Sokila didn't quite know what to make of the scene she had drawn: two stick figures, surrounded by yellow fog and darkness. It was all quite messy.
"Adachi...and your Papa..."
The little girl frowned, the mental gears turning slowly within her head.
"...Adachi had a so-shell link with your Guest, right?"
From afar, Margaret calmly nodded.
"Yes. He did."
Sokila frowned, looking back at her messy drawing.
"And my Guest has one with his Papa..."
"Is something troubling you, little one?"
"...well...it seems like they want their bonds to cause pain to their Guests...how come?"
Margaret smiled sadly, yet knowingly.
"Such are the hearts of those who are lost. Who knows whether they can find their way again..."
The faint haze of blue began to brighten-
xxxx
/Sunday: September 20, 2015/
/Courtyards, Hakone Academy/
A cluster of seven familiar teenagers were slowly moving about the Academy grounds, preparing for a relatively busy Sunday.
"We've been so busy that I completely forgot we're off of school for the next three days," said Kensuke Aida with a skip to his step.
Asuka Langley-Sohryu kneaded her forehead with a stern expression. "So, let me get this straight: tomorrow is a public holiday called Respect for the Aged Day..."
"Respecting our elders is important," remarked Hikari Horaki.
"...and the Autumn Equinox is also a public holiday..."
"It's the successor of an older Shinto festival related to paying respect to the deceased of the imperial line," explained Mayumi Yamagishi. "...though it seems that we'll be adding the most recent emperor and his family to that commemoration now..."
"...and because you've got two holidays separated by one day, they just decide to make the day between a holiday as well," finished Asuka.
"I mean, why make everyone do stuff only to send them back on holiday the next day?" pointed out Toji Suzuhara.
Asuka looked like she was torn between wanting to complain and wanting to compliment the idea. She ultimately settled on sighing loudly, saying, "Well, 'when in Rome', as they say..."
"Wouldn't it be 'when in Tokyo', in this case?" asked Shinji, only to get a glare in response. What did I say?
At that moment, a tear in reality opened up in front of them, revealing one Mana Kirishima in her usual combat gear. "Katsuragi said that we're free to accompany the Evangelion-users if we want."
Rei Ayanami, holding up her phone, calmly interrupted. "Sohryu-san, Ikari-san, and I all have assignments today. Who will be joining us?"
Kensuke suddenly spoke with a haunting tone. "And now it's time for the most dicey part of any RPG...party selection."
Asuka lightly tapped him in the back of the thigh with her foot. "This is life, not a game, you Stooge."
Kensuke's retort to Asuka was not what anyone expected. With a single shared glance with Toji, they chorused "We're working with Sohryu."
Everyone blinked with surprise: Sohryu most of all. "Eh?! Bist du betrunken?!"
"We're tired of you calling us Stooges," simply said Toji.
"So we're going to prove to you just how capable we are!" exclaimed Kensuke, striking a pose.
Asuka stared flatly at them both.
Rei quietly turned towards Hikari. "It would be wise for you to get used to fighting in different formations. Would you mind accompanying me?"
Hikari blinked. "Oh. Um, sure, Ayanami-san."
"And I'll tag along so I can continue analyzing how your Persona works," chimed Mayumi.
"Eh?" remarked Asuka with a jolt.
"Guess that means I'm tagging along with Ikari, then," said Mana with a shrug.
"I guess so," relented Shinji. "Good luck everyone."
"Eh?" Asuka pointed angrily at the duo of Aida and Suzuhara. "I did not consent to this!"
"If your ability to work alongside them is going to be an issue, it would be best to find out now instead of later," said Rei with a calm tone.
Asuka flashed an irritated glare at Rei, clearly wanting to argue.
"Sohryu-san, I appreciate how you've been helping me, but..." Hikari looked with an uncertain gaze at both Rei and Mayumi. "I want to be helpful to everyone. I'll be fine." With a more authoritative tone, she turned towards the proverbial Stooges. "Aida-san, Suzuhara-san, you'd better be on your best behavior."
"Yes'm!" said Kensuke and Toji, saluting with seriousness.
Asuka merely grumbled under her breath, already resigning herself to a long day. "Fine, fine..." Placing a hand on their shoulders, she growled, "Keep your thoughts in order; we're heading to Niigata Prefecture." Without another word, the trio slowly faded into static.
"...does it feel weird, shifting into the Metaverse like that?" asked Hikari.
"You get used to it," advised Mayumi. She looked with a quiet intensity towards Mana before looking back at Rei. "We're ready."
The First Child nodded, chancing a glance over at Shinji and Mana. "We will take care of the mission in Miyazaki Prefecture. Do not hesitate to call for reinforcements if needed."
"We will," solemnly answered Shinji. "Be safe, everyone."
"Thank you, Ikari-san," said a grateful Hikari, who tried not to fidget as Ayanami placed a hand on her shoulder. Before long, the trio of girls vanished into the Metaverse, albeit it took slightly longer than Asuka, Kensuke, and Toji had.
Then it was just Shinji and Mana. "So, where are we headed?" asked Mana, adjusting the weight of LABRYS and AIGIS upon her back.
Looking down at his phone, Shinji replied, "The Sapporo Dead Zone."
"It feels like we have to go there a lot," grumbled Mana, saying nothing more as Shinji placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It is what it is," he relented, concentrating intently on the sensation of Mana's soul, and the souls of her disembodied sisters. (How curious, how the times had changed; where before, he had needed to interact more physically with the weapons, the connection between Mana and the two felt...more tangible. More solid. It made synchronizing with Mana a simpler task than it had once been.)
(A sign of growth...a sign of change...are you the same...?)
Before long, they too had vanished from reality.
xxxx
/Southern Shores of Lake Ashi, Tokyo-3/
Minato Arisato had picked a relatively isolated corner of Lake Ashi to go fishing; with Israfel's remains finally removed and the quarantine lifted, the northern shores were absolutely packed with legions of people engaging in fun and frolic. Not only would their presence help dissolve the minor dead zones that still lingered, it would distract them from the repair work ongoing in the city, where certain sections were still cordoned off for cognitive repairs in the Metaverse.
Not that Minato much cared about that sort of thing; his mind was elsewhere. (He had never gone fishing in his 'first' life at Iwatodai and Tatsumi Port Island; Narukami and Amamiya were far more nostalgic about the activity than he. Yet, he couldn't deny the therapeutic mindlessness of it all.) Strega...I wonder if they'll ever try attacking Tokyo-3? It was strange, how Chidori's fate had kept her away from their circles, whereas Takaya and Jin remained antagonistic as ever. They had once been bound together...yet how greatly do those bonds persist? After all, Takaya and Jin cast her aside, because of her attachment to Junpei...was that enough? He could not help but wonder, if Takaya's convictions remained as firm as ever. If I had been more of a person back then...would I have had a bond with him, the way Narukami forged one with Adachi, or Amamiya with Akechi...? What would it imply, if he had? What if, what if, what if-
"You're thinking quite heavily, Minato-kun."
Only long experience kept Minato from jolting, yet he found himself genuinely surprised by the person who had spoke. "You're awfully quiet." (The newcomer had intentionally concealed his presence, which was now unmistakeable.)
"My classmates would be surprised to hear someone say that," said the younger student, sitting down besides Minato. With legs dangling over the rocky shore, the boy looked at him with amusement in his red eyes. "I don't believe we've ever been introduced before. My name is Kaworu Nagisa," he said, pale hair swaying in the breeze.
"...you're rather infamous at the Academy," Minato dryly admitted, staring at an unfamiliar presence which nonetheless seethed with the essence of the Death Arcana.
"So it seems. Then would you prefer to call me Pharos? Or perhaps Ryoji? Or another title that belonged to a more imposing deity? At this point, it makes little difference," he said with a shrug.
Even now, it was difficult to ponder the person—some might call it a Shadow, or a monster, or a thing—that had taken up residence within his soul for the better part of a decade. Such a short time, in the grand scheme of things...yet one with undeniable importance. In all honesty, Minato thought it rather reasonable to be wary of that which had once been Nyx...or an aspect, at any rate. "I was under the impression that this sort of thing was verboten."
"The Social Link that you and I possess has not been opened," Kaworu calmly explained. "I am not so foolish...and it seems that you aren't, either."
"If that's the case, then why are you here?"
"The eyes of our mutual foe are...distracted. Although for how much longer, I wouldn't dare to say." Kaworu looked up at the sky, gazing in a southeasterly direction. "But, given the nature of how certain recurring concepts have so gripped this world...perhaps he will last until the 27th."
Minato had no idea what he was talking about. "Why the 27th?"
"Because then it will have been forty days since my kin engaged in mortal combat with your dear sister." Kaworu chuckled bitterly. "Certain numbers and times...their tendency to rhyme is both a blessing and a curse..." He paused, suddenly looking rather intrigued. "You seem surprised."
Minato wanted to clear out his ears, because surely he hadn't heard that. "Sister?" he repeated.
Kaworu blinked with genuine surprise, only to sigh. "Ah. That's right. The fork in the proverbial road of fate; you would have been too young to remember that time. Then again, thanks to that wretch's meddling, neither did I remember, for the longest time..." He paused, as if to gather himself. "And the lifetime right after that was the one where our foe claimed her for themselves...thus keeping you set apart, forevermore." He appeared rather despondent, pulling out a stress ball from his pocket and squeezing it vociferously. "It is a truly terrible thing, to be separate from one's kin."
There was only one other individual he could recall who had the surname of Arisato. (Only one other person of relevance, who had had a connection with Personas, the Velvet Room, and the events of his 'original' life.) "The girl called Minako."
"Whether or not you two are siblings in the true world is beyond my knowledge...but in the life where you and I first met? She perished in the crash alongside your parents, while you lived on to become the host of Death...but in the next life, it was she who survived instead of you." The stress ball was audibly twisting within his grip. "Constants...and variables..."
"...I don't understand." Pharos and Ryoji, for all that he had cherished their companionship, had been vexing in many ways during his original life: their flair for the ominously vague had still persisted, it seemed. "Why bring this up to me?" Why tell me about a sister I never knew I had? (A sister who had been in the clutches of the Usurper for who knows how many lives; a sister whom he possessed an unknowing bond of blood with, unintentionally ignored and cast aside; a sister who was...their enemy.) Why tell me at all? "Why bring it up if I can't do anything about it?"
"...because I need to see where exactly you stand, in the grand scheme of things." Kaworu pocketed the stress ball, gazing at him with a stoicness that seemed uncharacteristic: as though he were trying his hardest to keep his emotions from leaking out. "Patience...prudence...such have been virtues motivating the actions of everyone, in this current age. Making slight moves, working surreptitiously...hoping, beyond all hope, that this will be the one where it all ends at last. And for it all to end...Shinji Ikari must reach the pinnacle." With knowing eyes, he asked, "You have been helping him become stronger, have you not?"
Minato tried to fathom where he was going with all of this. "Why bring up my...sister..." That felt so weird to say out loud. (Yet it felt natural; fitting; true.) "...if you're intending to talk about Ikari?"
"Because once our enemy turns their attention back to the main stage, it is likely that Minako and Shinji-kun will come to blows...sooner rather than later, I would say. And think we're both aware of how their last outing went."
Minato frowned, thinking back to Amamiya's retelling of everything that had happened during the summer road trip to Nishiawakura. "I'm aware."
"Then I'm sure you want to make him as strong as possible to face the coming trials...and given that nature of the Wild Card, strengthening his bonds will grant him immeasurable power, in and of themselves."
"Bonds aren't supposed to be seen purely as shortcuts," he said, halfheartedly chiding the younger(?) boy.
Kaworu's subsequent smile was a sad and painful thing to witness. "Can something truly be called a bond if it is born from something false? No...you are not that sort of person. And Shinji-kun isn't, either."
"...you seem to care about him a lot," he calmly admitted.
"Beyond the fact that he is the key to our salvation? He reminded me a lot of you and your sister..." He frowned, as if catching himself. "Well...perhaps it's more accurate to say, in retrospect, that you both reminded me of him, in certain ways...and now, he has taken on the role that you pioneered. Constants...and variables..."
Minato didn't quite know what to make of that. "...well, if nothing else, you're as strange as ever." To emphasize his point, he reeled in his fishing line and cast it out again. "Though, given your reputation at school, perhaps you could turn down the Ryoji-isms?"
"I haven't the faintest clue as to what you're talking about," quipped Kaworu. He rose to his feet, placing his hands into his pockets. "Seeing you is quite...nostalgic, I must say."
Minato huffed. "I wish I could say the same. You kind of dropped the whole 'sister' thing on me out of nowhere."
"I was honestly under the impression that you knew."
"...if she has been under the control of our enemy for so long...then have you done anything about it?" he honestly wondered, without judgment. (The person who Pharos and Ryoji had been would not have let any precious person suffer needlessly. Not if they could help it.)
Kaworu was silent, for a time. "...I tried, once. Or rather, we tried. But it wasn't enough. Our enemy stamped down on us for our petulant rebellion...and in turn, the chains upon Minako became ever tighter." If one didn't know any better, it seemed as though Kaworu was visibly vibrating. "The memories of my failures are always with me."
"...I see." There was nothing more to be said, then. "...don't be a stranger."
The younger boy chuckled. "Unfortunately, the people I share bonds with tend to be hazardous to my health...so I'm afraid I will be staying away, for now. And do keep quiet about it, if you will...not that keeping secrets will be difficult for you." He turned his back towards Minato, preparing to return to the walking trail that curled around the edges of the shoreline, amidst the threshold where forest met rocks. "Farewell..."
"...see ya," murmured Minato, echoing words from long ago. He waited patiently, listening for Kaworu's retreating footsteps, until they were absorbed by nature's ambience. "...huh." So. I have a sister.
He would have to sit on that one for a while.
xx
As Kaworu quietly walked away, he briefly stopped, resting his back against a tree. How odd that he hadn't been aware...then again, who among their number would have known of the relationship between the Arisatos? An oversight...but it's fortunate that they're sensible. They will not jeopardize everything for frivolous reasons.
That, at least, was a balm to his spirit: tumultuous as it was, being in the presence of one he had a bond with. Though it was locked down tight by their will, the sheer power of that bond was undeniable.
It had taken everything within himself to maintain his composure.
(What did that imply, then, for when his bond with Shinji Ikari attained to its proper consummation?)
Patience. Control. Patience. Control. His hands would not stop shaking. Patience. Control. Shivering in his skin and bones, he forcefully grabbed one of his fingers and dislocated it; the sharpness of the pain abruptly cleared away the static in his ears. Patience...control. With a trembling exhale, Kaworu jabbed the finger back into the joint, wincing at the soreness. Had he been a mere lilim, he would have had to visit an actual medical professional to have the dislocated digit properly put into place. (What fortune, then, that he was no 'mere' lilim...and never had been.) I feel...tired...
(He had to endure.)
(He and Ikari had to make it to the end.)
(They had to.)
xxxx
/Outskirts of Nishimera, Miyazaki Prefecture/
Within the Metaverse, the hours had passed with surprising alacrity...at least, it felt that way to Hikari Horaki.
Armed with a packet of lozenges to ease her sore throat, as well as a wireless karaoke microphone—purchased at a music shop in the nearby city of Miyazaki after the first mission that morning—she had gotten more practice with her Persona. Cassandra...
(She had done some research on her Persona's real life inspiration. How much of the story applied to her circumstances? Was she destined to always have her Other Self be a reflection of a doomed prophetess? If her Persona could change...what would that entail?)
'We have another Acolyte's Shadow incoming!' Mayumi floated above on her throne of black, taking a commanding view of the mountainous forests around the winding Hitotsuse River. 'Ayanami-san's already intercepting!'
Mayumi's mental voice pulled her out of her introspection. The red and black sky of the Metaverse was still unnerving in its sheer regularity: a pulsing wave of dual colors. It was almost hypnotic, to be honest...but she could gaze at the bizarre environment of the cognitive world at a better time. "Let's go, Cassandra," she said, watching as a hulking beast in an avian mask charged along the river. Ayanami and Lilith were already engaging, striking with a flurry of chain whips and Ice Skills respectively. "I'm able to help now," she swore to herself, raising her microphone up to her lips. "I can help...so BOW!"
With that word, the sound from her throat manifested as a lance of Bless energy, striking the beast's shoulder.
(Using familiar phrases, associating them with thoughts and intentions...with practice, it would become second-nature, just like Sakamoto-sensei had said...!)
"Freila," chanted Cassandra; one the golden hands reaching from her mask—clutching tightly onto numerous locks of the Persona's wild mane of red hair—extended its pointer finger at the monster, manifesting orbs of Nuke energy that crashed into the other shoulder.
(She wanted to do more. She could do more!)
However, without warning, the Acolyte's Shadow howled, surging with a crimson aura.
'Its attack power is rising...watch out!'
Lilith barely grabbed Ayanami in time to protect the First Child from a vicious backhand; the strike nonetheless knocked the blunette into the riverbank with a vicious crash. With a snarling hiss, the hulking Shadow turned towards its next target: Hikari and Cassandra, further up the river. Each footstep caused a geyser of water to erupt in its wake.
'Horaki-san, move!' There was a sense of Mayumi grabbing something from her Persona: one of Armisael's manifold orbs. "PROTECT HER!" exclaimed Mayumi from above.
(During yesterday's training, Ryuji Sakamoto had tried to get more out of Mayumi's apparent ability to 'summon' faux Archetypes. They were akin to single-use items that could be used to a variety of effects. Mayumi had only unlocked that ability at the Himmel facility earlier that month...but she could not rest on her laurels. Sakamoto would not allow her to.)
The orb burst in front of Hikari, transforming into a golden magatama with a dull face: a Saki Mitama, surging with the protective energy of Tarunda and Rakukaja.
The corrupted Shadow's fist still tore through it with relative ease, crashing into the back of Hikari's Persona. With the taller woman cradling Hikari within her arms, they both were sent sprawling through the river.
Hikari felt nausea strike with a vengeance, inflicting what felt like a vicious headache in the back of her mind; notwithstanding the rushing water of the cognitive river, it was difficult not to be delirious in the face of such strength. I...can still...do more...
"Mabufudyne!" echoed Lilith from afar, flash-freezing the Acolyte's Shadow in its tracks...but not for long.
(One of her Persona's innate abilities was rather appropriate; she had learned its true nature during training, when using it against Sakamoto-sensei...)
Cassandra understood, rising to her feet with a stoic expression. "Fateful Prediction." She opened her mouth, letting loose the foreboding ring of a funeral bell.
(Fateful Prediction: a unique Persona ability that increased the probability that Cassandra's skills would strike true...and the closer the party was to their doom, the greater the rise...!)
The Acolyte's Shadow broke free of the ice; the Vorpal Blade unleashed by Lilith scored numerous lines across the hulking monster's flesh, but it still kept coming...!
"...end it," murmured Hikari, speaking with a certitude she shouldn't have possessed for one so new.
The numeral upon Cassandra's mask glistened. "Hamaon."
A burst of golden light; radiant runes dancing over the Acolyte's Shadow; the characters for owari — 終わり — flashing upon its avian mask; these sequence of events occurred in a flash. In the next instant, the Shadow dissolved into red mist, utterly undone.
(At that same moment, in the physical world: the Acolyte — barely restrained in chains by five A.T. Agents working in tandem — passed away.)
"...we did it," murmured Hikari, looking with a despondent look at her new wireless microphone: it had gotten soaked in the water, which doubtless meant it was ruined. (And oh, she couldn't think like that, because cognition would guarantee it would no longer work, and she'd have to buy another one...!)
Mayumi set down, Armisael transforming into its portable halo form. "Are you okay?!"
"...I'm alive," admitted Hikari, looking over towards Ayanami as she and Lilith approached. "Can...we take a break...?"
Ayanami, seemingly uncaring for the blood rushing from her broken nose, simply nodded.
xx
A short while later (after Lilith used Life Drain on some local Archetypes to provide enough curative power to heal Ayanami's nose), the trio of teenage girls — after Rei rendezvoused with the local Agents to advise them of their current status — wound up in Nishimera's local ramen shop: a quaint and tiny place, with old furniture and wooden walls, and fluorescent lighting that ensured an atmosphere that was homely, old-fashioned, and worn down all at once. Such was the way of life in a small village with barely a thousand people to its name.
As Rei quietly sipped from her miso ramen, she noted the voraciousness with which Hikari devoured her tonkotsu ramen. She must have been exhausted, to not care so much for propriety. "I am sorry that circumstances are what they are."
Hikari blinked, caught in the midst of slurping up her ramen noodles. Mayumi, putting down a can of green tea, asked, "What do you mean, Ayanami-san?"
"...in this world, the manner in which new Persona-users are introduced to battle is supposed to be more measured. More controlled. Aida-san and Suzuhara-san were both able to adapt to their new powers at a less intense pace." Glancing at Mayumi, Rei added, "And the nature of your abilities, as well as your proximity to Ikari-san and his friends for the duration of their road trip...made the battles you partook in easier to handle, I would say."
"...that's a very polite way to phrase it, Ayanami-san," murmured Mayumi. "I'm not sure I agree with that interpretation..."
"Even so...the loss of the country's capital and the national government during the Fog of Desolation...it put this whole country on the backfoot. Persona-users with less experience are being pushed into battle more quickly." Looking sternly at Hikari, she added, "A month ago, I do not think you would have been authorized to accompany me on a mission to fight an Acolyte's Shadow."
Hikari nodded, accepting her observation for what it was. "Because I would have been too inexperienced?"
"And not only that, but Acolytes and Ghosts are becoming...more difficult." That was putting it mildly. A single Acolyte was well within Rei Ayanami's ability to handle, at this stage...or at least, that used to be the case. "Even though you have the power to help, it is also within my responsibility to ensure the safety of my comrades...and that applies to both you and Yamagishi-san." She felt so tired.
The Beast sagged on her feet.
"When the monster broke through Yamagishi's shield...you thought Horaki would have been reduced to a smear."
With a throaty exhale, she clawed at her cheeks.
"Yet another life taken before its time...you'd think we'd be over it by now..."
Hikari, dabbing delicately at her lips with a napkin, remarked, "We can't help the times we live in, Ayanami-san. Even if current circumstances are less than ideal...I still have the power to do something. That's more than I had even a week ago..." Hikari frowned. "Has it already been a week since the last new moon...?"
Mayumi nodded. "You'll get used to the sensation of time slipping away from you...even though there's not enough time in the world, it feels like..."
"...I see." Hikari sighed, eating her ramen at a more sedate pace. "Thank you for looking out for me nonetheless, Ayanami-san. But...death comes to those even more experienced than me. I can only focus on what's within my ability to change..." Stirring the broth with her chopsticks, she muttered, "Figuring out what that is...that's the hard part..."
"...I hope the others are doing well," remarked Mayumi before slurping some more noodles.
Rei had no concern with regards to Shinji Ikari and Mana Kirishima; their abilities were rather complimentary, to be honest. Sohryu-san and the other two boys, on the other hand...
As if sensing her thoughts, Hikari said, "I hope Aida-san and Suzuhara-san aren't giving Sohryu-san any trouble..."
xxxx
/Outskirts of Jōetsu, Niigita Prefecture/
Within the Metaverse, the plains east of the city of Jōetsu roared with battle.
"There's the last Acolyte Shadow!" yelled Asuka, standing upon the right shoulder of Gilgamesh.
Toji, standing upon his Persona's left shoulder, grunted in acknowledgment. "We're just going to have to take it to 'em!"
Across the battle-scarred expanse, a host of Archetypes shambled around a hulking Shadow, all of them bearing avian masks of bone upon their faces.
"Can't believe the Acolytes have started ripping off the tactics used by the Angel from last week," griped Kensuke, sitting upon Sinbad's shoulders. His Persona, meanwhile, was being carried piggyback style by Gilgamesh.
Matilda, sitting upon Gilgamesh's head, simply laughed with glee and expectation.
"That just means a target-rich environment!" yelled Asuka, holding her switchblade at the ready. "Ready!"
"Set!" chorused Toji and Kensuke.
"Charge!" yelled the trio and their Personas; without hesitation, Gilgamesh took off running, his body surging with the aura of Sukukaja.
The corrupted Shadow roared, and the various Archetypes under its thrall — all variants of monsters and creatures from Japanese folklore — charged ahead.
Sinbad and Kensuke, with bow and crossbow, unleashed a storm of arrows upon the advancing tide, to clear a path to the big bad.
Toji, waving his staff as though it were a rallying flag, roared in tandem with Gilgamesh as the brutal sprinter bulldozed through the thoughtbeasts. The Acolyte's Shadow, roaring with the promise of destruction.
Matilda, trowel in hand, giggled viciously as Sinbad threw her forward; such was the childlike Persona's momentum that — upon smacking the Shadow in the face with her Brain Slapper Skill — she practically bounced up and over the beast into the sky. The impact, minimal as it was, caused the Shadow to briefly falter.
Just in time for Asuka, holding her switchblade as though it were a sword in its sheath, to swing in tandem with Gilgamesh leaping at the corrupted Shadow.
SHWING.
Improbably—impossibly—the trio of Persona-users were standing on the other side of the Acolyte's Shadow. Gilgamesh and Sinbad stood side by side, as did Kensuke and Toji. Asuka, with deliberate slowness, clicked the switchblade back into the handle...
(The Acolyte's Shadow—mask sporting a great slash across its surface—suddenly gurgled as it felt the pain of countless physical blows, of repeated strikes from various elements, all in an instant-!)
...and caught Matilda with her other arm, flawlessly catching the young girl as Kensuke, Toji, and their respective Personas struck a pose.
(-and it was all too much-!)
With sudden ferocity, the Acolyte's Shadow exploded. The various Archetypes under its thrall immediately dissolved, bereft of the power which had sustained them.
"...I can't believe you Stooges picked up on the principle of coordinated attacks so quickly," Asuka admitted with a begrudging tone.
While Toji rolled his eyes, Kensuke retorted, "Have you not known any boys growing up? Team Attacks are the kind of stuff we dream of."
"...fair enough," said Asuka.
When the duo held out their fists, she was not too proud to return the dual fistbump.
xxxx
"...do you think I'm worrying too much?" asked Hikari.
"I am sure they'll be fine," quietly reassured Rei.
Mayumi, sipping the last of her broth, exhaled heavily. "...I don't know if I'm stepping out of bounds...but if either of you found out that you had family you hadn't previously known about...what would you do?"
Rei quietly observed Mayumi, noting Hikari's look of surprise. "What's this about?" wondered Hikari aloud. "I know your parents passed away...did they have relatives you didn't know about?"
The bespectacled girl winced. "Too insightful, Horaki-san..." Before Hikari could apologize, Mayumi elaborated. "I found out from Katsuragi-san that, at the very least, my father has a niece who's still alive. I...don't know whether or not to meet her."
"Why not?" asked Hikari. "To have more family? I would..." Hikari paused, biting her lower lip. "...it's not my place to speak for you. But if I had other family, it would make certain issues a lot easier to deal with..."
Mayumi nodded, turning towards Rei. "And you, Ayanami-san?"
Rei measured her words with care. "...I was found in the Metaverse as a young child, so my advice regarding family may not be appropriate." I am bound to all, yet what worth are those bonds in and of themselves? "It is human nature to place importance on blood ties...yet these can either be a blessing or a curse, depending on the nature of one's family. As for the bonds which you choose for yourself...those can be of greater worth, precisely because they did not exist before you brought them into being. However...if those some bonds then fall apart, or are rejected, then it can be even more devastating..." For if a chosen bond crumbles, or if you are rejected...who else is there to blame but oneself? "All I can say is that, if you choose to meet this cousin of yours, do so for reasons you deem to be right."
Hikari and Mayumi stared quietly at her, as though sensing she had more issues than either of them.
Her Other, forlorn and quiet, could only shake her head.
Finishing the last of her miso ramen, Rei reached for her phone; a message had been sent by Asuka, indicating that her slate of missions had been completed. I wonder Ikari-kun is doing, she quietly thought. Typing out a message and hitting 'send', she had already resigned herself to waiting for Shinji and Mana to complete their objectives...
Ring ring.
...which was why the chime of a phone call was so surprising.
"Who's calling?" asked Mayumi.
"...Ikari-san," she murmured, feeling strangely perturbed. Answering it, she placed the phone near her ear, ignoring the inquisitive stares of Hikari and Mayumi. "Hello?" There was no answer. "Ikari-san?"
A voice that decidedly did not belong to Shinji Ikari answered. "New phone, who's this?" There was an audible sneer. "That's what kids say these days, right?"
The blood in Rei's veins went ice cold.
Her Other and the Beast went alive with alarm.
"Hello?" taunted the stranger. "This is 'Rei Ayanami', right? That's who the text came from."
"Who are you," demanded Rei, feeling uncharacteristically angry.
"You know, you were always a mysterious figure. The jackasses in my line of work never knew what to make of the mysterious First Child...not like it mattered in the end. Compared to the Angels, your situation might be even shittier than theirs...can't even fathom why you bother with it all..."
Rei narrowed her eyes. (Instinctively, Mayumi and Hikari both stood, nervously watching her hackles rise.) "What have you done with Ikari-san and Mana-san?"
"Not as much as I'd like. They both went down like a couple of punkass bitches." He punctuated his words with a noise of exertion; the muffled whump of a kick—of someone groaning with pain—sounded in the background. "A disappointing first showing, really."
"Who. Are. You?"
The man seemed genuinely amused by her anger. "Does the name Adachi ring a bell?"
That name (Tohru Adachi) pushed all of the wrong buttons (the nemesis of Yu Narukami), as panic and outrage (the thrall of Sahaquiel...!) warred for supremacy. On the surface, Rei seemed unruffled. "...you'll regret everything you've done."
"Regret's not my style, grandma. Might wanna hurry up, by the way. It's so easy to get bored nowadays..." Without another word, he hung up.
xxxx
/Sapporo Dead Zone, Hokkaido/
The day had started...rather well, if Shinji could admit that much. He and Mana Kirishima had rather good chemistry together in combat, so working alongside her had been...well, he wouldn't go so far as to say enjoyable (he never enjoyed fighting), but it was fulfilling in a strange way.
Given her abilities, Mana was also capable of helping out with Ghosts in reality, so they were able to back each other up in a variety of ways that the others — Hikari, Mayumi, Toji, and Kensuke — quite simply couldn't, both in reality and in the cognitive.
Things had been going...relatively smoothly. They had managed to take down six Acolytes over the course of the afternoon, and had decided to take a small break in the real world to catch their breath. (Just a small break...just one...)
They had not anticipated the sudden rush of yellow fog.
Before Shinji could even properly manifest Unit-01—before Mana could even raise her axe—there had been a flash of light and heat; a great explosion; waves of force rippling through his body; blissful unconsciousness.
It was to the voice of a stranger (yet one he had heard before...?) that he awoke.
"-as much as I'd like."
Shinji impulsively grimaced, trying to catch his bearings.
"They both went down like a couple of punkass bitches." The sound of moving feet coming closer-
WHUMP.
-and then sudden agony as a shoe-clad foot slammed into his midsection. Shinji impulsively gagged, groaning with pain; he could barely make out the man's words, so focused was he on the ache radiating through his flesh.
The Beast sneered with disgust.
"\Pathetic. Are you going to let him walk all over you?"
"-wanna hurry up, by the way." The man's voice came back into focus. "It's so easy to get bored, nowadays..." The man's black shoes—scuffed, long bereft of polish—entered his field of vision. A phone (my phone...?) was dangled in front of his face. "Might wanna hang onto this."
Shinji winced as the phone was unceremoniously dropped onto his face. Warily looking up, he recognized the yellow fog...which meant the man standing over him could only be one person. "...Adachi...?"
The man's grin was sleazy in its self-assuredness. Squatting down, he looked him with all the disgusted curiosity of a child investigating an animal's excrement. "Crazy, how it's always kids ending up with phenomenal powers..." Chuckling to himself, he spoke as if quoting someone. "You ever think about how complicated life can be, kid?"
The tone triggered a memory. "...the road stop in Taga..." It had been August the 21st, en route to Tokyo-2, when Shinji and his travelling cohort had not yet been aware of the old capital's fate. There, at a simple gyudon shop, he had encountered an unassuming man in the restroom. "...that was you...?"
Adachi clapped as if congratulating himself. "The kid's got a brain! Imagine what would have happened if you used it." Grabbing at his cheeks, Adachi roughly turned his head from side to side, as if investigating him. "It's funny...you remind me of a cocksure brat with a chip on his shoulder the size of Tokyo. He thought the world deserved dying just because he got a bad hand in life..." Gazing into his eyes, he asked, "I wonder...were you any better? 'Cause I can't see it."
"...what are you talking about...?" (Where was Mana?)
Adachi snorted, laughing loudly. "Ah, to be without a clue! It must suck, going through life when you're so damn stupid." Rising back up, Adachi sauntered over towards a familiar pair of weapons: LABRYS and AIGIS.
Several meters away, Shinji could see Mana struggling to crawl; her teeth were bared, her anger made manifest. "Leave them alone," she hissed.
"Heh. No wonder these felt familiar." Adachi quietly pulled out a revolver, aiming it a gemstone. "I wonder how durable they are...?"
"DON'T YOU TOUCH THEM!" screamed Mana, surging forward with her second wind; even with blood running down her face, her eyes were clear.
Adachi laughed. "Now there's some moxie!" With a lanky evasion, he shifted out of the way and into the fog. Mana missed; in return, Adachi delivered a vicious haymaker onto the bridge of her nose.
The audible crack of crushed nasal cartilage was nauseous to hear; yet, it didn't compare to the hole that opened in Shinji's stomach as Mana promptly dropped to the ground, impulsively cradling her face. "Mana-san!" Before he could even think of rising, a large hand pressed down on his back, pinning him in place. In the corner of his eye, he could barely glimpse the crimson form and maddening yellow eyes of the Persona Magatsu-Izanagi. "Get...off...!"
"If you want him to get off of you, do something about it," taunted Adachi. "Am I making you mad? Am I pissing you off?" He punctuated his point by kicking Mana in the stomach. "Come on, hero! Do something about it!""
The Beast snorted.
"You heard him. Give him what he wants."
Shinji snarled, trying to push up with his hands. Get up...get up...!
"Remember when you fought Zeruel? You had to rely on me...because you're nothing without me..."
The Beast quietly caressed his hair.
"...and there is no shame in that..."
"You're sure taking your sweet time," snarled Adachi. "What's the matter? Aren't bonds supposed to be a big thing with you types? Come on! Show me what you've got!"
Shinji tried so very desperately to rise...yet the sheer fury needed was just beyond his reach...!
The Beast huffed.
"Disappointing. You think your strength is enough?"
With a vicious roar, it stomped down on his face.
"FOOL! Your strength is MINE! You are nothing without me!"
"...stop it..." Shinji hissed, trying to silence the roar between his ears and the mocking jeers of Tohru Adachi.
Adachi backed off, suddenly looking contemplative. "...hmm. So it's not that simple. I see some embers...but it's no bonfire yet." With a sigh, he stepped on Shinji's hand, grinding his heel with disdain. "It ain't a matter of kicking you down...and it ain't that girl, either...I wonder what it could be...?" With a start, Adachi suddenly looked to the south. "Ah...looks like playtime is over..."
Shinji felt the pressure decrease as Magatsu-Izanagi vanished. The fog was slowly receding. "...what...?" Was that it? Adachi had launched a devastating sneak attack, taunted them, abused them, and was...just going to leave? Just like that?! "What...what are you doing this for...?" he wondered aloud.
As the fog slowly swallowed up Adachi, the last thing he saw was the man's twisted grin, and the gleaming of a multi-colored eye. "That's a real good question. Figure it out." His echoed into nothingness, slowly dissipating along with the fog.
Moments later, Rei Ayanami burst into existence, looking around with an almost frenzied air alongside her Evangelion. Whilst Unit-00 stood at attention, Ayanami rushed towards them with barely disguised shock.
The utter delirium of the past several minutes finally had their way with Shinji's mind as he fell unconscious.
xxxx
END OF 9/20/2015
xxxx
Author's Note: If you want a brief reminder as to Tabris's connection to Pharos/Ryoji, you might want to revisit Minako's Sidestory "The Butterfly Effect".
Anyhow, we've got further glimpses as Hikari's combat role, which has a route of increasing probability for insta-kill moves in coordination with her Bless/Nuke Skills.
We also got an Asuka/Kensuke/Toji triple tech combo (LET'S GOOOOOO).
And we also Adachi being a dick, but what else is new?