The crunch of your footsteps in the snow synchronizes with the beat of your heart as you rush headlong towards Toshima General Hospital. One by one, passersby turn and stare, their faces obscured by round, ivory masks rimmed with gold. Several of them bow as you hurtle past. Flocks of butterflies paint jet-black streaks across the swiftly reddening sky as though painted by an unseen hand, guiding you towards your destination.

You wish you could do something other than run, but time is of the essence. Once Nightmare gets Gin back on his feet, it won't be long before they come after you again. Or at least, that's how Yoko had made it sound. And it may not be just you they're after. If they know what you know, then Nisekao is in danger as well.

• • • • •

Gin took the medicine greedily from Rin's hand and swallowed the ball in one gulp. It began to work its magic instantly, filling his insides with gentle warmth as it soothed his burned skin, mended his cuts, and knitted his bruised and broken bones back together. What it couldn't do, however, was alleviate his anxiety or his damaged pride.

He had known from the start that Tetsuo wouldn't be anything like the other Shadows. His ability to change Personas made his fighting style flexible, and difficult to adapt to, and that was without taking his monstrous power into account. Still, after all the other Shadows he'd fought up to this point, Gin had hoped that he had gotten stronger. And he had.

The problem was, so had Tetsuo.

"Welp, that was the last one," Rin said with a sigh, her arms folded. "No more mulligans. Hope it was worth it."

Gin regarded his sister with the look of a child caught breaking the rules.

"Please don't give me that look. I had to try."

Rin's balled-up fists trembled, and her face went a violent shade of red.

"Did you, though?! Well, look how that turned out! Clearly, it was such a great plan that you didn't trust either of us enough to say anything!"

"You were never going to go along with me in the first place. You love that Shadow more than your own brother."

Hearing Gin use such barbed words stung, and Rin struggled not to show it. Spending so much time in the Metaverse had practically turned him into a stranger.

"He's not a bad person, Gin. He's been through a lot, just like us! I don't want to hurt him."

"Oh? And you think he'll feel the same way once you tell him you wanna drag him away from his fantasy world? Do you think he'll still love you then?!" Gin shouted.

He regretted it right away. In a moment of shameful clarity, he slumped back down on the curb of the sidewalk and buried his face in his hands.

"I'm so tired, Rin. We're in over our heads, and worse things get, the more I start to worry that I'm not strong enough to keep you safe. I just wanna go back to the real world, collect our money, and finally start over. Maybe you might like this kind of stuff, but me?" He gestured broadly to the chaotic scenery unfolding around them. "This wasn't what I signed up for."

Rin felt her anger ebb, and held her twin in a tight embrace – a genuine one.

"I know. This was my idea in the first place, after all. And whether you believe me or not, I want to go back to the real world, too. It's just…"

She paused, and her gaze unfocused for a moment.

"…I want to come back to a world where Tetsuo's there with us. His Shadow's like a part of his soul, right? I'm afraid that if we do something to it, he might not ever wake up. He's special to me, Gin. If I didn't do all I could to save him, I don't think I could live with myself."

Gin looked up at his sister, forlorn and pleading.

"And what about me? How do you think I'd feel if I had to come back without you? You're all I have."

"Well," said Yoko, inwardly relieved that Gin had finally started to calm down, "if we can take care of the source of the distortion in Tetsuo's heart without fighting, then nobody should be in any danger, right?"

Gin sighed resignedly.

"I mean, I suppose. But you saw what he's like now. Is there even any chance of doing that at this point?"

"Rin?" Yoko said, shooting her a glance.

"There might be," she said, with a slight glimmer of hope in her eyes. "Up until now, we've assumed that Tetsuo's trauma was related to the Clouds and the Yatabuya - Souichiro and the Dreamweavers were most likely representations of people who had an effect on him in real life. But even though we helped him deal with them, he still doesn't want to wake up. That's when I started wondering…what if the source of the distortions wasn't someone, but something?"

Both Yoko and Gin's eyes went wide as they came to the same realization.

"The guitar?"

"Bingo. I think it's more than just a weird choice of weapon. He takes it with him almost everywhere, and he's got some kind of sixth sense that tells him when it isn't around. It's obvious that it's something that's really important to him. It might even be related to what happened to him in the first place."

"So what are you suggesting?" Gin asked. "That we destroy it?"

The idea made her wince.

"…That would probably just make things worse. What I think we should do is try to separate him from it. If it really is the source of the distortions, that might bring him to his senses long enough for us to convince him to wake up."

To Rin's dismay, her partners exchanged skeptical looks. Yoko spoke first.

"I get what you're saying, but that's definitely easier said than done. You said it yourself – he hardly ever lets that thing out of his sight, so stealing it's kinda out of the question. And after what just happened in Cloud Eight, there's no way he trusts us enough to just hand it over."

"He'll listen to me. I know he will," Rin replied, but not without some doubt of her own, which made her feel sick inside.

She thought about the first time she had laid eyes on him behind that thick pane of glass in the observation room. His hair; dark, unkempt and shaggy, spilled over the pillow beneath his head while his legs, frail and atrophied from years of disuse, poked out from the bottom of the simple blue hospital gown like twigs. Tubes carrying fluid and oxygen sprouted from his nostrils and wrists, crisscrossing with the forest of colored wires that connected the sensors on his forehead to a set of daunting looking machines that loomed in the corner of the room like grim observers. She had wondered, in that moment, how – and why – he was still clinging to life.

Due to patient confidentiality, neither Dr. Isshiki nor anyone else involved with the Metaverse Expedition Team could tell her what had happened to him, but the way they talked around it, scared and ashamed, told her enough. It was the same way the counselors at school (back when she still bothered to attend) behaved when she told them about the urges racing through her head. Full of empty sympathy, but no real understanding.

But Tetsuo got it. Even as a Shadow, he understood. They were the same, and that's where her interest had come from. When he had held her, and told her that it was alright not to feel okay as long as they could support each other, she'd believed that. For the first time, she'd felt like the future held something worth looking forward to.

That's why it killed her to doubt him. He had told her not to give up on her life. Even if it was his Shadow that said that, there had to be some part of him that believed that his life was still worth living, too.

"And if he doesn't listen?" asked Gin. "What then?"

"Then we'll cross that bridge when we get there," said Rin. It was an unfair question, and one she felt deserved an unfair answer. "For now, if you're good to go, then we need to get moving. If he really has remembered his 'true self', he's probably gone looking for it. And if my suspicions are right…that's gonna complicate things."

• • • • •

When you burst through the automatic doors into the hospital lobby, the receptionist is already staring in your direction. As far as you can tell, she's the only one here. There are no doctors bustling about, nor are there any patients crowding the benches waiting to be seen. This place has been prepared for you alone.

You find it difficult to meet the receptionist's gaze as you approach the front desk. The mask she wears is the same one the people on the street were wearing, but now that you have the chance to study it up close, you find that there's no face behind the eyeholes, just two dark pinpricks that go on forever. The effect is unnerving, but you don't feel threatened. After all, the two of you are cut from the same cloth.

"I'm here to see Nisekao Fukui," you tell her, and immediately feel foolish. She must know why you're here.

However, the comment appears to confuse her. She tilts her head slightly, and a low, puzzled rattle emanates from the thin slit cut across the lower half of her mask.

"…Room 485? Nisekao Fukui?" you try again. Still nothing. With anxiety starting to creep into your chest, you quickly add, "I'm Tetsuo Katsuji."

"…Katsuji…yes…go on up…" she croaks, and gestures to the elevators in the hall beyond. You waste no time hurrying off without a backwards glance.

The doors hiss shut, crowding you in with your thoughts. As it rises, so does your heart, catching in your throat in anticipation. You remember the photo from Mom's Cloud, the one of Nisekao – you – holding your new guitar, and your chest tightens. After that photo was taken, everything changed, and the things that made life worth living began to slip through your fingers, one by one. This ascent, brief as it is, feels like an end as well. An end to a brilliant adventure, and the blissful ignorance that made it possible.

The elevator reaches the fourth floor – the intensive care unit. As you stride through the abandoned ward, a peculiar sensation takes ahold of you. A foreboding chill settles in the pit of your stomach, yet your face and extremities feel flushed and hot. The sensation is not unlike fear, but it runs too deep to even call it that. It speaks to a more primal response, one buried in the human heart since prehistory - instinctive, but unnatural; terrifying, yet captivating. It urges you to run, but compels you to keep moving forward, until at last you find yourself outside the door of room 485.

You step up to the door, but before you can peer through the window, a sudden voice from behind grabs your attention.

"Hello, Tetsuo."

Whirling around, you find yourself face to face with Nisekao. He greets you with a dry smile.

"N-Nisekao," you sputter. It's the first time you've seen him since Cloud Seven, and after everything that's happened since then, there's so much you want to say that it's tying your tongue into knots.

"It's good to see you again. Although…I'm sure both of us wish it were under different circumstances. You've been through a lot, haven't you?" he says.

Just to hear someone acknowledge it nearly makes you break down crying. You knew he was the right person to turn to. Even if everyone else turns against you, at least Nisekao won't abandon you.

"I remember everything," you tell him, trying to keep your voice steady and failing. "I finally understand why I keep seeing your memories…over and over and over again. It's because they aren't just yours. They're mine, too. You and I, we're one in the same. Only…"

Your throat slams shut at the thought of what you're about to say, forcing you to choke the knot down to continue.

"I'm one of them. A Dreamweaver. A Shadow. And you…you're who I'm supposed to be. My real self. The true Tetsuo Katsuji."

To finally acknowledge it out loud is a bitter relief, like shrugging off a heavy chain that's been wrapped around your neck for a long time. However, the boy in the chair regards you with a remote stare. He's just…sitting there, studying you. You wish he'd say something, anything.

"I'm right, aren't I?" you insist. "That was your voice I heard in my head in Cloud Seven, wasn't it? I know you know! That's why you called me here! So why didn't you ever tell me? Why go on letting me believe in a life that wasn't real?"

Nisekao locks eyes with you, and in an unusually rich, measured tone, he answers.

"Because that's what you wanted. It's what all humans desire, deep down. Given the opportunity, anyone would cast away their broken, mortal shell and choose a life free of suffering."

"Wh-" you breathe, too stunned by his use of the word 'humans' to form a coherent thought. Nisekao takes your speechlessness as an invitation to continue.

"But I understand why the distinction between 'dream' and 'reality' bothers you, Tetsuo. Shackled to their cursed existences, humans have convinced themselves that there's value in suffering, that there's some kind of quiet nobility in enduring the cruelty of fate. Hardship is admirable. Hardship builds character. Hardship makes you stronger."

His gaze intensifies, and his irises flash a brilliant, gleaming gold.

"Tell me, Tetsuo: when you lost the ability to walk, did that make you stronger? When you watched your mother bury your father, did that build character? When you endured all that humiliation and ridicule at the hands of your peers, did you feel admirable?"

Your hands clench into trembling fists, your nails biting deep into the soft flesh of your palms.

"That's enough," you spit, unable to keep the frustration out of your voice. "How do you think it felt, knowing that no matter what I did or said, nothing was going to change?"

You slump down onto a nearby bench as a bout of lightheadedness comes on.

"But this world…this is the way things ought to be. I'm stronger here, people actually like me…it feels like I'm finally in control of my life. I don't want to think about what I left behind anymore, Nisekao. I want these memories out of my head."

Nisekao's lips curl into a thin smile.

"And that's why I'm here. I've existed alongside humanity for a very long time, Tetsuo, and over the years, I've developed a certain…affection for their plight. I've witnessed so many hopeless lives, kindled and snuffed out at the whims of fate. That's why when I felt your soul brush past on its way to oblivion, I felt compelled to act. You deserved a more fulfilling life than the one you intended to forfeit - that is why I offered you a contract."

"A contract?" you echo. A series of cloudy shapes and muffled voices run through your head, but trying to remember them clearly is like catching smoke. Nisekao purses his lips and tuts softly.

"Really? After everything that's happened, you still don't recall the moment we first met? Well, perhaps" – Nisekao forcefully takes your hand in his – "we merely need to jog your memory."

You grimace as blistering pain shoots through your arm, forcing the hazy figures in your mind into perfect clarity. You remember those eyes, piercing and golden, staring out of that faceless mass of smoke as it extended its hand and wiped your mind clean.

"Ghh!" you grunt, breathing heavily as the pain starts to subside. "That was you…you're not human either, are you?"

"No, I'm afraid not," Nisekao responds matter-of-factly. "I am an inhabitant of the Sea of Souls, given form by the collective will of humanity. I've been known by thousands of names in my dealings with people, but if you're comfortable with the name 'Nisekao', you can continue to call me that."

It's a lot to take in at once, but to hear him speak like this, in a voice so clear and confident and different from the Nisekao that you thought you knew, leaves little room for doubt.

"Then, you're not actually my true self?"

Again, Nisekao shakes his head.

"Your human body exists in the mortal world, dreaming an endless dream. I borrowed its appearance for the sake of perspective. My – Nisekao's – purpose was to ensure that even with your old memories erased, you would gradually come to recall what kind of life you left behind – and be able to choose whether or not you wanted to return to it."

The very thought ties knots in your chest.

"...Why bother? There's nothing left for me there."

Your counterpart's eyes narrow to slits, and he shifts his weight about in his chair.

"Because it is vitally important that there is a choice. There are others like me, powerful beings who dwell within the Sea of Souls, those who would have you believe that the torment you've endured is the way things ought to be. Through our contract, I intend to demonstrate that given the opportunity, humanity will reject such pointless conflict. Therefore, whether you choose to stay a Shadow and remain here, or return to life as a human, that decision must be made of your own free will."

Remain a Shadow, or return to your old life…the choice hardly seems to warrant much thought. However, in a fit of merciless irony, your thoughts betray your conviction and turn to your mother – your real mother – alone in the real world, keeping watch over your lifeless body.

"Nisekao…if I choose to stay like this, what's going to happen to my body? Will I just stay asleep forever?"

"Unfortunately, no. At the moment, your mortal self treads a thin line between life and death. The only things keeping your husk alive are the hospital's machines…and the will of your mother."

Your breath catches. He couldn't have known what you were thinking, could he?

"Were it up to her, she would almost certainly choose to leave you in the hospital's care as long as possible. However, you and I both know that she can't afford to keep you there forever. Even if her love for you is limitless, her pocketbook isn't."

A new wave of memories comes rushing back in. Although she tried to hide it, you'd seen for yourself just how thin Mom stretched herself caring for you after the accident. Your pain medication, your new chair…caring for you had made deep cuts into her already scant wages. After all of that, there's no way that she'd be able to foot the bill for an extended hospital stay.

"Eventually, she will be forced to accept that you aren't going to awaken, and she will let you die. Once that happens, this world will collapse as well. Even my power can't sustain a dream like this without a heart to support it."

"Then what are we going to do?" you ask. "I…I don't want to go back, but I can't force Mom to make that decision, Nisekao, I just can't."

"And you don't have to. In return for helping you shape this world and granting you control over your Shadow, I will take over your body and keep it safe for the rest of its natural life while you dream. How does that sound?"

Strange, mostly.

"It sounds like you'd be getting a pretty raw deal. I'd be grateful, but…I don't see why you'd want my old body," you respond.

Nisekao's jaw clenches, almost imperceptibly.

"There was a time when I was able to live freely amongst humans. I sought the neglected and discarded, acting as their counselor, and granting them the means to pursue their desires. Ah, but my love for humanity caught the attention of others – those I mentioned earlier – beings whose only wish is to preserve the status quo and keep humanity orderly and complacent. They manipulated a group of humans into attacking me, and banished me to the Sea of Souls for eternity. The only way that I can return to the world of mortals again is through the will of mortals – in other words, you. If you finalize our agreement, I can return to your world and help others the same way I've helped you."

"And you wouldn't mind living in a body like mine?" you ask, still trying to process the absurdity in his request.

"I would welcome it. After all, I'd like to think that I'm used to it by now. You don't need to worry on my account, Tetsuo. I've shared your mind for a while now. I have access to all of your memories, and I understand your personality and mannerisms just all well as you do. It'll be like you never left."

"And my memories…if I agree to what you're suggesting, can you make me forget about all of this? For good?"

He nods, and places his hand on yours.

"For good. You can go back to school with Hayate, Koharu, and Shibutani, and live how you were meant to live. I can even give you some Shadows to fight if you still want to exercise your powers. I know you came to enjoy it. The power of Avalon – of your desires – will be yours to wield in its entirety. All you have to do is trust me."

His touch, so gentle and reassuring, is all you need to believe.

Myriad possible futures stretch out in your mind's eye like paths of light. Exchanging gifts on Christmas Eve, visiting the shrine for New Year's, going on vacations just like the one you spent at Lake Yamanaka – and all of it, all of it, surrounded by your family and friends who love you. A whole lifetime of years just like this one, repeated over and over and over…it makes your whole heart ache with a sort of yearning you never thought possible.

"I'll do it."

You had been sure of your decision for some time, but all the same, you're surprised by how easily the words roll off your tongue, filled with prayer-like reverence.

"But we need to hurry, don't we? You said we might not have much time."

Despite the urgency of the situation, Nisekao's expression remains placid. Languidly, he leans back and crosses his legs.

"Although it feels like almost eight months have passed in this world, time here flows drastically faster than it does in the mortal world. I would imagine that we still have some time before your mother decides to end your life support," he explains. However, his expression darkens quickly.

"That said, there's a more pressing issue at hand, one that needs to be resolved before we're able complete the terms of our contract. You understand what I'm talking about, right?"

"Nightmare," you respond with a twinge in your stomach. "They know what I am. They're trying to bring me back to the real world."

"Exactly. I know you came to think of them as friends, but waking you was their goal from the start. They're uninvited guests, likely here on the behalf of other mortals too curious for their own good. As long as they remain here, they won't leave you in peace."

Something Gin and Yoko said before leaps to mind, giving you pause.

"Can't we just kick them out? Or let them leave? They've made it pretty clear that they don't want to be here, at least not anymore."

Nisekao lets out the resigned sigh of someone who's been forced to admit something difficult to hear.

"I'm afraid we can't let them do that, Tetsuo."

"Why not?"

"Too much of a risk. If they were to return and report your condition to the people who sent them, it's highly unlikely that those responsible for your care would sympathize with your situation. Instead, you'd be labeled too far gone to salvage, and pronounced clinically braindead. That's why I've been preventing them from leaving – for your own good."

What he's saying makes sense, but that does little to massage the gravity of what he's implying.

"You're saying I have to kill them."

His pupils are drills, boring holes right through yours.

"Before they kill you. Gin has already tried, hasn't he? And Yoko has taken his side, too. They've made it clear how they feel."

"I know that. But…"

Fighting Gin again would be one thing – your chest still burns thinking about what he did to Mom's Shadow. But he's not the one who's rattled your conviction.

Nisekao arches an eyebrow, and you can tell before he even opens his mouth that he's read you like a book.

"Oh. This is about Rin."

"I don't want to hurt her, Nisekao. She's just like me - she'll listen to us! If I just talk to her and explain everything, she'll understand! The others, they've had hard lives, too. If we can get Rin on our side, we can convince them to become Shadows, too!"

"Oh, Tetsuo."

Nisekao gives you a look of such intense pity that your heart begins to plummet. He points to your guitar.

"May I?"

Handing it over to him is surprisingly easy, although your fingertips slightly cling to the lacquered surface as he lifts it from your hands. He runs a finger down the length of the strings and plucks a single note with a satisfied smile.

"I can see why this means so much to you. Tell me, do you understand exactly what this is?"

"My guitar," you answer hollowly, and the world around you starts to feel very distant. "Dad bought it for my fifteenth birthday. We had to drive all the way out to Inaba to get this specific model. It was on the way home…that Dad hit that woman. If I had asked for literally anything else, none of this would have happened."

"True. But in this world, it's far more than that. It is the foundation upon which this world are based. As a Shadow, it is the core of your being, and the source of the desires from which you draw your strength. As long as Nightmare doesn't understand its significance, they cannot defeat you."

Nisekao leans forward as if to return the guitar to you, but instead, he props it up against the side of his chair. He fixes you with a pointed stare.

"That is…unless you have reason to believe otherwise."

You feel your eyes bulge in their sockets as the realization hits you with the force of a bullet train.

Rin.

Just last night, she snuck into your room looking for it without even waking you up. And before that, the night you spent at Lake Yamanaka…did she know, even then?

With the bitter taste of bile building in your throat, your mind turns to something Yoko had said to Gin earlier:

"She thinks she's figured something out…"

Dazed, you fight to swallow your disgust, but it's no use. Instead, what bubbles from your lips is a pained whimper.

"Rin…you…I thought you understood…"

Nisekao exhales wearily.

"I really am sorry, Tetsuo, but she's no different from the rest of them. I know that you're hurt. And I know it will be difficult. But for your sake, we have to get rid of them."

"There really is no other way," you say, less of a question than it is a statement of fact.

"No," smiles Nisekao, his voice so gentle and tender. "No there isn't. But once we've taken care of them, we can make new ones. Cognitions, loyal and true. Just like the others."

"Loyal and true," you repeat.

Nisekao lifts your guitar back into his lap. With a snap of his fingers, it disappears in a lick of black flames.

"I'll keep this safe for you. In the meantime, you should get going. They'll be here soon."

He grins, baring row after row of glistening, sharp teeth.

"Show them the true power of this world's Ruler!"

• • • • •

As she sprinted through the hospital's sprawling front courtyard, Rin craned her head up towards the sky, its vibrant scarlet hues marred by the vortex of butterflies swirling above the great statue of the Staff of Caduceus in the courtyard's center. The closer they drew, the more it swelled, until the sound of their frantic wingbeats were like distant applause heralding the birth of this chaotic new world.

She clutched the grip of her bat tighter to fend off the dread crawling up her spine, and shot a quick glance at her brother and Yoko. Their expressions mirrored hers; jaws tight, eyes locked firmly ahead, hoping against hope that there would still be enough of Tetsuo left to listen to reason. Otherwise…

Rin blinked rapidly, and quickly pushed the thought from her head. She couldn't even entertain the concept of failing without feeling that old, familiar numbness coil around her heart. One way or another, she would prove to him that there was something worth waiting for beyond this dream. Just like he once did for her.

Suddenly, Pellinore flashed into being, its drones buzzing agitatedly about as it pulsed with an alarming red light. Gin's head snapped towards the hospital entrance.

"It's him."

The doors parted with a hiss, and Tetsuo shambled out.

Gin scoffed, Yoko winced, and Rin almost choked suppressing the gasp that leapt up her throat. Dark, purple smoke billowed around his feet, its wispy tendrils flaking off into even more of those foul butterflies as it rose into the air. His face had turned shockingly pallid, twisted into an accusing scowl. Even though they hadn't said a word yet, the three Persona users began to fear that their hopes of reaching whatever precious little humanity Tetsuo had left had been killed in the cradle.

Gin gave his sister a terse jab in the side.

"Where is it?" he hissed, and her eyes grew wide as she realized what he meant.

The guitar. Where was the guitar?

Horrified, Rin's eyes darted to and fro across the Shadow's body, but the damned thing was nowhere to be found. Panic seized her around the middle with its icy claws, stripping away her confidence and threatening to drown her completely.

Unfortunately, her distress hadn't escaped Tetsuo's notice. His blazing, golden eyes followed hers with a reptile quickness, and at once, he knew for certain that what Nisekao had told him was true.

"Looking for something?" he said, his tone now a mangled, discordant mockery of itself. Rin opened her mouth, but no words would form. This couldn't possibly be happening.

Yoko was plenty shaken herself, but as she watched her usually unflappable partner seize up, she decided to step forward and attempt to salvage the situation.

"Yeah! For you! I know you must be feeling alone and afraid right now, but you've got to listen to us! We know how to help!"

The boy's lips curled into a scornful sneer.

"You want to help? Now you want to help?" he scoffed. "Don't feed me that line. I know what you're really after, and you won't be laying a finger on it."

"It's no use - he knows, dammit," Gin muttered to Yoko as he stepped around her. "You don't get it, do you? Whatever memories you've got trapped in that guitar are poisoning your heart! As long as you keep hanging on to that thing, you're never going to-"

"That's enough," Tetsuo spat, cutting him off. "I'm so sick and tired of all this self-righteous nonsense from people who just don't fucking get it! You think I want to go back to a world where my Dad is gone? Where Hayate and Koharu and Shigesato barely even know my name? If I wanted that life back, I would have never tried to end it in the first place."

An oppressive silence descended on the courtyard while Gin and Yoko's minds struggled to think of anything they could say that wouldn't make the situation worse. Instead, Tetsuo saved them trouble.

"You told me before that you don't belong in this world. Now I'm here to tell you that I don't belong in yours. At least here, I finally have the power to control what happens to me. My mind's made up."

Tetsuo raised his arms towards the sky, and the swarms of butterflies overhead fell into a dive. Yoko, Rin, and Gin threw their hands up over their faces as waves of the black monarchs surged past, surrounding him in a spiraling twister of rustling ebon wings.

"I'm going to live as a Shadow – as my true self – here in this world. My Avalon."

"Yoko! We have to stop him! Now!" cried Gin, but to no avail. Tetsuo snapped his fingers, and exploded into a pillar of light.

"LAUNCELOT, GIVE ME YOUR POWER! PERSONA!"

A tremendous shockwave tore across the courtyard, shattering the Staff of Caduceus to smithereens and sending Nightmare sprawling onto their backs. Beside Gin, Pellinore shook violently as it fought to remain aloft and take readings at the same time.

"That reading from Cloud One…it wasn't Tsukino's Shadow at all…" he groaned.

Soon, the wind died, and the butterflies dispersed, leaving behind a hulking shape draped in a resplendent cloak of red satin. Parting the cloak, it stood, revealing a figure clad from head to toe in gleaming black armor, its helm tucked under one arm. Tetsuo's face, exhausted and gaunt, stared down at the three Persona users with a mixture of contempt and regret.

"Rin. I know that you understand why things have to be this way. If you leave them behind, you can stay here with me, in a perfect world made just for us."

He extended his free hand, and it shook with longing.

Tears welled up in the corners of Rin's eyes, and she couldn't hold her silence any longer.

"Understand? What am I supposed to understand, jackass?! Weren't you the one who told me I didn't need to become a Shadow? That my life could still have meaning without running away from it? I trusted you, Tetsuo! I believed you! I'm sorry, but I want to go home with my brother…and I want to go home with you, too."

Tetsuo's golden eyes went wide, and he withdrew his hand like he'd been slapped. Then, something tumbled out of his mouth – laughter, high and broken.

"Heh. Heh heh. Heeheeheehee! He was right! Nisekao was right about everything! You…you never truly cared about me at all! You're just here to rob me of my happiness!"

He lowered his helm into place over top of his tangled, flowing mess of hair and slammed the visor shut, obscuring every part of his face in darkness save for the two piercing, golden dots of his eyes.

"YOU'RE ALL NOTHING BUT THIEVES!"