Saturday - June 18th
With iron resupplied and other preparations made, V and the others prepared for their first delve into Hank's Palace.
It was unclear what they would come up against, but that didn't matter.
They needed the intel.
So, V hit the MetaNav and the world was thrown into a warping mess of black, red and white. The world reshaped itself, placing the group into a verdant field. Open with rolling hills on the horizon. However, alive as the place may have been, the grass was a shade of gold that glittered from the overhead sun.
Judy knelt down and plucked a blade, rolling it in her fingers. Her eyes flashed blue for a moment. "Huh, it's made of gold alright… but it still feels like grass."
"Weird." River muttered.
"What's weird is that fuckin' sky!" Kerry pointed up to the clouds above. It was a brilliant mix of purples, greens, oranges and blues in swirling patterns. "It's like I'm hopped up on 'Dorph."
"It's makin' me feel queasy," muttered Judy. The sentiment clearly shared by the others. Colourful skies aside, they weren't here to admire or judge the aesthetics.
V scanned their surroundings.
Was the whole Palace just this one open field? There had to be something else here. "Wish Mona was here. He's a walking Treasure sensor." Despite not necessarily being here to steal the Treasure, perhaps it would have pointed them to a decent place to start. "Huh, something's over there. See that?"
Jutting up from the distant ground was a ruined pillar. Its surface was sunbaked sandstone according to V's Kiroshis.
"I see it. I also see some Shadows." River grunted.
Dark figures dotted the landscape, plodding over the gold grass as though they were sheep or wild game. Something V noted, however, was that they were loosely following the same direction. Over a distant hill near the pillar.
"Should have brought my Thorton…" Panam grumbled. V silently agreed with her. Having access to a HMG attached to an absolute beast of a ride would definitely be handy. Only, they weren't sure it was even possible to bring things like that into the Metaverse. They might have managed to bring smaller machinery like terminals and other bits of equipment, but no one had gotten around to testing it on larger things.
V made a mental note about it. For now, they had a hike to get through.
"Keep an eye on those Shadows. They don't look dangerous, but if they get too close, drop 'em." V ordered. "Rocker, Nomad, you'll be needing these. Keep 'em tight in your neuroports at all times." She turned to Kerry and Panam, hand held out. Two data shards sat in her palm. The same ones V, Judy and River had slotted.
Kerry seemed confused. "Uh… Rocker?" He plucked up one of the shards and studied it.
"We gotta use codenames when in the Metaverse. Just a precaution." Judy explained. She pointed to herself. "Mox," her finger fell on V, "Mer- Uh… Samurai," River was next, "Badges. I guess V picked yours for ya!" She giggled and eyed Kerry with amusement.
"Those shards will let you use the Personas we have access to." V tried to keep her voice serious, but a slight snigger filtered through.
Panam shrugged and slotted the shard. Her eyes flashed a bright gold for a few moments. "There's five of us, but there's only four… uh… Personas?" She raised her brow, looking into open space. Her query earned a curious glance from Judy.
"Well, technically there's five, but only I can summon the fifth. Guess he's stubborn like that." V grumbled. Johnny's amusement tickled at her subconscious.
"Huh… when did you make another contract?" Judy asked, curious. Her eyes flashed yellow much the same as Panam's had. Her eyes shot wide when she read the name of their newest addition. "Wait… that ain't the Lizzie, right?"
"Why not summon her?"
A whizzing pop of colourful electricity danced in the air. From the display, Elizabeth Borden emerged, casually leaning on her huge axe and blowing large pink bubbles of gum. [Damn, this place looks fuckin' preem.] She grinned as she took in the psychedelic sky. [Hey bestie! Hey bestie's besties!]
Judy was in a state of awe. Starstruck at meeting the sole reason for the Mox's existence.
"It's a long story…" V muttered when she locked eyes with River and Panam. Kerry, meanwhile, was in the same boat as Judy. They gawked at Lizzie with stars in their eyes. Lizzie basked in the admiration like a goddess basking in worship. "Anyway, we should head toward that pillar." At her order, Judy snapped out of it, allowing Lizzie to return to Judy's Shard.
Not before Lizzie rolled her eyes and groaned about being bored.
In silence, the group walked across the golden meadow. The Shadows didn't seem interested in them at all. They shifted and stumbled like they were wanderers in a desert.
Curious indeed.
Once they reached the pillar, they examined the stonework carefully. A quick scan from the Kiroshis didn't pick up anything particularly unique, however, there was a small inscription poking out on the exposed base.
It was nothing more than squares, symbols and numbers paired with letters. Etched in stone and eroded from time.
"Hey… isn't that…" Panam squinted.
"It's an access point!" Judy finished. She ran a finger over the ridges carved into stone. "Or at least… a carvin' of one." Her finger felt the divet of the input slot and softly hummed. "I wonder…" She pulled her personal link out from her wrist and before V could object, she jacked in. To everyone's surprise, the carving lit up with yellow light.
Geometric patterns ran up the pillar like it was a circuit board.
Judy's eyes glowed the same shade of yellow. Her brow furrowed and her pupils raced from side to side.
"ICE is pretty tight. Gimmie a millisec," she said. Everyone else watched as Judy fought her battle in cyberspace. She twitched and her face tightened but eventually, her shoulders relaxed. "I'm in. Let's take a look." Her lips formed a thin line as she took a moment to read the data. "Figures there wouldn't be much. Only thing in this access point is a message."
"Well… don't keep us hangin'!" Kerry urged Judy on, to the techie's annoyance.
"' To reach the path to paradise, the enlightened soul must conquer the trials of these sacred golden plains.' Pffft… pretentious asshole." Judy read with a mocking voice. "I tried diggin' deeper, but there's only one isolated Subnet here. Nothin' else. Not even the Blackwall. The data stream just… ends."
"Fuck." V muttered. "Well… we knew this wasn't going to be easy." What really bothered her, however, wasn't these supposed trials or even the shadows wandering through the area. It was the complete lack of any Night Corp presence.
Hadn't Hank noticed what V was doing? Why the hell did he order a hit on her?
Then again, she never actually confirmed it was Hank.
She might not have even been the intended target. Still, Hank was aware of the Metaverse at the very least. So wouldn't he have discovered his own Palace?
"Hey, Mox, could you send a Ping through?"
Judy perked a brow. She was still jacked in, so she shrugged. "Yup. Nothing else is linked up."
"Somehow, that makes me even more suspicious…" V muttered under her breath. There was no sense in standing around anymore. With nothing else to gain from the access point, Judy pulled herself out and the glowing patterns running up the stone dulled and disappeared. "We should just play along for now. All those Shadows are headin' the same direction, so let's head there too."
"Samurai… we uh… have a slight issue." Panam called out from the back of the group. Looking at where the nomad was pointing earned a growl of frustration.
The yellow light from the pillar was now dancing in midair, making similar patterns. It split off into four distinct cylinders. From the centre of each cylinder, ichor gathered and formed into humanoid shapes.
Then white fabric draped over their bodies. Trimmed with gold embroidery, it created robes.
The first thing that sprang to V's mind were ancient religious vestments. However, a few clinical additions evoked the feeling of lab coats. It was a strange mix of the two. Either way, it set the group on edge.
Iron was drawn and within a split second, the four figures had the barrels of five guns aimed directly at them.
Not that they paid any attention.
Like glass, the cylinders of yellow patterns shattered and the Shadows lurched forward at blinding speed. V opened fire with Seraph. Burning energy blasting away at the advancing Shadows. They didn't even flinch.
River was next to pull the trigger. His Overture was louder, bigger and packed more of a punch. It barely slowed his target down.
Judy let a volley of rapid smart fire hail over the enemies. Small explosions peppered each of the Shadows backs, causing them to stagger and stumble in their advance. Following up, Panam and Kerry blasted them with shotguns. Combined, they managed to stall the advance. But no Shadow had been defeated. Instead, their bodies bubbled and swelled, bursting in a fountain of ichor.
They had transformed.
Now, four feminine figures floated serenely in the air. Three of which were identical to each other. Naked and winged, their modesty was covered only by black leather straps. From their necks, long chains flowed from collars and to top off the strange BDSM vibe, their eyes were covered with blindfolds.
The odd one out seemed just as angelic, however, she was fully robed with flowing silk. Long blue hair framed pale skin and unblindfolded eyes. In one hand, a closed book rested, the other dangled a scale.
Immediately, the three naked angels soared into the air and fired bullets of pure light like machine gun fire.
V and the others dodged away, splitting up. They narrowly avoided the heavy impacts, kicking up dirt and gilded grass.
Symbols of light appeared in a ring around the robed angel. Raising the scale high, Judy was struck by a pillar of condensed light. As if some higher power was trying to smite her. The techy yelled and stumbled backwards. She gritted her teeth and - despite parts of her skin steaming - it apparently wasn't as bad as it looked. Judy was still standing and growling colourful expletives.
"Pixie!" Judy bellowed and a lance of lightning burst from her outstretched arm.
It struck the robed angel and crackled with power. It sent the angel dashing into the air. Only for Panam to take a shot from Overwatch. V was damn glad she gave the nomad the rifle back earlier.
The robed angel screeched in agony and immediately fell to the ground.
"Johnny, get out here!" V called, the rockerboy appearing with his flaming guitar already primed. He struck a powerful chord and violent energy pulsed around V. However, before she could capitalise on it, one of the naked angels doused a ray of light on the downed leader. The wounds it had sustained vanished. "For shit's sake… focus on the bondage fucks first."
[Huh… might take notes.] Johnny grinned, his eyes wandering over the three angels. V ignored him, charging toward one of the angels. Her knife glinted with intent, but was intercepted by a rapid torrent of light bullets.
The damn Shadows were good at covering each other, she gave them that. "Johnny, boost up the others. Rocker, Nomad, call out the names in your Kiroshis! Badges, help me deal with these flying Joytoys. Mox, keep on the dressed asshole." V hurled out her orders and twisted her arm for a decent firing angle on one of the angels.
The same violent energy circled the others when Johnny began his playing. Invigorating sensations urged the group to move faster and hit harder.
Even Seraph's bullets seemed to pack an extra kick.
"Uh… Mithras…!" Kerry hesitated and yelped in surprise when a swirl of cerulean revealed the alabaster form of Mithras. His never changing expression glared down at Kerry with scrutiny. "Hi…?"
[A comrade of the Warrior. I shall lend my strength.] Nuclear fire twisted around Kerry's arms.
His eyes widened before he grinned like a mad man. "Fuck, this feels awesome! Hah! I feel like I could take on the world!" He laughed, though Mithras was unimpressed. The large Persona floated behind Kerry and gestured forward.
[Focus my power and strike true. The leader is weakened, but not yet defeated.]
Kerry looked at the dancing energy pooling in his left arm. He did his best to focus, and with great effort, he managed to fire a stream of nuclear fire from his palm. It hit the robed angel, and Kerry's glee lasted for a single millisecond as the energy bounced back and blasted him straight in the face.
As if being hosed with a torrent of water, the energy splashed and briefly obfuscated his entire head from view.
Moments later, the attack dissipated, leaving Kerry confused, scared and very windswept.
"Guh… why… didn't that work? And how am I not dead!?" He blinked and frantically patted his hands against his face. When he felt nothing out of place, he sighed in relief.
He might have taken the full force of a reflected blast, but he was completely unharmed.
[Ah. It appears our foe is quite troublesome.] Mithras glared at the robed angel. It rose into the air and lunged forward, scales swinging from side to side. [The fault is mine. Begone, false divine!] Mithras rushed in front of Kerry and slashed down with the gladius. Power vibrated as the spectral form of a giant cleaver followed the Persona's movement.
The blade met the spine of the angel's book and sparks burst like it was steel. Light lanced forward and pierced through both Mithras and Kerry's shoulders. Kerry howled, but Mithras remained stalwart.
As Kerry struggled, Panam planted herself firmly, took aim with Overwatch and fired at the robed angel.
Again, it shrieked at the wound. It gave Mithras the opportunity to launch another attack. Together with lightning from Pixie's power, the angel was cleaved in two. Both halves crackled and sparked before they dissolved into vapour. Mithras pounded the hilt of his sword against his marble chest. [Excellent work, comrades of the Warrior.]
"This shit is… so fuckin' weird…" Kerry muttered and clutched his shoulder. He looked at the blood on his palm and turned several shades paler. "This fucking burns!"
"Pixie, can you heal him?" Judy asked.
The tiny fairy pouted and got up from Judy's shoulder. [Of course I can! The nerve! But why should I even bother with such a whelp?]
"Pixie." Judy scowled at the girl. She jolted and frantically fluttered over to Kerry. Following the order, the colourful healing energy danced and coiled around the smoking wound. It closed up and smoothed over, only leaving the faintest scar imaginable. "Now the Joytoy gonks… oh."
The three naked angels were already dead.
V leant against the pillar and idly chatted with both River and Johnny.
[Hah, 'bout time you got some scars, choombah.] Johnny smirked as Kerry walked over, eyes not once leaving Johnny's. Many emotions crossed his expressions before finally settling on annoyed amusement.
"Fuck, you look exactly like you did the day you left."
[And you look like an agin' gonk with chrome out the ass.] They both smirked at one another.
"Fuck you."
"Are all the Shadows like this?" Panam slung the rifle over her shoulder and looked out over the battlefield. Despite the fight not lasting long, there was certainly considerable damage to the landscape.
Smirking, V shrugged. "We killed a horde of dick shaped sludge monsters before. Somethin' out of a smut BD isn't all that surprising, honestly." She then turned her attention to Judy, her smirk switching to a concerned smile. "I saw you take a hit, babe. You alright?" Judy nodded and gave herself a once over. Pixie had already worked her magic. Satisfied, V pulled Judy in for a hug.
"Oh, yeah, ignore the asshole who got a hole put through his shoulder." Kerry pouted in an identical manner to Pixie.
"Welcome to Edgerunning, Rocker." River said in a flat tone. His grin was almost invisible.
"Enough talkin' shit. We should move on before more of them turn up." V pointed over the hill the distant Shadows were heading towards. "Like I said before, let's follow the herd."
Cresting the next hill took V's breath away.
The same went for her comrades. They all dropped their jaws and glared at the vista before them.
A colossal span of structures built into the terrain, evoking an old Aztec ruin. The centre of which staggered down into the earth in distinct layers as if they were floors of a megabuilding. On the surface, huge towers stood proud as gilded foliage draped over the stonework. As they thought, the wandering Shadows were converging to the ruin's main entrance, a large gateway heavily guarded by two looming giants emblazoned with gold armour and gargantuan polearms.
"Somehow… I doubt the front door's a good idea." V muttered and began to scout the area. On the hill where they stood, they had a decent enough vantage. "I can see more of those lab-coat-robe Shadows patrolling the inside. The entire thing looks like it's crawling. Fuck me."
"Why don't we just take those assholes down? There's only two of them." Kerry pointed toward the giants.
"You gonk! That would just bring the whole horde on us!" River gave the rockerboy a swift slap to the back of the head. "Samurai's right. Front door's a no-go. Maybe we can find an opening." He rubbed his chromed finger over his stubble. "Leanan Sidhe." Cerulean, violet and gold colours flourished in the air. The lithe form of Leanan Sidhe snaked around River with a wry smile.
[Yes, handsome?] She giggled and walked her middle and index finger along his shoulder. He grunted but remained stone faced.
"Go and find us an entry point. My guess would be one of those bordering towers." He gestured over to the ruin. The smirk on the Persona's face soured into a bored frown. She mumbled under her breath and vanished from sight. Purple smoke pluming around where she once was.
V could feel Leanan Sidhe move further away, hidden by unknown magics. "Wow, you sure know how to talk to the ladies." Panam grinned.
"Yeah. Real bastion of charisma, this one." V joined the teasing.
Both women earned a glare with the same energy as a tired dad disappointed with his kids.
"Anyone else get the feelin' we're being watched?" Kerry didn't look as relaxed as his cohorts. He was tense and looking around with shifty eyes. Panam, River, Judy and V shrugged.
"Yeah, duh. Someone's been tailing us since we entered." V spoke as casually as if she were commenting on the weather. The fact of the matter was that despite how it seemed, someone - or perhaps something - was lurking about that came from outside the Metaverse. Perhaps it was another SAU member. Maybe it was Hank himself. Either way, they were keeping their distance, biding their time.
"No point in tryin' any gonk shit. If they wanted us gone, they'd have flatlined us already." Judy muttered, studying the ruins. A small data terminal sat open on her lap and she appeared to be making a few calculations.
"'Sides," interjected River, "Leanan Sidhe found something. Hmmm… she says it looks like an abandoned lab near that western tower. Might be some hidden passage."
"Any Shadows around?"
"A few of the wandering ones." River tightened his brow, concentrating on his connection with the Persona. "Doesn't seem like they're hostile."
"Alright," V gave Seraph a quick check, loading a fresh magazine, "it's a place to start. No idea what the fuck these Trials are meant to be, but if we stand around with dicks in our hands, we ain't gonna find out."
Crossing a wide open meadow stealthily was impossible. So, instead of even trying, the group simply walked the border of the temple with little regard to keeping quiet.
They weren't stopped and nor were they attacked.
Within a few moments, they regrouped with Leanan Sidhe. The woman perched herself on a collapsed piece of rubble watching the wandering Shadows in the distance. Behind her was a crumbling wall leading into the tower directly above. The interior looked like some sort of abandoned workspace. Stone tables, rotting wooden storage units, square alcoves carved into stone walls. V stepped over the threshold and recoiled at the rotting stench.
"Smells like somethin' crawled in here and fucking died covered in its own shit…" Kerry remarked and pinched his nose.
[How uncouth. I see why Pixie dislikes you, whelp.] Leanan Sidhe smirked and draped herself over the annoyed shoulders of River. [I can feel much suffering within this room. A reflection of reality, perhaps? Disgusting.]
With the assumption that the room was actually an old lab, it wasn't hard to imagine what could have gone on in here.
"Let's just get through this. Doubt anything useful's hiding around here." V stepped further into the lab, inspecting the alcoves on the far wall. It didn't hurt to at least check. Gravely, her lips turned into a sickened frown. Her Kiroshis displayed traces of blood long dried into the stone. Thankfully, it wasn't human blood. Rather a mixture of various small animals. "Fuck… why am I not surprised endangered animals are locked up in corp labs?" She muttered under her breath. It made her sick. Even if this was just a cognitive version conjured up by Hank, it still painted a clear picture.
Muttering from the other side of the lab, Judy rifled through the more solid storage units. "Trash. Garbage. Junk. Scop." She threw blank file after ruined book over her shoulder, onto one of the stone slabs. Panam gave them a second look. Mimicking Judy's annoyance. "You're right, babe. Nothin' but a bunch of ruined paper and illegible books."
River and Kerry, meanwhile stalked around the edges of the lab. Or rather, River was. Kerry had been relegated to holding a flashlight for the ex-cop.
His search led the two all around the entire perimeter, checking each door he came across. Of which there were several. One of which was a double door. All of which were made of heavy looking stone. What exactly River was looking for was a mystery. His cop instincts and skills were guiding his hands.
Eventually, he made it round to V still inspecting the square alcoves.
It was clear now that said alcoves represented the cages in which test subjects were held. River scowled at the sight of them. "Checked for hidden bugs and passages. The place is… metaphorically clean. That big door's sealed shut, though. The others had a little give to them. My guess is they lead to other sections of whatever this lab is."
"Just preem. Fine. We'll have to split up." V looked at the single doors. Three to be exact. Spread out across the room. "I'll take that one," she pointed toward the door furthest away from the others, "Rocker, I want you to stick with Badges. Nomad and Mox will take the other. Open channel on the comms. As for Personas, choose one and don't switch."
She could see that her friends weren't thrilled with V's decision to go alone, but out of the five of them, she was the most experienced at open conflict.
Besides, she worked best when alone.
Like River guessed, the door opened into another section of the lab. This part looked like it was in better condition. Albeit unlit and with no windows to the exterior, the place was pitch black.
Lucky her Kiroshis were fitted with night-vision.
Taking it slow, she moved deeper in. Though she had to admit her frustration. She had no idea what the hell she was looking for. There were no other doors, though there were strange wisps of light filtering from various carvings in the wall. It spread a faint, pale blue hue. Maybe there was another stone access point. So, she stepped toward one section of the glowing wall.
Her fingers ran across the rough stone, light following the touch. She pressed her palm against the wall and a rippling of light washed from her touch.
"Weird…"
[At least it doesn't stink like a piss rag here.] Johnny walked out from the solid wall, stepping into physical space. It earned him a grunt. [What next? A good ol' boulder-down-the-hall trap? Maybe a fuckin' pit of snakes. Oh! How about some religious relics?] His smirk was ever present and it pissed V off. If only because the possibility of those things actually happening wasn't at zero percent.
"At least you're not narrating this time."
[Oh? I can start if you miss it so much.]
"Don't even fuckin' dare, asshole." Her irritation was like nectar for Johnny. However, he dropped the teasing and turned to taking things at least somewhat seriously.
[Looks like most of the gruesome shit was done in here. Bigger tables, blood drainage, nasty fuckin' place.]
"A mortuary."
[Yep.] Johnny puffed on a spectral cigarette. [You find anythin' on that light show of a wall?]
V went back to inspecting it. Eventually, she found what she was looking for. A carving in the stone identical to the one they saw on the pillar. "Bingo. Watch my six, Johnny." Taking her personal link, she jacked in. Cracking through ICE wasn't her strong suit, but with a little brute force and luck, she gained access to what was contained within.
Static jolted through her head and it pierced her mind with pain for a few seconds.
Then a voice started to play directly in her brain.
[When I first started looking into the Shade… I thought I was going mad. Whole worlds beyond our own? Simply unheard of. Yet, the evidence is undeniable. It's all thanks to Mikoshi. Was Arasaka not aware of what they created? A doorway into the cosmos. Human cognition at our fingertips, a completely untapped source of energy.] The file stopped abruptly as if it had been cut off.
"Damn." V dug around the Subnet a little more. "An autopsy report?" She perked her brow and opened the file. It popped up in her Kiroshis, first with the image of a corpse. Human, but nigh unrecognisable as such. "Jesus fuckin' christ!"
She resisted the urge to retch.
[Well, what does it say? We don't have all fuckin' day.]
"Subject number four. Name, Domonic Swanson. The subject bonded with Synthetic Walker designation ' Azazeal' for approximately five point two seconds. The subject's body rejected Azazeal, resulting in exponential tissue growth, blood loss, blackened skin and unnatural bone formations. Subject ceased vital functions after ten seconds of further observation. Post mortem, an in depth autopsy was carried out. Azazeal was removed from the deceased subject and placed back in quarantine. The subject's anatomy had been completely altered as a result of the connection. Many of the internal organs had ruptured, bones had taken new shapes and the muscle tissue had doubled in density. Cause of death was severe shock and haemorrhaging."
V's brow furrowed.
[Ain't Azazeal the goat lookin' fucker?] Johnny's brow had also furrowed.
"Yeah…" She whispered, almost in disbelief. "They actually continued putting those things into people? Fuck…"
[Makes you wonder. This Swanson guy was subject four. The fuck was one through three like…?]
V refused to even imagine. She had seen a lot of messed up things, but this was something else. "Checkin' in. You guys find anything?" V spoke into the radio, pressing a finger to the receiver in her ear.
"Yeah, Nomad found a key-shard. I managed to pull some experiment data from another access point." Judy replied instantly. Her voice told V that the contents of those files were similar to the autopsy report.
The next voice was Kerry's. "We found a bunch of… well they look like torture tools. But apparently they're just medical implements. Could'a fuckin' fooled me." At least there were no reports of conflict. That was a relief at least. "Riv- uh… Badges tried jackin' an access point, but the thing just buzzed him off. ICE, huh? Real bitch."
"Probably contains more research data. Ok, let's regroup and see if that key-shard gets us through the double doors."
Indeed, the doors scraped open when the key-shard was jacked into a small slot.
They were in. The centre compound. Its huge nature only became more evident now that they were inside. Looking down into the staggered layers, V couldn't see a bottom. It looked like the damn temple was endless.
Shadows patrolled the various layers. Their numbers grew thicker on certain floors. As well as a thrumming energy casting pale yellow light into the shaft. From where they stood, V could make out five such sources of light. If there were more deeper, she couldn't tell. The only assumption she could make right now was that the yellow light signalled a trial.
"We should look for one of those Safe Room things before we continue." V said, looking around the floor the group were currently on. It was a major concourse if V had to guess. Much like a retail floor of a Megabuilding.
"A what now?" Kerry perked a brow.
"Some bullshit to do with weakened distortion." Replied Judy.
" Really wish we brought Mona…" V huffed in frustration. She had no idea what to look for. Neither did any of the NC group. They didn't even have a map. "Shit. Company."
A group of robed Shadows rounded the corner and walked with purpose. Only to halt in their tracks. The largest of the group craned its neck and looked down upon the five intruders. It tilted its head and stepped closer, regarding the weapons on display. V was tempted to shoot first and get it over with, but something stayed her hand. The Shadow didn't appear hostile. It was curious.
The smaller Shadows stayed back, but mimicked the leader's actions and gestures.
[Are you enlightened souls?] The leader finally spoke in a breathy voice.
"... Yes?" V responded with trepidation.
The Shadow leaned back and regarded the group. [Apostasy!] A slender arm stretched forward, revealing a thin finger, pointing downward. The smaller shadows echoed the proclamation and immediately rushed forward, shadowy limbs ready to claw and swipe.
The five intruders jumped away and drew their iron.
However, the alarm had already been raised. Shadows crawled out from alleys and cracks, surrounding the intruders within seconds. V cursed under her breath, there were too many to even count. However, she did spy something on the other side of the shaft. A door that slightly shifted and rippled in a similar way to a Safe Room.
Only one problem.
There was an entire horde between them and the door.
The first of the Shadows began their attack, bringing down sharp claws and thick cudgels. Gunfire ruptured the air in response. V and the others might have been heavily armed, but sheer numbers were against them.
It took all V and the others had to avoid getting hit. Bursts of different energies exploded around them as River, Kerry and Panam launched elemental attacks.
V joined the assault, ordering Johnny to swathe the area in fire.
Judy called upon Lizzie who cackled in delight, using her giant axe like a golf club. Lightning booming with each heavy hit against a Shadow.
It wasn't enough. There were simply too many Shadows and more were coming. V was distracted for a mere second, but it was enough for a larger, muscular Shadow to bring up a powerful limb, then down with the intent to kill. V braced, expecting a heavy impact. An impact that never came.
A loud ringing noise grated her ears before the moans of the Shadow turned pained.
She opened her eyes to see a tall, slender woman standing with her back to V. White silk draped her olive skinned body, trimmed with cerulean lines that glowed with power. Markings ran across the exposed arms like tattoos. One hand clasped a large ankh, thrumming with an ethereal light. Her other arm was stretched out protectively. Sparks flying across the air in the direction the limb was moving in.
However, what really caught V's attention was the fact the woman had the head of a cat. Along with a long tail that ended with a metal rattle of some kind.
A sistrum.
The rattle sang its tune with a shake of the tail. Odd ripples radiated from it, covering V and the others. It felt strange, like the whole world was vibrating.
However, V's eyes narrowed. "What the fuck?"
[Safety. Answers later.] The strange woman's voice was harsh, quick and barely a whisper. The hand holding the ankh poked out the index finger. It pointed toward the door V had noticed earlier. Before V could even think about asking how, the cat woman lunged forward toward the horde of Shadows.
She didn't attack, however. Instead, she allowed the creatures to attempt to claw at her.
Only for their attacks to bounce off harmlessly and instead, knock the shadows back. They screamed as gashes appeared over their hides as if by magic.
[Follow.]
The woman's order was absolute.
V and the others shared glances for a brief moment. What the hell else were they going to do? So, they followed the stranger. They fought through the horde and watched as the woman parried, blocked and danced through blows and explosions.
Notably, whenever the sistrum on her tail clattered, a feeling of sturdiness filled V's body. As if to test it, she braced an arm against an incoming clawed appendage.
Sparks danced over her skin as the attack made contact. But it was repelled back against the offending Shadow. The sturdy feeling faded for a brief moment before the sistrum clattered again. Renewed, that sensation urged the group onward. After a whole minute of conflict, they barged into the Safe Room and sealed the door shut behind them.
Out of breath, out of ammunition and annoyed beyond belief, the group laid down their guns on the stone slab table.
"Mrrrow."
A low purring mewl caught V's attention. She looked up and there, sitting on the centre of the slab table was none other than…
"Nibbles!"
V's eyes shot wide open. The sphinx cat blinked slowly, not phased at all by the outburst. It was - indeed - Nibbles, the very same cat V and Judy lovingly adopted. With that said, what the hell was she doing here? Come to think of it, the feeling of being watched had vanished just before the cat-headed woman appeared.
Said woman knelt down just behind Nibbles with a hint of reverence in her posture. [Friend. Protect you.] She spoke, head down. Nibbles yawned and licked her paw.
"Wait… you're… a Persona, aren't you?" River asked. The cat-headed woman nodded, allowing herself to look up at the group, then back to Nibbles. "You're… the cat's Persona?" She nodded once again. Nibbles seemed wholly disinterested.
The Persona placed the ankh over her chest and rose to her feet. [Bastet.]
"Mrrow!" Nibbles purred and stretched out her back.
"So you were the one watchin' us? Aww who's my little cutie!" Judy cooed and went in for scritches. An act Nibbles was more than happy to allow. The cat rolled onto her back and pawed at Judy's tickling hand. Nibbles mewled and purred at the affection.
"For a minute, there, I expected her to start talking." V huffed, much to Panam and Kerry's confusion. "Well… no idea what the fuck's going on, but thanks, Nibbles. And… uh… Bastet."
"Mmmmrrr…" The cat was too enthralled with Judy's affections.
The fact that V was thanking her own pet made her feel like she was finally losing it. How the hell Nibbles had control of a Persona was a complete mystery. Then again, Morgana was a cat. This shouldn't be as surprising as it was.
"Insanity aside…" Panam spoke up, looking like she was about to faint, "what do we do now? Those things can't get in here, right?"
"As far as I know, we're safe in here." River replied. He checked his revolver and looked over his personal ammo reserves. Judging from the frown, he was empty. Same as V. "Think we should call it a day and let shit cool off?" He pointed his question to no one in particular, but it was V who had become somewhat of the leader.
"Yeah. Retreat, regroup, recover, rethink."
"Four R's, eh." River grinned.
[Join strengths. We can protect.] Bastet's words were less of a request and more of a demand. [We protect.] The simple, short phrases were jarring, but the point was loud and clear. Nibbles apparently wanted to help in their journey. It was honestly adorable looking down at the sphinx cat, her own feline eyes looking back up with unfiltered determination.
"How could I say no to those widdle eyes!" V's heart melted and beckoned Nibbles closer. The cat leapt into her arms and they cuddled for a few seconds.
Then, a pulse of energy tickled inside of V's chest. The familiar sensation she had grown accustomed to. Then the voice that followed. Resonating in her head.
I am thou, thou art I.
Thou hast acquired a new vow.
It shall become the wings of rebellion that breaketh thy chains of captivity.
With the birth of the High Priestess Persona, thou hast attained the winds of blessing that shall lead to freedom and new power.
Hearing it now, V could now place a face to the voice. It was Celine. The intonation and cadence was a lot different, but it was definitely Celine. Still, V smirked at Nibbles' arcana. "High Priestess indeed…" she muttered under her breath, quiet enough that no one seemed to hear her.
Sunday - June 19th
After a night's rest and a restock of supplies, V and the others sat around the coffee table in her highrise apartment.
"So… we ain't going to talk about Nibbles?" Kerry's eyes shifted from person to person. Everyone had been silent for a few minutes until Kerry had broken the ice, so to speak. V let out a weary groan. As grateful as she was for Nibbles' rescue, she still couldn't get her head around it. Yet more magical bullshit worming its way into her life. "... Because I thought she was awesome."
"Definitely." Panam nodded in agreement.
Nibbles herself was laying across the table without much care toward everyone around her. She stretched out and yawned lazily. For all intents and purposes, Nibbles was an ordinary cat. Yet, there was some intelligence behind the bored expressions and languid movements.
"Just to be clear, Nibbles. You don't talk, right?" V had to ask.
The cat opened a single eye and peered up at the merc. "Mmmrrrrr…" she mewled and yawned once more. No words, just cat noises.
"Damn…"
"Hey… wait… didn't you have another cat?" Panam perked up, seemingly remembering something. "When you did that job for us last month."
"That's Morgana. He's not ours, and no doubt he'd chew you out for calling him a cat."
"You… say that like he could actually do that." Panam looked strangely at V. Like she was growing a second head. V merely smirked and didn't offer anything more.
River and Judy just rolled their eyes.
"Joking aside, what's our plan?" River dragged the group back on track. "We have a temple that goes impossibly deep into the ground. It's swarming with Shadows who can easily overwhelm us, and our only lead is some kind of trial."
"I wonder what 'Enlightened Soul' means…" Judy muttered.
The group thought on that for a few moments. V bit her thumb and mulled over everything. The Palace might have been mostly theocratic in nature, but there was still the presence of scientific pursuit. Not to mention the Palace was based on Night Corp's headquarters. With that in mind, V stumbled upon a potential answer. "Maybe they're talking about Night Corp employees?" Everyone spared her a glance.
"It'd make sense." River gave a nod. "Of course he'd see his colleagues as enlightened. That's… actually kind'a respectable."
That was certainly one way of looking at it.
"So… maybe if we somehow became employees of Night Corp, we would be able to explore without any interruptions?" Said Panam.
"Perhaps."
Easier said than done. They couldn't just apply for a job for one of the most secretive, closed off corps in Night City. They could, however, fake some credentials. V let herself grin. As it happened, she knew someone who could potentially help out with that. Granted it was quite the risky play. After all, the person she had in mind wasn't exactly the most stable individual.
"I think it's time I gave Sandra a call."
Judy's eyes shot wide open. "Y'know… I completely forgot about her."
"Who's this Sandra broad?" Kerry raised a brow, looking at V with a curious look. As did the others.
"Sandra Dorsett. Way back, Jackie and I were hired to rescue her from a Scav haunt. Real nasty shit. Ice baths, meat hooks, chrome repos. We got her out to Trauma Team. Happy ending." She looked back on the gig with a mix of fondness and disgust. Assaulting Scavenger hideouts always left foul tastes in her mouth. The sheer amount of them hidden all over the city was sickeningly terrifying. One could walk by an old apartment complex and not realise the horrors and torture going on behind its walls. "After, she got in touch with me and hired me again. Retrieve a stolen data bank and deliver it. So I did. I guess my professional integrity made an impression on her."
"And… you trust her?" Panam glared with intensity.
V snorted with amusement.
"Fuck no. The broad's a Corpo down to the skivvies. But… she's at least willing to play ball given there's something in it for her." The question lies therein. What would be in it for Sandra? If the Corpo didn't already know about Project Shade, it wouldn't be the best idea to clue her in. Money wasn't the answer, either. If only she took the initiative and had a peek at that data bank. Maybe there was something on it she could use now. There was no sense in fretting. "I'll flag her over the hollo later. For now, we should really check on the kiddos."
"Is somethin' goin' on with them?" Said Judy.
"Lynn was bent all out of shape, but they have a lead on the Inoshishi, specifically the big bad boss. Can't hurt to make sure everything's ok."
"Huh… Ohya must have come through for us." River held the smallest of grins on his lips. "Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from her." He sniggered but shrugged it off. As expected, Panam and Kerry were both a little lost. Having only been made aware of the broader strokes of their situation, V took it upon herself to explain the events of Ichiryusai Madarame's Palace and the aftermath.
Kerry just sighed, deflating like a balloon. "This shit just gets weirder and weirder."
"You're tellin' me, Kerry," retorted V.