Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 8:24AM
Yakushima Mansion
As Makoto stretched and wiped the sleep out of his eyes, he groggily looked around in confusion. The bright white marble that made up every surface in the room reflected even the thin rays of light that peered through the linen blinds. The room was so spacious that even his barely audible yawn echoed back to him. The bed he rested in was even wider and softer than the one at the dorm.
Oh yeah, Yakushima. Makoto thought as he looked around for a sink. Eventually he remembered where the bathroom, or rather, his bathroom, one connected to the room he was staying in, was located. Say what you will about Kirijo, but her family doesn't skimp on the guest experience.
After washing up, Makoto tossed on some clothes and sat down, wondering what to do. Can't go back to sleep, don't want to go to the beach alone . He scratched his stomach. Breakfast? Breakfast.
As he left his room and navigated the halls, Makoto briefly wondered how many square meters, if not square kilometers, the entire mansion took up. Could probably fit a hundred of our house back in Kumamoto in here.
As he arrived in the dining room, he found none other than Kotone sitting and happily humming as she devoured a small basket of bread in front of her.
"Morn~in~." She said in a sing-song voice.
He fell down into the seat next to her. "Morning." She offered him what looked like a fat croissant, which he gladly took.
"Did ya get a goof nighs sleep?" She asked, mouth full.
"Like a log." He bit into the croissant, tasting far more rich and luxurious than he expected.
She nodded. "Same." As he devoured his food, she chuckled and poked him in the cheek. "I've already eaten five of these salted butter rolls." She immediately shoved the remaining half she was holding into her mouth. "Thix."
"Wonderful." Makoto said as he swiped the last one from her, much to her chagrin. "This one is mine now."
"Meanie."
Makoto smirked and turned around to eat, shielding it from Kotone's ravenous gaze. "Yep."
Kotone collapsed on the table and whined. "They're so gooooood, but I'm gonna get faaaaat. Life is so cruuuuuuuuel."
"Wanna go for a walk around the island?" He asked between bites. "Surely that'd shed some calories."
She paused for a second before grinning ear to ear. "Heck yeah."
"Then let's go." Makoto said, a small smile on his face.
The air in Yakushima's forest just tasted different. The beaches possessed the same salty smell present in Kumamoto and in Iwatodai, but they lacked the distinct smell of urbanization that lingered in both places he called home.
"Still can't believe senpai gets to visit here every year." Kotone mumbled as they looked around, everywhere absolutely thick with lush green foliage. "How lucky can one girl be?"
"Is it luck or is it just wealth?" Makoto asked. The leaves crackled underneath their sandals as they walked up the winding dirt path.
She put her finger on the tip of her chin. "Well, it's pretty lucky to be born into a rich family, isn't it?"
"Fair point." Makoto yawned as he looked around. He arched his back to see the treetops, with branches so thick they shielded the pair from the sun's rays, as Kotone hopped from one exposed tree root to another.
"Think you could live here full time?" She asked, turning back to him.
Makoto shook his head. "Nah, I need the conveniences of city life."
She nodded. "I think I could handle living in a small town. As long as it had, like, a convenience store and electricity."
"I think anyplace without those doesn't qualify as a town." Makoto said with scrunched eyebrows. "Maybe a village, or a settlement."
She giggled. "OK city boy, careful that your legs don't get too tired walking out here in nature."
Makoto crossed his arms. "I can out-walk and outrun you, you know?"
"Wanna be-" She stopped herself and looked away.
Makoto grinned and poked her in the back. "Wanna what?"
"Nothing." Her head was aimed directly forward, refusing to look back at him, as she picked up her pace.
"Weird, because I could have sworn you were going to ask me if I wanted to make a bet."
"I'll bet I can push you off this mountain." She muttered.
Makoto burst out in laughter. Kotone rolled her eyes and smiled as they continued their walk.
Moss-covered boulders lined the sides of the path. Kotone hopped up on one and sat down, resting her chin on her knees. Makoto sighed and leaned against it. He flipped open his phone and checked the time, whistling as he realized they'd been walking for near a half-hour.
"After Tartarus," she announced, "I feel like we can climb any mountain in the world!"
Makoto shrugged. "I guess."
"Would you climb a mountain?" She asked. "Like a real, proper mountain?"
"Nah. What if I..." Makoto paused. "What did Junpei say that one time during dinner?" She tilted her head. "Something about being stuck under a rock." She put her finger on her chin and looked up. "I think it was like, 'what if I get my hand trapped under a rock, and I have to gnaw my own arm off to escape?'"
Kotone snorted. "Oh yeah, that." She hopped down and squeezed his forearm. "I don't think you'll have that happen to you."
"I dunno..."
"I, personally, have always wanted to go hike Mt. Fuji." She put her hands on her hips and flashed a grin beaming with confidence. "All the way to the top!"
Makoto's eyebrows jumped up. "Really?"
"Yeah."
"Why?"
She shrugged. "Just to say I did it."
He shook his head. "I'll never understand that motivation."
"So you wouldn't do it?"
"On my own, hell no."
"How 'bout with me?" She teased.
He looked her dead in the eye. "In a heartbeat."
She blushed and turned away. "O-OK then."
Makoto looked down and gulped. He slowly moved his hand, carefully moving his fingers so he could intertwine them with hers, before-
"Makoto, look!" Her hand jutted just out of reach as she pointed ahead. "That tree is huge!"
Makoto sighed as she ran ahead. "Yeah, it is."
"Yo!" Junpei waved him down the moment he arrived on the beach. "Where the heck've you been all morning man?"
"Training." Makoto said, sounding more snippy than he intended. "Got a track meet next month. Can't afford to slack off."
Junpei shook his head. "I'll never get guys like you and Sanada-senpai."
Makoto shrugged. He looked over Junpei's shoulder to find Akihiko and Shinjiro both sulking under the umbrella. "What's with them?"
With a sullen expression, Junpei said, in all earnestness, "the failure of Operation Babehunt."
For exactly seven seconds, Makoto stared unblinkingly at Junpei before turning around and walking back.
"Hold on a second, padre!" Junpei grabbed him by his shirt. "We're oh for three, you gotta help us out and at least try to help us salvage this."
Makoto shook his head. "Just pretend I struck out and make it oh for four." The other boy refused to let go of his shirt.
"Come on man." Junpei begged.
"If I do one attempt, will you leave me alone?" Junpei clapped his hands together and bowed. Makoto rolled his eyes. "OK, fine."
He walked out and scoured the beach. Find a chick, hit on her, exit stage right and go lay down for a while .
Far off on the dock, he spotted a lone solitary figure that was at least plausibly girl-shaped. As he walked over there with the other boys from SEES, he slowly confirmed the target. A pale girl with golden hair, dressed in only a light blue blouse, who stood there on the docks, looking out at the sea.
"Wow." Junpei mumbled. "A foreigner."
Makoto sighed. "Yeah."
Junpei elbowed him, causing him to yelp. "What are you waiting for, go talk to her."
"C-Can I have a second to think?" He protested.
"We struck out today, so it's your turn." Akihiko said.
Shinjiro walked behind him and started pushing him. "Come on, hurry up so we can be done with this ordeal."
"S-Stop that! Let me go!" He stumbled forward, almost bumping into the girl, before finding his footing. "U-Um, good afternoon."
She turned to him, staring with her unearthly blue eyes. A simple golden ring swung from her left earlobe.
"H-Hi there." His chest tightened, and he could feel his mouth going dry.
"Hello." She responded with the slightest hint of some kind of accent before turning back around, gazing out at the sea.
"It's uh, it's a beautiful day isn't it?" The girl gave no response, simply continuing to stare out at the ocean. "S-So uh, what brings you here? Vacation?"
"I am awaiting further instructions." She stated plainly.
Makoto's eyes narrowed. Instructions? "Do you uh, work here?"
"No." She said with her back turned to him.
"...I-I see." He turned back to the guys, with Junpei waving at him to keep going. "So are you here with anyone?"
"I am not." She stated.
Makoto opened his mouth, before closing it and shaking his head. He turned around and walked off past the guys.
Later that night, Mitsuru gathered all of the members of SEES, only telling them that it was an 'important meeting', and that they all needed to attend.
"As I understand it, Mitsuru has already given you a summarized version of events." Takeharu stated as they sat down. Fine leather couches decorated the room, with a table in the center and a large monitor at one end of it. "Well, since we are all fighting in this battle together, I feel it prudent to give you a more complete picture of what transpired a decade ago, as well as the circumstances leading up to it. What my father wanted to create with the power of the Shadows," he leaned in, "was a time manipulation device."
Yukari scrunched her eyebrows. "Time manipulation device?"
He nodded. "Imagine the ability to control the very flow of time itself. Being able to eliminate unwanted events before they occur, or even after they occur. The past, the present, the future, all in the palm of your hand."
"Is that what he wanted?" Mitsuru asked quietly.
"Damn." Junpei mumbled. "That's crazy."
"What kind of person would even desire something like that?" Fuuka asked.
Takeharu sighed. "Perhaps I'm getting a bit ahead of myself. I...assume you all have a certain mental image of my father, Kouetsu Kirijo. Given all the trouble he has caused, all the suffering he has inflicted upon the world, I wouldn't blame you if you thought he was some kind of egotistical, megalomaniacal monster."
Out of the corner of his eye, Makoto could just barely see Mitsuru looking away, as she dug her fingers into her arms.
"When I was a boy, I...revered my father. He was a good man. Genuinely. Kind, caring, the kind of man people relied on, respected, and trusted. My brothers and I often weren't able to see him much because of work, but we never felt as though we were unwanted or forgotten. But in his old age..." his face hardened, and his gray eyes dulled, "the fear of death consumed him. The death of mother, of both of my brothers, so many of his lifelong friends, it all happened one after another. It's no wonder that death became an obsession to him. The research on Shadows became his top priority. He became convinced that with their power, he could manipulate the very fabric of reality. Control time and space to his whim." His eyes scanned across the room. "No doubt all of you have pondered the idea of going back time, in fixing mistakes made in your younger years, or even just getting to see a dear family member one last time?"
The room entered an uneasy silence, as they all considered his words.
"Everyone thinks it, everyone at one point laments how cruel reality can be. But father was a stubborn man, he always...despised not getting his way, and when he realized that Shadows could be used to manipulate space and time, he became obsessed with that possibility. It became his primary focus, and I became head of the Kirijo Group much earlier than I had anticipated as he focused almost exclusively on his pet project."
Takeharu pulled out a remote and clicked a button on it. On the screen stood a old, fat, frowning man in a white suit next to a metallic barrel with odd etchings in it. "Due to the nature of the project, a lot of the documentation is lost, or even nonexistent. From what we've managed to reconstruct, sometime in 1996 or 1997, using the Shadows they had captured, as well as with something called the 'DEVA System', they were able create this. That device next to my father is called an 'Amala Drum'."
"What the heck does it do?" Junpei asked.
"In a word," Takeharu crossed his legs, "transportation."
Makoto tilted his head. "Transportation?"
Takeharu nodded. "According to Einstein's theory of relativity, time and space are not just connected, they are one and the same. In his attempt to manipulate time, he found something that could also manipulate space," He clicked to another slide, a large mechanical platform that bore a striking similarity to something the members SEES had operated many times. "These terminals allow near-instantaneous travel from point A to point B using a power source known as 'Magatsuhi'. With Magatsuhi you can achieve many amazing thing. That includes tearing through these walls of space-time."
"So that's why those teleporters in Tartarus exist." Kotone mused. "They're leftover terminals from when it was a lab."
He nodded. "Precisely." He flipped to another image, this one a drawing of a featureless man, holding a comedy and tragedy mask in each hand. "Their research into the Shadows also lead them to discovering ways to pierce into the collective unconscious of mankind, our shared cognition if you will. The infinitely-thin wall between reality and the subconscious world could be torn asunder with the power of Magatsuhi. This is the basic principle of how your Evokers work."
"The collective unconscious." The gears in Makoto's mind turned slowly as he remembered some of Edogawa's ramblings. "So that's why our Personas are named for and resemble mythological figures. Humans think of these things as having importance, and thus we summon them from the pages of myth, even if we don't know of them personally."
Takeharu nodded. "I see you're a quick-thinker, young Makoto. The same goes for," he pulled out a card out of his suit and threw it on the table. "this."
A picture of an emaciated man holding an scythe, with XIII written on the top, and La Mort on the bottom.
"For hundreds of years, Trionfi were nothing more than cards to play with in Renaissance Italy." He tapped it. "Minor frivolities to pass the afternoon, or to bet money on like any other card game. But in the eighteenth century, European occultists conceived of the Tarot as something important, something fundamental and foundational to reality. This belief that the Arcana is the means by which all is revealed spread to many countries around the world, and has become one of those widely believed ideas. People think it is important, ergo, it is."
"Like the social contract." Junpei blurted out. The others turned and stared at him, in varying states of confusion.
Takeharu chuckled. "That's an interesting comparison, young Junpei. Not an unfounded one either I suppose. Although you can't quite cleave through ideas such as democracy or the nation-state in the same way you can a Shadow."
"Shadows." Yukari muttered. "So all of this teleportation stuff, that's why Shadows infest Tatsumi? Because something went wrong and it brought them all out?"
"To simplify it, yes." He grimaced. "The accident that turned the laboratory into Tartarus, that killed so many people and took my limbs is tied to this technology."
Junpei tilted his head. "Huh? Limbs?" He immediately clasped his hands over his mouth when Mitsuru glared at him.
Takeharu took off his right glove, revealing a sleek silver mechanical hand. He hitched up his right pant leg, revealing a similarly-hued prosthetic. "We've all lost something in this war. Be it our lives, limbs, or innocence."
Fuuka raised a hand, and Takeharu motioned for her to speak. "These terminals, this can't be the end of your father's research, right? I mean," she twiddled her fingers, "it's a fascinating and important technological breakthrough, but it wasn't what he was looking for."
"Aye. This is where...things take a turn for the unexpected. You see, the Amala Drum he created...is not of this world. It was created by copying the schematics from another world. Or rather, from another universe."
"Huh!?" Yukari jumped in her seat. Everyone else in the room looked confused, even Mitsuru. "Wait, w-what do you mean another universe?"
"I won't pretend as though I fully understand it myself, but there are other worlds out there. Other parallel worlds, some with their own Earths. Earths with other humans living in them. This is but a few of them."
Takeharu clicked and moved through a series of pictures. One set of pictures showed a desolate urban cityscape, littered with statues, as a black sun hung ominously in the sky.
Another showed a similarly lifeless desert city with even more ruined buildings, as a bright white orb above it. The orb was was tiled, with bits sticking in and out. High above that orb was more buildings, handing upside-down, as well as to the right and left.
Another showed several pictures of Earth from orbit, with different angles of a titanic black sphere engulfing Antarctica, as well as fleets of massive tanks driving into it.
"A world where the remnants of mankind were under assault from a black sun, a world where all that remained of Earth was a sliver of Tokyo that circled an eternally glowing moon, and a world where a 'Schwarzwelt' threatens to consume Earth itself from Antarctica." He stated with grim finality. "These are but a few of the farther parallel universes he found. Many of which depicted naught but calamity for mankind."
"Farther parallel universes?" Shinjiro asked. "What does that mean exactly?"
"There are many parallel universes. Some theorize an infinite amount. The ones "nearer" to us are the ones that most resemble us. The nations, the culture, the individual people, the various specific minutiae of daily life." Takeharu explained.
Takeharu flipped to another picture, this time a lone one with Kouetsu Kirijo surrounded by almost two dozen people. Kouetsu himself looked just as elderly and corpulent, but also happier. He sat relaxed in a lawn chair, dressed casually in cargo shorts and a white tank-top. His smile took up his entire face, as two children sat in his lap, one pinching the other as they both quarreled. A younger Takeharu stood behind him, next to a red-haired boy. A red-haired boy that looked eerily similar to a younger Mitsuru.
"In the beginning, they could only probe other universe by blindly sending out and drawing in information. There was apparently somewhere in the realm of a hundred thousand unusable images gathered in 1998 alone. Slowly they were able to narrow things down, gather more useful images, as well as the knowledge of these worlds." He sighed. "This...was one of the pictures he found while probing the 'closer' universes, gathered by accessing a computer belonging to the Kouetsu Kirijo of another world." Takeharu stated sadly. "A world where we were far less wealthy...but also far more content."
He tapped his good leg for a few seconds as everyone looked at him.
"I remember this one conversation I had with an English colleague of mine, when I was only a few years older than all of you. We debated over the old cliché of 'money doesn't buy happiness'. At the time, I thought it was nonsense. Money makes the world run, after all. It's the only thing that can bring you safety, security, and peace of mind."
He exhaled deeply, sinking back into the sofa. For a brief moment, Makoto noted, he looked less like the proud leader of a grand conglomerate, and more like an ordinary man desperately trying to make sense of life.
"Father had money, influence, connections, and he threw all of it away on a project with nothing to show for it. Nothing but despair and tragedy at least. If he had focused on the family he had rather than that which he had lost...well, none of us would be here."
"I don't want to be disrespectful or anything," Akihiko said, breaking his melancholic reminiscences, "but there's still one thing I'm curious about."
Takeharu sighed and pulled himself up. "Of course."
"What exactly caused the explosion?" Akihiko asked point blank. "I can understand where all this was going, how it all connects, but what exactly made things go wrong?"
"All of what I have told you, all of the information they have gleamed from years of study and experimentation, from this world and several others, was meant to culminate in the creation of a new being. An artificial Shadow. Something wholly unique, all-powerful, and most importantly obedient. Test Subject Zero was their ultimate showcase after years of labor, and it was scheduled to be "born" on the 24th of October. Father was convinced they could control it." He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "They were wrong."
He turned to Yukari, who sat up a bit. "Y-Yes sir?" She asked as he stared directly into her eyes.
"I...feel it my responsibility to show this to you especially, young Yukari, given how his notes and recording gave us many important reference points for figuring out the timeline of events."
"His?" Makoto asked as he saw Yukari squirm in her seat.
"You will understand in a moment." Takeharu clicked the remote, showing the start of a video, warping and distorting various colors, static coming in and out, before slowly settling down. "We managed to recover this video and some documents from a hard drive found after the explosion. Much was lost, and even with this we only managed to stitch together a few salvageable pieces from a much longer recording."
An exhausted-looking man dressed in a white business shirt and a tie fumbled with the camcorder. "This is Eiichiro Takeba reporting in-" the video began to fade in and out, the voice disappearing or becoming inaudible.
Yukari gasped. "D-Dad!?"
"Test Subject Zero is nearing the final stages of-" the video began to distort again. "Despite Kirijo-san's best efforts, I still cannot- with the full- and the Shadows that were amassed here have have congregated. I," there was a pained expression on his face, visible even through the distortions, "cannot pretend like am without blame. That creature, it, it speaks. At night, the other scientists heard it talking. It doesn't even have a mouth or a fa-"
The video distorted again, eventually cutting back to Eiichiro, sitting far away from the camera. His eyes were wide with shock, horror, and fear as sweat poured down his face.
" I-I fear I have made a mistake." His voice cracked, on the verge of tears. "I never should have asked to join this project. I never should have been involved to begin with. If it wasn't for me, this project never would have gotten as far as it did. This wretched project, it-it's eating away at us all. I can see it in my dreams, all of humanity buried in mass grave together. The Shadows roaming Earth in our place. I pray all of our sacrifices may be-"
The video cut off, leaving nothing but a black screen.
"Meddling with Shadows drives men to death and despair." Takeharu stated calmly. "Eiichiro Takeba, the man you saw in the video, was the head researcher on the project. He was a brilliant scientist, personally headhunted by my father." He turned to Yukari.
Yukari trembled, her fists clenched so tightly her knuckles were white. "Dad, he's the one who...? B-Because of him the Dark Hour, and everyone that died was..." Her voice trailed off.
"Despite what he said, we are the ones who are responsible for what happened." Takeharu said softly. "The Kirijo group was the one who started this project, and the Kirijo Group is to blame for all that has transpired. This is not something that solely falls on his shoulders."
She stood up and yelled. "You knew this the whole time didn't you!" She pointed at Mitsuru. "You were hiding this! Just like you've hidden everything else! And why!? Because you felt sorry for me!?" Yukari's voice cracked, as her tears fell the floor. "Is that it!?"
Mitsuru stood up. "Takeba, that's not it, I-I promise I-"
"I don't want your pity!" She screamed before she ran out.
The room went dead silent. Everyone looked tense and uncomfortable. Even Takeharu winced at what had just transpired.
"U-Um." Fuuka looked around the room. "Should we let her go off on her own or...?"
Just as Kotone was about to speak, Makoto sighed and got up. "I'll go after her."
Akihiko raised an eyebrow. "You sure about that?"
"I think I'm the only one that can talk to her about this." Makoto said as he left. "Just wait here, please."
"Mind if I sit down?"
Yukari turned around, tears still streaming down her face. "Oh, Makoto." She sniffed. "Sure."
He walked over and sat on the sand next to her, the star-filled night sky serving as their roof. The waves of the ocean cascading in front of them.
"...sorry, I don't know what to say." She said after a minute.
"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to." Makoto said.
She wiped her eyes, trying to look presentable. "It's just, all this time I thought my dad was innocent, you know?" She sniffed and wiped her nose. "Just because he was the leader of the research team, and just because something happened didn't mean it was his fault, you know. But everyone always blamed him for what happened, me and mom got so much hate thrown our way because he wasn't here and they wanted to scream at someone, or call us in the middle of the night, or show up at her job and make a scene. I was so angry, I just thought it couldn't have been him, that they were all just bastards going after us because they were afraid and hurting, and it's like we were hurting too. But, but they were right this whole time and-"
"No," Makoto said firmly, cutting off her rambling, "you and your mom didn't deserve any of that abuse. They weren't right, not at all."
"My dad did, he was-" Yukari bit her lip, trying to stop another round of crying.
"It doesn't matter what you dad did or didn't do. You guys didn't deserve that." He said softly.
She wiped away her tears and looked away, sniffling and red-faced. "You always know what to say." She mumbled out.
"Nah." He said with a small grin. "That's for more sociable people like you. I'm just flying blind and hoping I don't crash."
She snorted. "Dummy."
"If calling me dummy makes you feel better, feel free."
Yukari burst out laughing, a real, genuine laugh. "You're so dumb sometimes, you're dumber than Junpei and Kotone combined."
"I don't know if my grades reflect that."
Yukari snorted again. "Braggart."
"Just a little bit."
Yukari stood up and walked a few steps forward. Makoto carefully stood up and followed her.
"Hey Makoto?" She asked as she looked up into the sky.
"Hm?"
"Sometimes I...I think mean things. Like for as long as I've known Mitsuru-senpai, I've always resented her. I had thoughts like, 'Why does her dad get to live and mine died?' or 'Why is she rich and famous and happy'. It was her family's company where the explosion happened, when we had to move around so much...I'm such a horrible person."
"You're not the only one who wondered that." She turned back to him. "I...often wondered 'why me', 'why my parents'. Some days I'd be so upset that instead of wishing it didn't happen...I wished it had happened to someone else, so I wouldn't be the only person in pain. If you're a horrible person, then I'm a horrible person too."
She gave a weak chuckle. "I'm sorry." She mumbled out. "I really am. And I mean that."
Makoto tilted his head.
"It's because of my dad that all of this hap-happened." Yukari trembled as she spoke. "It's because of him the Dark Hour, and the Shadows, and, and-" her voice fell to a whisper. "It's because of him your parents died."
He flinched. "No! Please don't say that."
"It's true." She said quietly. "I-I understand if you hate me, if you-"
"I don't." He said with absolute certainty. "You're my friend, I care about you. I could never hate you, especially for something that's not your fault."
"...we're still friends? Really?"
"Yeah."
She took a step forward, arms stretched out a bit before freezing in place. He walked forward and wrapped his arms around her, and she tightly wrapped hers around him. She buried her face into his neck.
He rested his head against hers. "You'll always be my friend. Promise."
"...thank you." She whispered. "Can we stay like this for a bit?"
He said nothing, simply hugging her tighter.
"Thank you." She repeated.