Kokushi Musou.

One of the rarest hands in mahjong.

Like a miracle, Nisekao has lifted you straight out of hell.

"Wait, is that right?" you say into your mic.

The need for secrecy gone, Rin replies right away.

"The one and nine of each suit, all four winds, and all three dragons. Nisekao, you did it!" It sounds more like a question than a cry of relief.

Saito stumbles backwards as the color drains from his face. The Shadow seated next to him suddenly lurches to its feet, clutching its mask. The stamp on the back of its neck illuminates the dim bar for a fraction of a second, and its head bursts like a bubble, sending the mask skittering across the table and scattering tiles everywhere.

Saito acts quickly.

The instant his partner explodes, he claps a hand to his forehead, and the glow of the stamp subsides. As he does, you feel a tingle on the back of your own neck. You and Yoko lean over to inspect each other's stamps to find that they've disappeared.

"H-Hey! Our stamps are gone! Check yours!" you shout to the others. It doesn't take long for them to confirm that theirs have also faded.

"Hold on! What the hell d'you think you're doing?"

Rin explodes out of her seat, tossing her chair aside. But Saito raises a hand, and the few Shadows left in the bar level their weapons at her. She takes a step back, but her entire body is rattling with indignation.

"We won, you son of a bitch! After all that shit you were spewing about being a 'true gambler', you're backing down?"

Saito responds with a weak smirk and a shrug.

"Calm yourself. I was under the impression that this was supposed to be a match between you and I. Our seconds, well, they're supposed to be accessories! They're there to fill seats! Not to actually try and win!"

Saito jabs a malice-filled finger at Nisekao, who blanches and slowly scoots back from the table.

"Don't you try to slither your way out of this, you little worm. If that was the case, you should've said so from the beginning," spits Rin.

"It's not my fault you can't read between the lines," retorts Saito. "As it stands, a result like this is unacceptable. Therefore, the match is null and void."

"Is that so?" Rin gestures to the smoking gobs of Shadow matter splattered across the table. "'Cause it sure looks like your magic stamp thought it was valid. Nisekao's part of our team – his win should be just as good as mine."

Saito sneers across the table at her, his skin now pulsing with bulging, red hot veins.

"Well, unfortunately for you, my house, my rules. And as far as I'm concerned, this match doesn't count. However, now that we've got our expectations straight, we can always go another round. Frankly, if I were you, I'd accept the offer."

"Oh hell no," groans Hayate. "Please tell me we're not doing that again."

"You can't be serious. The others can't handle doing all that twice in a row! You must think I'm some kinda stupid if you think I'm gonna agree to that right after you got done screwing me over," Rin says, pulling her bat out from under the table and smacking it against her palm.

As she speaks, the crimson light roiling beneath Saito's skin intensifies, growing steadily brighter until he glows like a furnace.

"Tch. Even after I gave you a chance to settle this like equals, you still want to do this the hard way? Enough of this." He motions to the Shadows standing at the door. "Take care of it." With that, he turns on his heel and disappears into the hallway behind the bar. Rin darts forward to follow him, but the Shadows swiftly put themselves between her and the retreating Dreamweaver.

"Nisekao, get behind me," she mutters. "Now! Let's go, Galahad!"

A wall of blue flame obscures the lens of the camera, followed by the sounds of shattering glass and gunfire, and the feed goes dark.

"Rin! Nisekao!" you cry out.

"They'll be all right," says Yoko, placing a hand on your shoulder. "Gin, Saito's getting away. Can you get eyes on him?"

"Already done. He's slipped out the back, headed for the Hotel Gracery and smoking like a chimney. I'm headed to the bar to back up Rin, but I need everybody else en route to intercept him, now!"

Gin doesn't even finish before you bolt off down the street at full tilt with a startled Yoko jogging along behind you. Your rational mind agrees with Yoko that Rin can handle herself, but something at a more instinctual level is dragging you back to that bar, the need to confirm their safety repeating itself over and over again in your mind like a prayer. The others can pin down Saito.

Faster.

Faster.

The edges of your sight begin to darken. A squeal of resistance escapes your lips.

Not here. Not now.

Your legs lose feeling and crumble beneath you. The vision takes you into its embrace.

"Tetsuo? Tetsuo!"

You're falling.

Falling.

Your eyes fly open with a start. The rain descends in curtains upon the hunched figure in the yard, her bedraggled silhouette going about its grim work in a daze.

Shunk. Shunk. Shunk.

The rhythm of the shovel plunging into the Earth's flesh, gouging a wound six feet across, six feet deep. Enough to conceal the treasure wrapped in tarp at the woman's side. From your throne beneath the shallow awning, you watch her toil with more than rain running down your cheek.

Shunk. Shunk. Shunk.

The shovel rends your heart as it does the soil. Wordlessly, the woman takes the treasure into her arms, and lowers it tenderly into the vault she has carved. Your fingers clutch the cold, slick rims of the wheels beneath you, overwhelmed with the desire to fling yourself in after it and allow the darkness to swallow the unyielding grief coursing through you.

But there can be no such escape for you now. The world as you know it has changed irrevocably from this point onward.

The woman replaces the soil, stitches the wound, makes you prisoner to this moment, bound by conspiracy, by guilt, by the numbness you feel from the waist down. She tamps the ground with the flat of the shovel. It is done.

The rain obscures her features further as she approaches you, perhaps in defiance, perhaps in protection. She kneels down in front of you, and a shaking, soiled hand caresses your cheek.

"Remember, we have to keep this a secret."

She wraps your ruined body in as tight an embrace as she dares, and allows herself to weep.

"I will always protect you."

Your body spasms as your consciousness returns, legs kicking madly in resurrection.

"Hey! Whoa, whoa, take it easy!"

You find Yoko's worried face hovering above you, her arms wrapped around your shoulders with your head in her lap. Reddening, you bolt upright.

"Sorry…sorry," you breathe, finding yourself strangely winded. "I'm okay," you add, despite knowing how unconvincing it must be.

Yoko's eyes narrow with concern. "You sure? That looked like it was kinda rough."

Your gaze drops to your legs. You give them a rub and a flex, just to reassure yourself that they still work. Everything feels normal, and you can't help but breathe a long sigh of relief. God, the sensation felt so real…

Your mind is swimming with urgent thoughts, but one realization pushes its way to the forefront with more insistency than the others.

Nisekao.

Are these memories…his?

"Nisekao?" Yoko stares at you curiously, and you realize you were thinking the first part aloud. "What about him?"

"We…we were going to help him and Rin, right?" you stammer in an effort to cover yourself. You leap to your feet and adjust the guitar strap across your shoulder. "We need to get going."

"Hold it."

Yoko takes you by the wrist, her grip uncomfortably tight. Is she…afraid?

"You're sure you're feeling fine? And I mean absolutely sure."

You gently pull your arm free of her grasp. "Yeah. One hundred percent. Why? Is…there something you think I should be concerned about?"

There's a moment's hesitation.

"It's just…I'm getting worried that all this might be taking its toll on you. We still don't exactly know how spending time in this world affects people. Like, mentally. I know for a fact it's been hard on Gin. Believe it or not, he wasn't nearly as short tempered when we first met."

That is awfully hard to believe, but you keep that to yourself.

"Well, if I start feeling weird, I'll let you know. But for now, let's go catch up to the others."

The two of you reach the bar about the same time Gin does. He looks annoyed to see you. The feeling's mutual.

"What're you doing here? You're supposed to be going after the Dreamweaver."

"Same reason you are. That okay?" you reply.

"Guys, can we not-" Yoko starts, but a loud bang from inside the bar cuts her off.

Suddenly, the door gets blown off its hinges, and one of Saito's bodyguards tumbles into the street. Rin bursts out after it, and with a giant swipe of her bat, pulverizes the Shadow's head into a fine black mist.

"Rin! I, uh, guess you're all right," you say.

"I-I'm here too!" says Nisekao, poking his head through the door frame and rolling out once he realizes it's safe.

Rin looks up as if just noticing that you're there and lowers her bat sheepishly.

"Yeah, more or less. Although I guess it's kinda my fault we're in this mess in the first place. If I'd only gotten rid of that Red Dragon earlier-"

"You did what you thought you had to do. You didn't lose, and that's probably the best we could've asked for. It's not like Saito was about to let you win, anyways. He was manipulating the tiles to make you discard the Red Dragon," you explain.

"Oh, so he was cheating, huh? Go figure. At least that slimy bastard's given us a good excuse to handle things the old-fashioned way. You know where he ran off to?"

"Not too far," Gin replies. "The others should be closing in on him, but we shouldn't leave them to handle things for too long. Let's get moving."

He takes a step forward, then turns to wrap his sister in a tight embrace.

"Thank God you're all right," he mumbles into her shoulder. He then whispers something inaudible into her ear before taking off towards the hotel. Whatever it is, Rin turns bright red in a way you didn't think she was capable of.

"Should I ask?" you venture.

"N-No. C'mon already," she stammers, and the four of you follow him towards the heart of the Cloud.

When you reach the Hotel Gracery, Mariko and Shibutani are already there, taking cover behind a low planter. On the other side, there's a small group of Shadows armed with automatic weapons laying down cover fire as Saito approaches the hotel entrance. Nyneve and Bors are doing their best to retaliate, but they aren't getting many opportunities to line up accurate shots.

"Let's do this! Hell Biker!"

"Percival!"

Hell Biker hoists you into the seat behind him, and you speed off with Percival cutting through the air overhead. Your two Personas plow headlong into the enemies, scattering them with a few wild swings of your guitar and blasts of nuclear magic.

"Tetsuo! Gin!"

Mariko leaps out from behind the planter with Shibutani lumbering along behind her.

"Quickly! We must accost Saito before he gets away!" growls Shibutani, pointing over your shoulder.

You swivel about to catch sight of the Dreamweaver making a dash for the doors. But before he can reach for the handle, all the streetlights and signage flicker and dim. A massive sigil traces itself across the ground, and a yawning, ice-spewing chasm erupts in front of him.

"Combo Attack! Ninth Circle!" shout Hayate and Koharu, bursting out of a side street and looking awfully pleased with themselves.

Saito just barely catches his balance as he stumbles backwards, his eyes desperately flitting about for another escape route. This time, however, there'll be no more games. Once that realization dawns on him, he drops to his knees and begins to laugh.

"Hee hee hee…Uweeheehee! You're bloodthirsty tykes, aren't you? I'm beginning to think the game was rigged against me from the start!"

There's an echoing clang as Rin slams the tip of her bat into the pavement.

"Don't you even start – we're the only ones who've been following the rules here! As far as I'm concerned, you asked for this."

"Now, now," says Saito, putting up his hands disarmingly. "I do apologize for not being more…upfront with you about things. I'll admit – I'd never even once considered the possibility that I'd lose. A contingency like that seemed unnecessary."

"Yeah, when you rig the game, I can see why you'd think that," Yoko says.

Saito winces. "Oh. You noticed that, too, then. No use hiding it, then – I did have someone on the outside keeping an eye on your hand. Such a beautiful one, too. The way that Red Dragon was just waiting for me…poetry."

"You don't have any shame, do you?" says Koharu.

The Dreamweaver's expression goes deathly serious.

"This isn't about shame. And it's certainly not about honor. It's about protecting what's important to me…to Yuya…and doing that at any cost."

"You mean the money and the fame. How noble," says Shibutani, dripping with sarcasm.

At that, Saito stomps his foot, sending spidery cracks zigzagging across the concrete.

"Fuck the money! Fuck the fame! This isn't about any of that, either! It's about my identity! My family!"

Slowly, Saito locks eyes with you, his smooth façade slipping away bit by bit. The cuff of his suit catches fire.

"Things can't go back to the way they were. They just can't. This self…my Shadow self…is the only way I can protect him…protect Souichiro!"

The Dreamweaver flexes, and the flames at his cuff surge across his jacket and coat, burning them to cinders. The muscles underneath are lithe and toned, aglow with a hellish crimson light. Saito claps a hand to his face, then pulls it away, revealing the Tower half-mask.

"You understand, right, Tetsuo? What it feels like to pass the point of no return? Perhaps fighting you is nothing but a fool's errand, but for the sake of my son, I'll die trying!"

He turns, revealing an elaborate tattoo of a dragon that spans his entire back, surging and undulating from shoulder to shoulder in colors so vibrant, it practically looks alive. However, upon closer inspection, you realize that the dragon actually is moving!

"Wait, that's-" Gin sputters as Percival feeds him data, "-that's his Enforcer! But what was that reading from earlier?"

"It's time for one last gamble, kids! This time, I'll come out on top! Now, Uther!"

A fiery shockwave ripples from Saito's body, and the dragon tattoo bursts off his skin in a whirlwind of smoke and watercolors. The Enforcer swells to two, ten, twenty times its size as it surges into the air, practically blocking the stars with its powerful, thick coils. Finally, the beast's whiplike tail leaves Saito's skin, and the Dreamweaver doubles over on the ground.

"Souichiro…this is all for you."

He thrusts his arms skyward, as if seeking an embrace from some unseen deity, and the Enforcer strikes. It streaks towards the ground at a terrible speed, scattering everyone aside. It throws its maw open wide, and swallows Saito's Shadow whole with a snap.

At once, the thick scales on the dragon's body begin popping off like fireworks, ejecting trails of painted flame in their wake as the creature surges back into the air. Brushstrokes of pure light race down the length of the Shadow's body, painting mahjong symbols across its twisting, ivory form. Saito's True Shadow has become a tattoo made flesh, radiant and huge across the canvas of the sky.

His transformation complete, Saito lets out an earsplitting roar. He shoots towards the Hotel Gracery, wrapping himself snakelike around the towering skyscraper until his head comes to rest on the helipad on the roof. Metal struts twist and shear beneath the force of his giant front claws, and he booms down at you with a voice that rattles the buildings around you and shatters windows.

"Now, what do you say we play another hand?"

Shadow Saito's serpentine body starts spinning around the hotel again, picking up speed until the coils are whipping by in a blur of color. Then, like wheels on a slot machine, the three coils nearest to the ground screech to a halt, lining up three Green Dragon symbols painted on his scales.

"Gyeheheh! PON!"

The Green Dragons leap off Saito's skin, transforming themselves into emerald twisters that slice towards you across the pavement at a blistering speed.

"Look out!"

Launcelot leaps forth and absorbs the force of one of the twisters while Bors and Galahad pull the others out of the path of the other two. The whirlwinds slam into a building across the street, cutting swaths of concrete and steel out of their sides.

"Yeah, that's gonna be a problem," remarks Hayate as he gawks at the damage.

"No kidding. That's ridiculously powerful magic – I don't think we can afford to get hit by even one of those," says Gin, while Percival runs frantic analysis at his side.

"H-He's still playing the game," says Nisekao. "I th-think he's going to attack each time he lines up those symbols on his body. T-Try focusing your attacks on his coils when he's spinning!"

"Well maybe we should get on that, 'cause he's trying again!" Koharu cries.

The next coil stops on a patch of skin with no symbols on it, and for a second, you think that maybe Saito messed up the timing. Then, the next coil also stops on a blank patch, and Rin's eyes go wide.

"Hey!" she shouts, grabbing Mariko by the shoulders and pointing at the next coil. "That's not a blank, that's the White Dragon! Shoot the damn thing! Do it now!"

"Eep! Okay, okay!" Mariko squeals. Nyneve takes aim, and the blade of her sword pops open like a railgun, crackling with electricity.

"Fire!"

Mariko's aim is as reliable as ever. The lightning bolt collides with the spinning coil, which convulses from the shock and stalls on the one sou symbol.

"Hah! You got some fight in you, eh? Well, don't go patting yourselves on the back just yet! The night's still young, and the flow of the game is in my favor, so let's spin it up and go again!"

Saito lets out a booming laugh and spews a jet of fire into the sky as he resets his coils. Beside you, Rin breathes a sigh of relief.

"Jeez, he doesn't quit. I don't really get the dragon fetish, but it looks like he's still trying to put together the same hand as last time. I don't know what'll happen if he gets yakuman, but, uh, I don't fancy finding out."

Gin's brow furrows. "Obviously, preventing him from lining up those symbols is our top priority, but we'll never actually kill him that way."

"Well, you know what they say about killing snakes. Why not leave those of us with projectile capabilities down here to interfere with the enemy's attacks, while a second group goes for the head?" suggests Shibutani.

"So that would be you, Mariko, Yoko, and Gin on defense, and me, Hayate, Koharu, and Rin on offense?"

"Precisely. Of course, that leaves you with a much more dangerous assignment and without a healer, so exercise caution."

"Got it. Everyone clear on what to do?" you ask.

"Lead the way, man! Guess you're gonna get to do some dragon slaying with this thing, eh?" Hayate says, nudging Koharu with his elbow as he slings her sword over his shoulder.

"Heh heh…right," she answers, grimacing.

"Just be quick about it," says Gin. "There's no telling how long our shots will continue to be effective."

"Sure," you reply, resisting the urge to tell him that you'll take as long as you damn please. But as you make for the entrance, he takes you by the shoulder and pulls you back.

"And one more thing – I hope this goes without saying, but make sure you finish the job. Understand?" he tells you under his breath.

Wrenching yourself from his grip, you fire back a terse "Whatever," and head inside with the others. As if you need to be told what to do by him.

Once inside, the four of you dash across the deserted lobby with the sounds of your footsteps echoing from the high ceilings. Fortunately, the elevators are still functioning ("Oh thank God," remarks Koharu), sparing you from a grueling climb up dozens of flights of stairs. The sounds of battle fade as the doors slide shut and the car takes you to the heavens, an eye in the storm barely larger than one square meter.

In those sparing minutes, you find yourself studying the faces of your friends as you prepare to confront your final foe.

Hayate, resolute, his sunglasses tucked into his breast pocket and his eyes turned upwards.

Koharu, leaning against his shoulder, exhausted, but hanging on just long enough for one last push.

And Rin, who you've asked the world of and more tonight, her blouse coated in dust and spattered with blood, hair mussed up and damp with sweat…

"…Yes?"

Caught. Hayate and Koharu glance over and flash you leering smiles.

"J-Just wondering how you're holding up."

She runs a hand across her bangs, pushing them out of her eyes. They're brighter than you've ever seen them.

"Never felt more alive."

The elevator lets out a soft ding as it reaches the top floor and the doors open again.

"Alright. Then let's take care of business."

Here at the top of this thrusting skyscraper, the rest of Kabukicho looks like a tiny, shimmering snowglobe hamlet, acquiring an innocence it could never pull off up close. It'd be breathtaking if it weren't for the giant lizard in the way.

Saito's wide nostrils flare as he watches you emerge onto the roof, bathing the helipad in plumes of painted smoke. It happens so quickly that if you'd blinked, you would have missed it, but the golden eyes behind his mask widen in surprise.

He's afraid.

But the moment passes in an instant, and a torrent of flames issues from the dragon's gaping maw.

"Black Frost!"

"Kay!"

Your Personas are just barely able to throw up a thick wall of ice that hisses and sputters as the jet of fire collides with it. By the time Saito's breath fades to embers, all that remains is a waist-high pile of slush. The Shadow repositions himself to face you, his weight shaking the roof each time his claws shift for a new foothold.

Standing face to face with this monster, you're struck by just how much you underestimated his size from down on the ground. His head alone has to be nearly ten times your size. As your eyes wander to the endless rows of shimmering scales armoring his body like metal plates, find yourself wondering: How exactly are we even supposed to harm this thing?

"Ha! I thought I noticed that a few of you were missing!" Saito booms. The deep, gravelly bass of his voice practically ruptures your eardrums at this range.

"You're still dead set on ending this in bloodshed, then? It doesn't have to be this way, you know. All I ever wanted was to cure this sickness in my head, to atone for what I'd done to my boy. Is that too great a crime for you to tolerate? Does your hypocrisy truly run that deep?"

Hayate lets out a sarcastic, barking laugh.

"Well, when you leave out the part where you sic gangsters on innocent people and use your shitty app to summon Shadows, we're just a bunch of total bastards, aren't we?"

Shadow Saito cocks his head in confusion.

"You're mistaken. I have no ill will towards the people of Toshima, nor have I forced them to summon their Shadows. They have chosen to remake themselves of their own free will, as have I. They recognized the relief that the Long Dream offers."

"What's that?" you ask. "Another name for the Age of Shadow?"

"Some of us call it that, yes. It's the peace the world will attain once every mortal soul has surrendered the burden of living to its Shadow. You may be tempted to misinterpret this as a hostile takeover or a descent into madness, but it is simply what it states: a long dream in which your most desperate desires are realized."

"Would you…call yourself happier now?"

The dragon heaves a sigh that blows your hair back out of your face, and turns its gaze upwards. There, floating high above you, is the real Yuya Saito. You find yourself shocked at his appearance – his clothes are old and stained with frayed hems. Whereas his Shadow's face was young, full, and confident, his own is gaunt and tired, his expression fixed into a permanent scowl.

"Without a doubt. No more anger, no more self-hatred. Like this, I can finally do what I couldn't before – look my son in the eye and feel a father's love."

For a moment, you almost want to believe him. There's a yearning in your soul for the feeling he's describing, a tiny creature made of scrabbling hands attempting to emerge from the depths of your heart into the light. It's always been there, you realize, for longer than you can remember.

You cast a sideways glance at Koharu and Hayate, similarly quiet and lost within themselves. Is this what they felt, too, when they wrote their names in the Book of Avalon?

"Tetsuo."

Rin places her hand on your arm, and her touch brings you back to the moment.

"You don't need that to live the life you want to live. And neither does he. Remember where you are, and what we're doing."

Right. You're here to save people, lost people like him. Like Hayate, and Koharu, and Shibutani. You're the only ones who can.

He's a Shadow.

A monster.

Not human.

How could he know what it means to live?

"I'm sorry," you tell him, straightening up and staring him directly in the eyes. "I'm sorry that this is the only way you feel like you can take back control. But no one person should decide the best way to live for everyone. We're going to destroy the Book of Avalon, and put things back to the way they should be. And you're not getting in our way anymore."

Shadow Saito shuts his eyes, and exhales sadly.

"I see. In that case, I'm sorry, too."

Without warning, he rushes at you, his tremendous jaw open wide and ready to tear into your flesh. Acting on instinct, you stumble backwards, your heel hits open air, and you topple over the edge of the helipad.

"Tetsuo!" shouts Rin, and she dives off of the roof after you.

Hayate and Koharu's cries get swallowed up by the howl of rushing air as your weight carries you towards the rapidly swelling ground below. Rin pulls her arms and legs close together to hasten her descent. Once she catches up with you, she summons Galahad. He leans over the side of his chalice and plucks the two of you out of the air with his telekinesis. Rin's entire body tenses in sync with her Persona as they strain to carry your bodies back towards the building.

"C'mon…just a little farther…"

Sweat streams down her brow and soaks the collar of her shirt as she fights to keep the two of you aloft, teeth ground tightly together, eyes rattling in their sockets. At last, Galahad floats you over one of the giant coils wrapped around the hotel, and lets go. Both of you drop onto Saito's smooth, scaly back and flop over, greedily sucking in lungfuls of air.

"Holy…shit…" you gasp. "You saved my life."

Before you can think twice about it, you wrap your arms around her and bring her close. You don't exactly know why – maybe you're afraid she'll leap out into the void again.

"Don't do that again. Please."

Rin extricates herself from your arms and stands up quickly.

"Well, you first, okay? Wouldn't mean much if we won without you." She turns away to hide her rapidly reddening cheeks. "Now c'mon, we need to get back and help the others."

You crane your neck back towards the roof. You're closer to it than you are the ground, but you've still fallen several floors. Saito's back is more than wide enough to walk along, but it'd take more time and energy to run back up than you have to spare right now.

[You gonna ask me for a ride or not, Boss?] says a gruff voice in your head.

"Oh, right!"

Hell Biker rolls up alongside you in an explosion of engine noise and sapphire flame.

"You ready to haul ass, Boss? Then hop on."

The demon extends a hand to help the two of you into the seat behind him before revving the throttle and slamming on the accelerator.

"Hey, are we going anywhere?" says Rin, staring at the hotel windows beside you. Oddly enough, you don't seem to be making any upwards progress. Once you inspect the surface below you, however, you realize why – Saito's coils are spinning in the opposite direction!

"Hey, we need more speed!" you shout, tapping Hell Biker on the shoulder.

If Hell Biker's skeletal face were capable of expressing annoyance, he'd be showing it now.

"Whaddya mean, 'more speed,' I'm already floorin' it here! You want more, you come up with somethin'!"

Rin taps you on the shoulder. "We need a boost, right? Let me handle this."

"You sure you have enough energy left?"

"It'll be enough for this. Just make sure you hang on – it's a little intense. Now, Galahad! Hit it!"

Rin's Persona snaps his fingers, and a cool, green light washes over your body. Instantly, you feel like you've just sucked down a dozen coffees. Every last centimeter of your body feels like it's buzzing – even your blood feels like it's flowing faster.

Hell Biker sits straight up and twists the throttle a few more times. The muffler lets out a scream like a jet engine prepping for takeoff, and your Persona lets out a whoop.

"Hell yeah! Hold on tight, Boss! We're about to hit this bitch!"

"Just g-" you start to shout before the peelout steals the words from your mouth.

The chopper rips up the dragon's back at a blazing speed, leaving nothing but scorched tire tracks and the echoes of your screams in its wake. Round and round the skyscraper you zip until you finally draw level with the roof again. Hayate and Koharu are doing their best to avoid Saito as he peppers the helipad with fireballs and swipes at them with his claws, but judging from Kay and Le Fay's drooping stances, they won't hold out for much longer.

"We're almost to the head! What next?" shouts Rin.

Saito doesn't seem to have noticed your presence yet. If you're going to make a decisive strike, now's the time. You quickly scan the scene unfolding around you, searching for any kind of opening you exploit before Hell Biker runs out of room…

…There! At the nape of Saito's neck, just below his antlers, there's a thin, glowing crease betraying a gap in his scales. And you know just the tool for the job.

"Koharu! Hayate!" you cry out, trying your best to stand up in the seat so they'll see you. Their attention snaps towards the bike speeding up Saito's back, and their faces light up.

"Ha ha! You made it! My man, you are impossible to kill!"

"The sword! Toss me Koharu's sword!"

Saito's heads whips around to face you, and once again, his eyes go wide with fear.

"What the…?! Get off! Get off of me!"

Several things happen all at once.

Kay tosses aside one of Saito's claws, takes the longsword out of Koharu's hands, and heaves it towards the motorcycle.

Saito begins to thrash wildly about the helipad, sending Hell Biker skidding out from under you and bucking you into the air.

Roiling jets of fire sear through the night around you, but your focus is trained on one thing – the sword. Tracing its arc through the sky, you reach for it with your hands outstretched, and feel your fingers wrap around the leather grip. You then tuck your head up into your chest, and allow yourself to plummet towards your target in a somersault. The blade finds that crease at the nape of the Shadow's neck, and just as it cuts into the flesh, it extends to several times its original length in an explosion of radiant light.

It feels like nothing.

Your feet hit the helipad, and the Shadow's neck erupts in a ring of black blood. That long, lithe, powerful body falls away from the head, unfurling itself from the Hotel Gracery as its bright colors fade, its tattooed brilliance shriveling up and collapsing into clouds of dark mist. The head itself drops to the roof before you, eye sockets dimmed, its mouth frozen in a panicked roar. Then, it too dissolves into a cloud of black butterflies, leaving behind the battered, shivering form of Yuya Saito's Dreamweaver.

He rolls over onto his back and locks eyes with you from beneath his mask.

"Wh-Why…? Why are you doing this to me?" he sobs, his breath shallow and ragged. "What do you think this is going to accomplish?"

"Don't play dumb. Not now. We're putting an end to this. The schemes, the intimidation, the Clouds…all of it. It's time for things to go back to the way they were," you say.

"The way they were? The way they were?!" Saito grips his head between his hands, shaking it back and forth. "Why? Why would you want that? Why would you wish that on me? On my son?"

"Well, I-"

"Please! I'll concede that you've won. I'll surrender the company, cut my ties with the mob, just please listen to me! Let me say my piece."

"Tetsuo…" Rin steps forward. "You're not really gonna trust this guy, right? It's over, let's just…finish what we came here to do."

Make sure you finish the job.

"No."

"Huh?"

You fix her with a steady gaze.

"We're going to hear him out."

Rin looks like she wants to object, but she swallows her words.

"All right. You're the boss."

Turning back to Saito, you encourage him to go on. He throws himself at your feet, shaking with gratitude.

"Yuya came to me a broken man. A washed-up host, too old to bring in good money, too weak to be an enticing enough recruit to the yakuza that owned his club. He could barely control his life, let alone be responsible for a child's. Yet, when she showed up the office that day with the kid, he could hardly refuse her. Just like all the other times he couldn't refuse her. She was the only woman who would request him, after all. Especially after hours. Of course, it doesn't take much imagination to work out what happened next. There's a reason Souichiro never knew his mother.

"Of course, Yuya never saw the kid as a reason to do better. Day in and day out, he – we – watched the walls close in around us. Floundering. Helpless. Desperately throwing our tips into mahjong parlors in the hopes of turning things around. How far do you think that got us?"

The Dreamweaver's eyes glaze over, and for a fraction of second, you can see the shell of that man reflected within, tired and pitiful.

"Yuya Saito, the true Yuya Saito, is a man in a death spiral. Too prideful to admit when he's beaten, too stupid to realize the blame lies with him. What's a man to do when he's angry at the world but too powerless to do anything about it? He lashes out, channels that anger at the one person he knows won't fight back."

Images of Souichiro's battered torso flash through your mind.

"So, Tetsuo Katsuji, let me ask you – is that a man worth fighting for?" Shadow Saito points at the unconscious figure imprisoned above you. "Take what you will from me – like I said, the money and fame mean nothing. But at least let me continue on as Yuya! Let me be the father that Souichiro deserves."

You think about your own father. The way he always smiles, no matter what you do or what happens with Mom at work. How he's always waiting for you with food on the table to ask you about your day. You think about the boundless ways he shows you love every day – and then try to imagine life without that.

It's surprisingly easy. And it hurts so much you have to force yourself to stop.

The sword drops from your hand, and you hear it clatter to the floor.

"What are you doing?"

Gin emerges from the roof access stairs with the rest of the team in tow, glaring at you incredulously.

"What does it look like? We're done here," you reply flatly.

"No. No, no, no, no!" He advances on you and seizes you by the collar. "What do you mean we're done?! We're not done until that thing is dead!" he seethes.

You seize him by the wrist and pry his hand off of you. It feels so brittle in your grasp. If you wanted, it'd take just one twist…

"The real Saito is a monster, Gin. The world would be a better place without him."

Gin bats your hand away in a frothing rage. "He's a monster? And this thing isn't? Have you completely lost your mind? He created the Book of Avalon – did you forget about that?"

"I haven't forgotten about anything! We don't have to ruin someone's life just to get rid of the Book. If we spare him, he'll do it himself. Won't you?" you say, turning back to the Dreamweaver.

However, the Shadow just fiddles with its fingers and looks away.

"A-About that…I'm afraid I can't do anything about the Book."

A leaden weight drops into your stomach.

"Wh-What?"

"See?" crows Gin. "These things aren't moved by mercy or reason! The only thing they want is to see us all wiped out! The only way we're ever going to be free of this nightmare is to kill every last one."

"N-N-No!" Saito squeals, throwing his hands up. "L-Let me explain, you've got it all wrong! It's not that I wouldn't destroy the Book for you, it's…it's that I can't. I didn't create it."

Gin makes a few quick swipes on his tablet and his drone swoops in, leveling its guns at Saito's chest.

"Liar. You won't deny us our escape."

He lifts his finger to give the command to fire, but Rin steps into the drone's line of sight.

"Rin. Get out of the way."

But she stands her ground with a firm shake of her head.

"Nuh-uh. You're out of line, Gin. Yeah, he's a Shadow. And yeah, he tried to cheat us. But look at him. He's out of tricks. He knows that if he tries anything, we'll put him down in an instant. Let him say what he needs to say. He's telling the truth."

Gin's jaw twitches furiously, and he recalls Chiime.

"So, you're abandoning me."

"No, Gin. But right now, you're not yourself. I'm not about to let you do something you'll regret."

You then round on the Dreamweaver.

"If you are telling the truth, then…you seriously didn't create the Book of Avalon?"

Saito slowly shakes his head.

"But you're the president of G-Net! You're hosting the app on your site!" says Hayate.

"G-Net? I didn't create that, either. I was just entrusted with it, as a means of distributing the Book of Avalon to the populace. Yuya was the Book's first user, its 'beta tester', so to speak. In exchange for seeing my dream realized, I was to make myself useful and be G-Net's public face, one people could trust."

"And what about the Yatabuya?" asks Shibutani.

"Them? I don't really have anything to do with them, either. If you're talking about the deal I struck with that Hoga girl, those were just part of my instructions. To be honest, I never approved of the way he used those brats. People would have accepted the Long Dream without being terrorized."

"He? Are you…are you telling me there's still someone else?" mutters Gin.

"So who is it?" you ask. "The one who created the Book, the guy in charge of the Yatabuya – if it's not you, then tell me who he is."

Saito fidgets about nervously, refusing to look you in the eye.

"Please, just let me go. What you're asking is impossible. I've already said too much, just please, let me g-"

He stops abruptly, and turns his face to the heavens. The rest of you look up yourselves, but the sky's suddenly become too hazy to tell what he's looking at.

"He's here."

The words barely leave the Dreamweaver's mouth before a colossal fist descends from the mist, splattering him across the rooftop. Almost immediately afterwards, a massive black blade splits the haze, piercing the fist through. Rin's hand flies to her neck, tracing the tattoo bearing the same image.

You dash towards the fist, not sure exactly what you're hoping to accomplish but feeling like you have to do something. But before you can come close, it transforms into a swarm of black butterflies and ascends to the sky, leaving behind nothing but the shattered remains of Saito's mask.

"It's up there somewhere!" shouts Mariko, summoning Nyneve. "Let's bring it down!"

Your friends' Personas launch desperate attacks into the dark clouds hanging over Cloud Six, but you have a hunch that it's probably too late. Instead, your attention is drawn towards the fragments of Saito's mask strewn forlornly across the floor. Taking the shard bearing the numeral 'XVI' into your hand, you close your eyes, and allow yourself to fade into that other world.

You're back in the same white hallway.

Speaking to the same woman.

Always her. Always on the edge of tears.

"You know, I was in the neighborhood, so I decided to drop by. How are things today? Any better?"

This time, your voice is Saito's. Taunting, cruel, disingenuous.

The woman chooses not to respond.

"Nothing to share? All right then, I'll start: the police came to talk to my boy at school the other day. Any idea why that is?"

The woman chooses not to respond.

"No clue? Do you want me to tell you what I heard? They seemed to be under the impression that he was responsible for what happened to your kid. I wonder how they got that idea."

The woman chooses not to respond.

You lean in close.

"Let me make this perfectly clear – if I catch wind of anyone slandering my family like this again, I'll sue them so far under the poverty line that they'll never keep a single yen to their name. Understand?"

The woman nods.

"Fantastic. Best wishes to you and your son, then."

With that, fog creeps into the corner of your vision, and your eyes snap open. Gin stands off to the side with Percival, while Yoko waves for the others to stop firing into the sky.

"Guys, that's enough," she yells. "It's gone."

Gin recalls Percival and swears loudly.

"That was it," he hisses under his breath.

"What? You know what thing was?" asks Koharu.

"It's the reading I picked up earlier. The city-sized one. It's a Persona."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back it up – the size of a city? And it belongs to someone?" Hayate's face goes white as a sheet.

"Not just anyone – probably the person Saito was too afraid to name. He must have been here the whole time to make sure Saito didn't say too much," says Yoko. "God, another Persona user...as much as I hate to admit it, we're not finished with this quite yet."

"But, how do we even go about finding them?" Mariko wonders aloud. "Saito was the only one who knew who it was. And now, he's…"

Everyone turns to stare at the dark stain that used to be Saito's Shadow. Everyone except Gin. Cradling his head in his hands, he lets out a dribble of choked laughter.

"It's not over…it's not over…why? I just want to go home…"

"Gin?"

You stride over to his quivering form and gently tap him on the shoulder.

"Are you gonna be okay, man?"

Suddenly, Gin lets out a pained cry and knocks you to the ground. Wrapping his hands around your neck, he starts to throttle you as he screams.

"What's the matter with you? Haven't you had enough? Let me go, you son of a bitch! Let me go home!"

"Ghh! What're you talking about…? Stop it!" you sputter, pushing your hands into his face in vain attempt to force him off of you.

"Hey!"

"Gin, no!"

Shibutani and Hayate rush over and bodily heave Gin away from you. He thrashes about in their grip in a demented fury, watching as you stagger to your feet, massaging the spot where his fingers had been moments before.

"Hold him still for me."

Rin winds up and delivers a blistering right hook to her twin's jaw. His body immediately goes limp and collapses to the floor.

"Idiot," she hisses at his unconscious body.

"Are you all right?" Yoko asks as she inspects your neck. You manage a weak nod even though things certainly don't feel all right.

"Okay. Good." She exhales sharply in relief. "I'm so sorry about that. I knew he was getting worse, but I had no clue he was so close to losing it. I know it's a lot to ask after all that, but…please don't hold it against him. He may act tough and above it all, but he hates all this fighting more than anyone. The stress must have finally gotten to him."

Hayate scoffs. "Stress? Seemed like a bit more than just stress."

"Yeah, are we gonna be safe around him?" Koharu chimes in.

"Don't worry about it," says Rin as she and Yoko hoist her brother's arms over their shoulders. "If he tries something like this again, he'll have to answer to me."

"It's been a long day for all of us," says Yoko. "For now, let's just go home."