They fixed the holes in the floorboards, Aigis noted to herself.
Not all that surprising, considering that it had been almost two months since she last stepped into the training room. That was plenty of time for even a school with excessive bureaucratic red tape to fix minor infrastructure issues.
Summer was in full swing, and despite the night air offering some relief from the heat, the room still smelled somewhat musky. Aigis's school uniform was soaked in sweat, but she did not own any other clothing suitable for training.
So she endured the sticky fabric on her skin.
Makoto looked marginally better, in that she was not showing any signs of discomfort, but there was no telling what she actually felt, beyond looking a bit more haggard than usual.
She had thrown herself into her studies with an unnatural fervour ever since she received the letter from Shihouin. Aigis guessed that Makoto had taken him up on his offer for connections, and was now learning as much as she could about the laws of Soul Society, a mirror of what her sister was like back when they were alive.
"How are you feeling, Aigis-san?" Makoto asked, her zanpakutou laid across her lap as was standard for jinzen.
"To be honest," Aigis began, "I am a little nervous." She sat down some distance away from her friend, mirroring her position. It was not that she did not want to be close, but rather, she was worried about the destructive potential of their powers.
The last time she summoned Metis was a mess, after all.
"I believe in you." Makoto affirmed.
"How about you?" Aigis asked back, because if she dwelled on the question about herself any longer, she was sure she would back out from sheer nervousness.
The brunette sighed, and for the first time, Aigis noticed faint traces of black circles around her eyes. "Too tired to care."
"I know I would sound like a hypocrite," Aigis sat down on the floor opposite Makoto, "but you need to take care of yourself."
Makoto snorted. "It's starting to settle down, at least," she explained. "And this isn't my first rodeo. I'll be fine."
They summoned their Personae with much less fanfare than the last time, though Aigis's focus was primarily on Metis.
She still looked the same – the same black armour plating, the same red butterfly mask rimmed with gold. Pallas Athena's spear was still in her hand, instead of the hammer she used to wield. The only difference was the look in the eyes.
The last time she was summoned, Metis looked…disappointed, and perhaps, a little angry, judging by how badly she thrashed Aigis in their spar. Now though, her Shadow's red eyes were focused and narrowed – a challenging look.
"Seems like you've done some growing," she observed.
"I hope." Aigis answered. She was not arrogant enough to think that was enough.
"And there's your problem."
Oh.
It seemed that was the wrong thing to say, after all.
Metis shot at her like a speeding bullet, leaving Aigis to scramble away from her original position. A few fine strands of hair loosened from their roots as the golden spear barely missed her face, while she rolled into a crouched position, her zanpakutou released and primed.
"Firing!"
Her bullets merely slowed Metis a little, as she kept up her offence and used the spear to deflect any shots that threatened to graze her. Nevertheless, that was enough breathing room for Aigis to shift to a proper battle stance, her legs spread and steady on the wooden floorboards.
"You always fall back into bad habits." Metis commented in an almost bored tone. She dodged the last bullet, swivelled, jumped off the wall and charged straight at Aigis. "How long will it take for you to learn?"
Aigis merely took a half step back, dodging the spear charging at her neck by the thinnest of margins. She kept up her usual poker face, the expressionless features of a doll – a robot – on her mission.
But at the same time, something…warm and comforting was rising in her chest.
She was close to the answer, and her experience on the internship trip provided her the missing pieces, but could she voice them?
"They sure got going quickly." Makoto observed the white and black pair, Johanna thrumming gently at her side.
As before, they quickly cleared the space where Aigis and Metis were fighting, though thankfully Aigis had not aimed a single bullet in Makoto's general direction since their clash began. In fact, the blonde looked oddly passive, her mouth set into a firm line, her eyes vaguely following the movements of the streak of black and gold pressuring her.
Despite the sight of something that would normally be considered worrying, there was…a calculating glint in Aigis's eyes. Besides, Johanna did warn Makoto the last time that she should not interfere with Aigis's issues with her Shadow.
Johanna, meanwhile, was silent, but Makoto got the distinct impression of a side-eye directed at her.
"So what do you want me to do today, Johanna?" she ventured.
The motorcycle turned around, her wheels audibly skidding on the floor until she was face to face with her wielder. "You seem to have grown."
"In two months?" Makoto asked dryly.
A gentle puff of exhaust, reminiscent of a chuckle. "If you can joke like that, I take it that you are ready."
"As much as I will ever be." Makoto steeled herself. "No matter what may come, I will find a way through it all."
Johanna's head never moved, but Makoto got the sense of an approving nod, as the chassis moved down and up ever so slightly. It was strange, being able to read something non-humanoid so well, but Johanna was a part of herself. Any less and it would be akin to rejecting her own Persona.
"Get on me." Johanna commanded. "I will test your resolve."
It had been over a hundred years (by her own sense of time) since Makoto got to ride a motorcycle. But the moment she sat on the seat, her natural instincts and muscle memory took over – body hunched, feet firmly on the footrest, her hands on the handlebar, firm but easy.
"Try not to fall off."
And with that casual comment, in an "oh, I forgot to tell you" way, Makoto suddenly found herself hanging on for dear life.
"Seems like I might have misjudged you a little." Metis smirked, as she stabbed the spear into the floorboards, ripping open a new hole and swinging her entire body around the shaft like a fulcrum, then shot off, feet first, towards Aigis's centre. She took another half step to the side, then used her gauntlet zanpakutou to deflect the spear that came along with her other half. "Aren't you getting a little cocky here?"
"You, on the other hand," Aigis shot back, "seem a little too hurried." She ducked under a leg swipe, then hopped back to create some distance, until the loud roar of a motorcycle engine brushed her hair, and she was forced to duck again.
She dared to split her attention for a second to gauge what Makoto was doing, and then decided that they were going too fast for Aigis to understand what happened. At the very least though, Makoto and Johanna largely kept to aerial manoeuvres, which gave Aigis enough space to sort out her own issues with Metis.
Aigis turned her attention back to her own situation. She was in no hurry to attack. Not until she found out exactly what was happening with her subconscious.
Metis seemed unstable, in a similar way to how people had mood swings – her expression shifting between a sneer and anger bordering on frustration.
For her part, Aigis felt…nothing. She frowned minutely. That hint of warmth had cooled off, leaving just the empty, unfeeling thoughts analysing her current situation.
She really hoped that she was not being caught up in Metis's mood swings.
"Yeah, because you're pissing me off!" Metis roared, slamming her spear at Aigis, intending to cleave her in half. She took a step sideways, letting the spear shatter the floorboards instead.
Metis was not known for being reckless. From Aigis's memories, she remembered her other half often being angry, frustrated, or disappointed, but she was never reckless. Her acts of destruction always had a clear goal – protecting Aigis the best way she saw possible.
Which, in Metis's first manifestation, meant attempting to kill S.E.E.S. Aigis was just glad that she had not made an attempt on Makoto's life yet.
Aigis hung back instead of pressing the advantage, determined to observe Metis just a little more, and perhaps view this entire affair in a more logical light, or at least attempt to. She knew how fickle emotions were.
"Everything you've done…" Metis growled, sweeping her spear back and crouching low, "just hurt you more! When will you learn to stop?!"
"Wha–" This time, Aigis barely avoided the wild charge as she stumbled back, then raised her gauntlet to defend herself from the assault. The sudden change in conversation topic surprised her, but she shifted her stance to stabilise herself, trying to buy some time to think. "What are you talking about?"
"Everything!" Metis roared. "Your life, your death, every time you go out to help, you always end up hurt!" She kept up her assault, alternating between stabbing, punching and kicking whatever undefended spots she could find, while Aigis tried to manoeuvre around them.
Metis was not entirely wrong – there was no denying that Aigis had been injured far too many times in her missions, often requiring repairs to her body and circuitry after particularly intense missions. But she never regretted taking them on, because she also often saw the results of her efforts – thankful families and friends reunited with each other after disasters, a beautiful sunrise after a harrowing battle, knowing that she made the world ever so slightly better, doing her part to relieve Makoto – the Great Seal's burden.
Still, why bring it up now?
"Not…the last mission?" she asked, genuinely confused. She grunted as her arms shook from blocking the heavy attacks, digging her heels into the floorboards as best as she could.
"Yeah, I can count on one hand the number of missions where you or your friends came out unscathed!" Metis attempted another lightning quick stab to the chest that Aigis turned away from at the last moment. "Or what, are you going to hope for a messiah to save you every time you run into problems even though you're already this strong? You can't rely on them to come to your rescue every time, so you have to be strong by yourself!"
Something about the angry, dismissive way she spoke made Aigis snap.
"I–" She ground out, her arm cocked back.
"Am–" Her fists were balled. From the way Metis's eyes widened just a fraction, she noticed it too.
"Not–" Aigis was done waiting.
"Strong!" She roared, throwing a punch straight at Metis's face with all her weight. It was so unexpected that she failed to evade in time, taking the full brunt of the force behind it, bounced once on the floorboards, and skidded five metres back. The spear clattered out of her hands.
"I was never strong." Aigis continued into the silence that followed, panting from the emotional exertion. "I have always been helped by others on my journey. Mitsuru, Makoto, Labrys…everyone from the Operatives gave me steady advice and encouragement whenever I needed it, and it was only through their support that I am able to stand here now. If you want to call me waiting for a messiah every time I encounter a problem, then yes, that much is true. My messiahs are my friends and my bonds! And I will fight the world if anything threatens them!"
The silence stretched on, Metis with one hand on her bruised cheek. They barely registered the roar of Johanna's engine in the background. Aigis took a deep breath, then exhaled.
"I'm never going to be strong enough to do everything myself, Sister," she said. "All the titles I collected over the years, they were just that – titles. Labels that only encompassed a small part of me. But…with friends I can trust, the sum will always be stronger than its components." She took another deep breath that contained a barely covered up hitch. "I've already failed to protect those that I care about twice now — first when Makoto died, then when I died. I don't want to make the same mistake a third time. Can I rely on you as a friend? Can you pull me back when I overcomplicate issues in my mind? Can I trust you to help me protect those who are precious to me?"
Aigis extended a hand out.
Metis stared at the hand, her free hand twitching as if she wanted to reach out.
"Promise me one thing, Aigis." Metis finally pleaded, the fight drained out of her voice.
"Yes?"
"Don't ignore me. Please."
It was a heavy request. Aigis would readily admit that she often ignored her inner unease, her subconscious, if she felt that it would aid her in the immediate situation, but it was time to stop that and start taking care of herself.
"I promise," she nodded.
The spear faded away in a cloud of gold dust. Metis removed her hand from her cheek, revealing the dark scuff mark from where Aigis had punched her.
"I will always be on your side, Sister." Metis took the offered hand and pulled herself back up. "I will always protect you, wherever and whenever you wish. But please, take care of yourself too. I never want to see that lifeless chassis of yours again."
It slipped Aigis's mind that Metis may have seen what happened on the day she died. In fact, it had been a long time since she even thought about her death. "You saw that?" Aigis asked.
"Well, of course." Metis' tone was that of an older sister berating her younger sister for missing something so obvious. "I am, and was always, a part of you. I see everything you see." She went in for a hug, which Aigis reciprocated. "And I will always be here."
Metis dissolved into a shower of golden sparkles, leaving Aigis to hug the air. She breathed in deeply, letting the newfound power fill her soul.
She scanned the room to find her brunette friend, though once she did, her relief quickly turned to panic.
Because her friend was currently freefalling through the air, on a collision course headed straight for the floor.
"Makoto-san!"
If someone told Makoto that her test for wielding her bankai was a high speed rodeo, she would've laughed in their face.
But that was exactly what happened, and even after she adjusted herself to stay firm on Johanna's seat, the Persona was still zipping around the training room at sonic speeds, and the G-force was starting to tire Makoto out.
And Johanna showed no signs of stopping.
"Watch it, you almost crashed into Aigis-san!" Makoto yelled over the rush of wind as Johanna's wheels barely missed Aigis's head.
The other thing making the entire situation difficult was that Johanna was not just using the floor of the room as a surface to drive on — the walls, ceiling, and even open air was a surface, leading to unexpected sharp turns that threatened to throw Makoto off the motorcycle entirely, if it was not for her death grip on the handles.
"How are you even staying in thin air?!" Makoto half screamed, half asked.
"I am a part of you." Johanna replied dismissively. Was that disgruntlement that Makoto just heard? "Whatever you know, I know it too."
She belatedly realised that yes, one of the applications of hohou was to stand on thin air, using small reishi platforms as footholds. It was something she learned somewhat recently, though she did not use it much — the ability was a waste of reiatsu if there were other perfectly serviceable, solid footholds to be found. With that logic, it would be possible for Johanna to form her own reishi paths below her wheels, much like a personalised racing track.
Johanna took Makoto for a loop-de-loop, her wheels grazing the support beams along the ceiling, before dropping straight down towards the ground, thankfully some distance away from Aigis and Metis. About to lose her grip on the handles from the sudden change in direction, she made a split second decision.
"Bakudou number four: Hainawa!"
Yellow ropes of reishi shot out of both her hands, winding themselves around both her hand and Johanna's handles. Makoto was almost bodily thrown off, but she managed to sit down on her Persona again.
"When are you going to stop?" Makoto yelled, desperately trying to keep her balance on Johanna.
"Never." There was an almost defiant roar of the engine as it revved louder, drowning out even the rushing wind past Makoto's ears.
Her other half was stubborn — that much was clear, though Makoto was just as aware that she herself was stubborn too. And getting off was not an option — there was a sneaking suspicion that if she did, Johanna would consider it a failure, and she would never grant Makoto the ability to wield bankai.
Makoto tested the brakes, though as expected, it only kicked up a shower of sparks and failed to do anything else. She then tried turning the gear down, but that only seemed to speed Johanna up until Makoto's surroundings turned into a blur.
The only option left was to forcibly stop Johanna in her tracks, but at the current speed, any sort of kido that Makoto could muster would either require her to let go of the handles and consequently fly off the motorcycle, or were so weak that Johanna would probably tear through them by sheer force.
At this rate, this rodeo could potentially kill Makoto. So what could she do?
Her eyes widened in panic when Johanna drove straight at the wall of the training room. Before, she had seemed more interested in throwing Makoto off than ramming into the environment, but now, Johanna showed no signs of turning anywhere else before they hit the wall.
Well, Makoto's hands were still on the handlebars. So she did the only thing she could.
She jerked the handles with all her strength, away from the wall.
An awful screech filled the training room as Johanna suddenly swerved away from the wall, less than a metre before she would impact. A shower of sparks erupted from her wheels as they ground against the invisible reishi track, and Makoto almost shoulder-checked the wall from momentum. Before she could sigh in relief, though, Johanna took off again, with a noticeable decrease in initial speed.
That gave Makoto an idea.
"I'm sorry, Johanna," she murmured as her grip on the handlebars tightened. "But I'm going to need you to stop."
Makoto jerked the handlebar again, throwing Johanna off course. The smell of burnt rubber filled her immediate senses, along with the fumes from the stunt. If Johanna was a real motorcycle, Makoto would have ruined her wheels thrice over. As it is, it only seemed to be a minor speed bump as Johanna simply charged off again without completely reestablishing balance – her path straight, but the body of the motorcycle leaned dangerously to the left.
This was as good a chance as any. She dismissed the yellow reishi ropes binding her left hand, and reached down, towards Johanna's wheels.
"Hado number one: Sho!"
The blast of energy could hardly be considered powerful, but with how unbalanced Johanna was, it proved unexpectedly effective in disrupting her path, blowing both rider and Persona into the air without the support of a reishi platform. For a moment, Makoto only felt relief that she was able to stop Johanna, before gravity asserted itself and they fell.
"Makoto-san!" Aigis's shout snapped Makoto out of her stupor. Her friend's blue eyes were wide with panic, and it was only then that Makoto's mind belatedly caught up with the consequences of falling ten metres while chained to a large, heavy machine. She quickly glanced around for anything to slow her fall, though with the walls as barren as they were, she saw no way for her to land without breaking a few bones.
"Bakudo number thirty-seven: Tsuriboshi!"
Makoto suddenly found her vision filled with blue as Aigis's spell manifested – a reishi cushion suspended in the middle of the training room, its anchors dug into the walls. Both Persona and owner landed on the spell, the wind almost knocked out from Makoto's lungs despite the soft landing as she involuntarily uttered an "oof!" when she impacted.
"Are you okay?" Aigis asked as she ran over, her zanpakutou back in its sheath. She leapt onto the cushion with ease and immediately gasped. "Your leg!"
From her horizontal position still seated on Johanna, Makoto looked down. Her left leg was currently being crushed under Johanna, though oddly enough, there was no pain.
"My leg is…probably fine." Makoto slowly said, still trying to breathe. She shifted the leg experimentally, though she didn't feel anything amiss other than the weight of the chassis. "It doesn't hurt, at least."
"Thank goodness." Aigis moved to heave Johanna to an upright position, though her expression morphed from tentative relief to one of confusion. "Why did you bind your hand to the handlebar?"
"Johanna tried to throw me off." Makoto grumbled. The tendrils of the spell dissolved into reishi sparkles as she dismissed the spell.
"Yet you held on." There was a hint of amusement in Johanna's voice, though Makoto did not find the situation funny. "You pass, at least for the moment."
"Please give me a warning on what you plan to do the next time." Makoto replied as she sat up, with Aigis moving Johanna out of the way though she also kindly turned her Persona around so she and Makoto were face to face. "If this continued any longer, I might have died."
Johanna snorted, a puff of smoke released from her exhaust pipes. "That was hardly anything, compared to the forces and traditions you are toying with right now."
Makoto narrowed her eyes.
"You will face far rougher obstacles than me in the future." Johanna continued, the levity gone from her voice. "Ones that will try to throw you off your chosen path no matter what. I only wish that you will be able to keep your eyes on the goal."
"You know it takes more than that to stop me." Makoto declared.
There was no reply, but the deep sense of satisfaction and determination that welled in her chest was proof enough that Johanna approved. With a final whirl of the engine, Johanna disappeared in a shower of neon blue reishi.
"How do you think we should explain the state of the room?" Aigis asked.
Makoto finally took in her surroundings.
It was expected that there would be a worse mess this time, considering that there were two Personae wrecking havoc rather than just Metis, but this still exceeded her expectations.
The ceiling beams supporting the roof were marred with tyre marks. The floorboards were riddled with holes and slashes as wood splinters littered the intact areas. Even the walls had a few holes in them, courtesy of Aigis's kido and bullets, along with more tyre marks.
All in all, the room looked trashed.
"...Do you think they will make us pay for damages?" Makoto asked back.
"I think we deserve it at this point." Came the reply.
And just like that, all the tension left Makoto's body. She collapsed back onto the cushiony spell and laughed. Just a soft giggle at first, breathy and laboured, though she was soon joined by Aigis's own chuckle as she sat down, and that cascaded into full out laughter, mixed with just a hint of tears.
Compared to what they managed to achieve, perhaps compensating for a destroyed training room was barely a price to pay for.
A/N: And here it is - the culmination of Aigis and Makoto's little bankai training arc. Metis was especially difficult to write here as I wanted her to voice the darker thoughts Aigis subconsciously tries to ignore for the most part. I hope I did her justice. And while I had always wanted Aigis to fight Metis, trying to decide on Makoto's bankai test was harder, and it took a while to settle on the rollercoaster rodeo in here. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
No spoilers for the next few chapters, but it will largely be exposition - we finally catch up to what the rest of the Gotei were doing the last 300 years!