kid was stalling for time. His eyes wide from almost witnessing the Fool's execution. Although the veteran persona user noticed something very curious happen, as the black mass above the blonde began to take shape.
"Pft, pathetic. You think you can weasel your way out of my army? Sakamoto, you really are stupid aren't you? Not only are you ungrateful for all that I've done for you and the track team, you aimed to take my life here as well? What a damned traitor you are, both here and to your team!"
A subtle flicker of blue crackled from the track star.
"No..you're the real traitor."
Flames lit, the darkness condensed into a human form.
"What kinda bastard treats others like trash when you're no better than anyone else!?"
Pillars of blue shot up from the ground, a mask appearing on Ryuji, as he fought against the strength of the knight holding him down, blowing it away, shattering its armor to pieces, being burned up in the flames.
"I'm tired of your crap! I'm tired of you ruling the school like a goddamn king! If nobody's going to do a fucking thing about it, then I'll do it myself!" Flashes of blinding light, claps of roaring thunder, a shot of hot lighting zipped the rest of the shadows into dust, leveling the floor, liberating large pieces of concrete flying into the air.
Minato watched the ensuing brawl, Akira assisting the newly awakened persona user, hiding from pillar to pillar, avoiding an oncoming charge of a shadow on horseback. Leaping to bash the knight from its back, Ryuji charged a lighting bolt, mixing it with a tornado from Morgana, trapping the monster in place, giving way to Akira leaping into the air, descending like a meteor, his shoe colliding with its helmet, smashing it open from the sheer force of the blow, splattering its remains on the floor. Grabbing his dagger, turning around, he rammed it into its vitals, twisting it with a sickening crack, hearing a cry of pain, before the knight fell to the floor, dead.
"Now let's get out of here!"
Stopping in a hidden corner of a room, the three persona users settled down, each catching their breaths. Labored breathing, exhausted bodies fighting to not collapse onto the floor in agony.
"Next time, I'm coming in here with an automatic…" Panting to himself, Akira was ready to purchase the nearest model machine gun he could find. The bastard at least deserved that much, he almost died again today.
"You still want to come back here?" Sounding worried, Morgana was assessing if the Fool had a screw loose.
"As much as we wanna not, we still have to do something about the people on the volleyball team…" Ryuji said, breathing heavily.
"Speaking of which, there's the stuff I want to get done too. I didn't help you for nothing after all." Crossing his arms, Morgana stepped in front of the two humans, blocking their way. "In exchange for showing you inside, I'd like your cooperation in helping me in my own investigations. We need to dive deep into mementos to regain my true human form by erasing the distortions that-"
"What? No, come on man. We're dead tired."
"Not today, I have to get back to Sojiro before he roasts me alive for being out so late," Real time passes while in the castle after all, and Akira no doubt knows it's been a few hours already.
"Fine, then will you guys help me another day?"
"No way."
"Depends."
Two blunt replies all at once, with Ryuji outright refusing the proposal and Akira holding back a formal decision. Jaw dropping in silence, Morgana was ready to shout at the top of his tiny lungs, but held back.
"I showed you guys so much hospitality and even kept you safe from the shadows for this long and this is how you two repay me?"
"Like I said, we didn't agree to anything starting out did we?" Shrugging, Ryuji headed for the exit.
"I'll weigh the pros and cons, give me some more time." Akira followed.
Morgana gritted his teeth, letting the two go, their figures disappearing beyond the castle entrance. A mixture of disappointment and desperation in his big blue eyes. In the end, neither male wanted anything to do with the cat. Or maybe he can wait for Akira to come back, but that too was a gamble on its own. Besides, exploring that place with only two members is a tragedy waiting to happen. The team he would need to assemble ideally would consist of multiple skilled persona users with varying degrees of defensive, healing, and offensive skills. Sighing to himself, he lowered his ears, dejected in the empty room, but that was when he heard a new voice.
"I can help if you want."
Looking back and forth, Morgana bobbed his little head from side to side, trying to figure out the origin of the noise. Was it a shadow, or was it a human? His body tensed.
"Who's there? Show yourself!" Aiming his sling shot at everything and nothing all at once, the cat was on guard, then he saw it. A tall blue haired man clad in a dark jacket and white dress shirt emerged from the door.
"If you think you're lost, so am I."
"What do you mean by that?"
Downcast, the man's gray eyes lowered, a sadness in his hollow voice. "I too am searching for something. Being lost in this vast sea of desires." Gingerly holding a card in his hand, he manifested a holy light, giving way to a serene horned angel with six feathered wings behind its back. Mesmerized by the beauty of the persona, Morgana's eyes widened at both the man and the being beside him. Powerful waves of energy emitted from him, covering the entire area in his majestic aura.
"W-who are you…?"
"Why, I'm not sure myself…" a weak smile fell on the bluenette, "All I remember is waking here with nothing but my name. No memories of who I was, or what I am."
"So that's why there weren't any shadows around." Upon realizing what truly occurred in the background, the not-cat was frozen. This stranger had single handedly dealt with half of the castle's forces.
"I heard the conversation between you three. Although, I only caught the last part so I have some idea of why they were here. However, if you are investigating your origins, I believe aiding you might help me as well."
Kinship.
Kinship was the word Morgana was looking for, a certain spark of understanding ignited in his mind. Being alone for so long, searching for something but not having a clue of the answers to come. No companions to rely on, no allies to call upon. While he was a cat and this stranger was human, they both shared their confused solitude and desire for answers.
"How long have you been here?"
"I only awoke today. Wandering the castle has led me to be attacked several times too. I was only defending myself…"
It was a gamble. No doubt Morgana had his suspicions about this mysterious new arrival. No thief clothes to speak of and vastly overwhelming power too. Yet, he had little in the matter of options at the moment. He needed a team, and fast.
"Then we can start by convincing those two. I won't be able to take you out of here with my powers alone. Only those with the ability to enter this palace can possibly get you out." Morgana was honest, he was able to travel between worlds, however his powers were only limited to himself, unlike Akira's ability to pull others in or out.
"Fine by me."
"So is our agreement official? Don't want to have another one bail on me like last time." Reaching out a fluffy paw, the bluenette shook it with his own hand.
"Good. My name's Morgana by the way."
"Minato Arisato. I will be in your care."
Author's Notes: This chapter was pretty long compared to the last one yea? 6k words and counting whew, finally done. Minato is still being a stalker and next chapter will really show the two Wild Cards face to face. Poor Morgana being left alone like that in the original game, Minato saw this opening and immediately snatched it up. After all, the moment he heard his story about mementos and him used to being human, this was the ultimate motivation for the guy to show himself pft. As for the mafia sub plot? It'll go somewhere...
Once again if you are enjoying the ride, pls rate and review.