Author's Notes:

3697014: other than White, one other character will get a persona but I won't say who. Yep, this intruder is quite a handful and has Ghetsis won the ultimate pokemon villain lottery with the amount of power he gained.

Haziq: They won't run wild completely but they will be around to make Minato's life harder.

lazy lord: just like the name better.

Janson Wu: When everything comes together, it will form a big picture.


Tossing a basket of laundry into the washing machine, Akira inserted a coin to start the cycle. He watched the dirt and grim evaporate, peeking in from the layered glass, until it came to a complete stop.

"That's all for today. Hmmm, we've got some interesting stuff here." Morgana meowed, pressing his paws against the machine, searching for rare gear hidden among the clumped mass of wet treasure.

"Does stuff like this always show in Mementos? Where do they even come from?" Akira wasn't sure how random items would just spawn in the collective unconscious of humanity like they were meant to be there. Surely, someone must have lost them or put the items there on purpose, after all, they all appeared man made. He pulled open the machine, reaching in to grab a hefty yellow jacket, looking for a clothing tag.

"The best way I can explain is that these items are like the collective thoughts of humanity." Morgana tried his best to relay the information, pawing at the clothing tag on the jacket. "See how distorted the logo on here looks? This must have come from someone who really wanted this jacket, and that desire likely flowed into the collective."

Upon closer inspection, the logo resembled a luxury brand Akira had seen in the city. Perhaps whoever wanted to purchase this jacket literally wished it into existence and that was why he was holding it now.

"This won't affect the person who desires this jacket, will it?" He didn't want to accidentally steal someone's treasure without realizing it.

Morgana shook his head, "Nope, I would just think about them like passing thoughts. People have them everyday and sometimes they just happen to float into the collective." His answer gave the Fool some relief, as he learned the power he just obtained was more than dangerous. Ann had a bad habit of burning item drops and Ryuji had trouble controlling his Persona when things got heated, which left Akira to pick the mess. He was thankful Morgana always had his back when things got tough too as the cat helped him inspect their haul from Mementos. Reaching in once more, Akira thought to pick out a dark pair of gloves this time, when he instantly retracted his hand in a sharp yelp.

"Shiit!" He cursed, grabbing his hand, feeling a stinging prick sensation like he glided his skin along a knife's edge.

"What's wrong? Are you alright?" Morgana hurried over, grabbing a bandage from their bag, "Here, use this! You're bleeding!"

Dark blood flowed from the Fool's palm as he grabbed an alcohol patch to clean the wound. "I should have been more careful, thanks Morgana." Akira peered inside the barrel of the machine once more, bringing out the offending item that had stung him in an annoyed frown. "These gloves look pretty expensive." Feeling the material, the boy could tell they were high end, however he cringed, finding a bit of black glass stuck in its side. A tiny piece of material that led to his current injury.

"We should be careful what we bring back next time…" Morgana meowed.

"Good idea."

Once they finished their haul, Akira returned to Leblanc's attic. Since he still had some time left, he booted his laptop to work on his next script.

"What are you writing this time?" Morgana hopped onto the table to read the text on screen.

"A superhero story with a twist." Akira smirked, writing always brought comfort to his heart. He grew up in a household of doctors and lawyers so he always kept his works to himself. If it weren't for his sudden uprooting to Tokyo, then he would have hid his works away. Day in and day out, he pretended to be a model student, but when the courts ordered him to go away for the year, it almost felt like he was set free for the first time.

"What kind? You know, if I didn't know you as Joker, I wouldn't have guessed you had such a crazy imagination." His last few works were just as dramatic as the one he was writing now. At first, Morgana was thrilled to have someone write his personal biography in praiseworthy detail, until he realized Akira's favorite genre of literacy work were tragedies and greek dramas.

"Don't worry, you're not the only one. I aim to submit some of these off to a contest sometime. If we get lucky, your story might end up on the silver screen."

"If that ever happens, I claim at least fifty percent of the profits." The cat perked out, "only if you listen to my full story of course!"

"I type fast, over two hundred words per minute, think you can match that?" Akira challenged.

"Pft! No amount of type speed can match the glorious pace of my epic tale! It'll take a true artist to comprehend the depth and meaning of my experience."

"We'll see then. But back on topic, I plan to finish this before Madarame's palace. Any ideas for the plot this time?"

"How about a hero that faces off against a stylish phantom thief. Oh! And they clash because they're both after the same thing when a third, mysterious figure…" Morgana explained the plot forming in his mind, Akira adding onto the idea, and like magic, he crafted another world for the screen. Once the session finished, the two were exhausted.

"That turned out better than I expected, so when did you start writing, Akira?" Morgana now curled onto the sofa, yawning.

Akira thought for a moment, before answering, "Dunno, but have you ever found the world to be a little too mundane?" Sure, I know the supernatural exists now, however most people write because they want to get away."

"Get away from what?"

"Reality."


Somewhere in another world, in another time.

Ryoji brought two Plasma uniforms, handing them to White and Minato, before closing the door behind them. "You can use the changing rooms here, men on the right and women on the left.

The two nodded before emerging in full grunt attire. "I'm glad they fit, now we won't have to worry about being questioned in the Castle."

"What happens when you get too hot in these?" White pulled up her hood, but felt the faux armor plus robe combo to be horrible in the summer heat. Despite the Castle having air conditioning, it was still stuffy to wear all year round. Of all the times she's encountered Plasma grunts, no one batted an eye at the horrible design flaw.

"Policies do say you have to dress for the job at all times, however, when you're not on official business, people are far more lax." Ryoji led them to a main hallway, speaking in a low whisper, "Since I know you two have fought with these people in the past, I would hide your faces as much as possible. No revealing your hidden pokeballs unless it's an emergency, if they see you with them, they will try to confiscate them."

"Thanks for the heads up." Minato avoided a male passerby, one he was sure he met at the Dreamyard.

"I'm glad you're both adjusting well. Now about the Castle, I can take you to most places, but there are still areas off limits unless a Sage gives you permission."

"Will we have to fight a Sage then? Wouldn't that defeat the whole purpose of sneaking around like this?" White questioned.

"Not quite. I've explored this place up and down once and I can do it again with my powers." Minato assured.

"How are you gonna pull that off?" White asked.

"You'll see. It's hard to explain but once we get to the restricted areas." The bluenette hoped she would understand when he starts to charm people to get by. Some might say using such tactics was immoral and robbed the target of their freewill, but when push came to shove, it was an invaluable asset. Like a sword or a gun, a weapon also depended on its wielder.

Together, they passed through the grand hall, where many people gathered, both for official business and light gossip. Freed pokemon were also allowed to roam the area, dashing between grunts in a playful manner. Patrats ran in circles, chasing each as Pidove flew from pillar to pillar to nest.

"This place…I hadn't expected it to be so…normal." In an effort to locate Black, she was expecting a whole evil organization that Interpol was hellbent on taking them down, instead it felt like any other gathering place.

"Humanity tends to retrace the same patterns no matter where they are. Pokemon too, follow their instincts." Ryoji began, "If we cut through here, it's a quick route to one of the restricted zones."

"Ryoji!" He was caught off before he could finish, Rosa practically bounced her way to him in that crowd with Snivy.

"Hey, Rosa. It's been a while." Quickly, he stepped in front of White and Minato, shielding them.

"I've been wanting to show you how much I improved in my baking skills! See?" She brought over a tray of cupcakes, this time with pokemon decor.

"These are adorable, I like the Mimikyu one." He picked up the pokemon themed pastry, "And it's strawberry flavored, you did a good job balancing the sweetness."

"I have more! Oh! Who are those people with you? Are they new?" Before Ryoji could hold her back, Rosa hurried over to share her creations, only to stop in a silent gasp.

"M-m-m-m-!"

"Shhhh, we don't want anyone else knowing they're here." Ryoji whispered, leaving the girl's head spinning. She almost fell over meeting the Messiah once more, when White was looking a bit jealous in the back from Ryoji's attention.

"Do any of the Sages know?" Rosa asked, now on high alert, Snivy also listening in.

"No, but I can explain the reason later. They're Lord N's friends, so they have some business in the Castle."

The twin tailed girl nodded, weaving them a friendly goodbye. Upon reaching the other side, Ryoji relaxed like he was about to have a heart attack from being discovered, thankfully Rosa was reasonable.

"You've met good people." Minato gave him a pat on the shoulder, showing how much the former avatar has grown.

"Team Plasma may not have the best reputation, but it's not full of just evil doers either." His friend smiled gently, guiding them along. Their first stop came back empty, and then the next few were just as unfruitful as before.

"I'm amazed at how big this place is." White closed a door behind her, "And how many cells they have…" Rows upon rows of iron bars lined the area, forged to lock in those who misbehaved or went against the grain. Many in Plasma would refer to this place as 'the dungeon' for its cold and barbaric appearance. Rusted steel doors kept people in as much as they locked out.

"When someone angers the Sages they're kept solitary. And occasionally, some folks from the outside accidentally discover our base so Ghetsis keeps them down there." Luckily, with the aid of psychic pokemon, the higher ups would alter the memories of those who came across their hideout and send them on their way back to a normal life.

"Solitary? Team Plasma sure is…uh." She didn't know what to say after seeing those cells, as they resembled the ones in actual prisons.

Ryoji nodded, acknowledging her hesitation, "I know how this looks and it's the reason why this organization needs a makeover. Not only is it wrong to lock people up for petty mistakes, but the Sages fail to abide by their own laws."

"It's just as corrupt as some of the places back home." The whole experience echoed the old Kirijo labs, a place where human life was devalued for the sake of progress.

"You mean the place where you came from, Mina?" White asked, "Now that I think about it, does Ryoji know too, since you both look so alike?" Both males stopped.

The former avatar nodded, "I see he's told you about our reality, White. I hope it wasn't too confusing."

"Yea, I relayed this info to a few other people too. Once this is over, I'll give you the whole run down."

"It's crazy to think…you both come from a place with no pokemon. I mean, I've never thought about what it'd be like to live without Claudia or Gigi." She expressed her fear of a world where it would just be humans, because the concept alone frightened her. The same type of world Team Plasma was trying to unleash upon the world.

"I wouldn't dwell on the 'what ifs' too much. The place we came from had its own pros and cons. Of course, I suppose coming from our perspective, a pokemon filled world would appear foreign to the people of our reality as well." Ryoji spoke in an empathetic tone. Although what both worlds had in common was the concept of 'death', that nothing would last forever.

White shook her head, "Right, let's get back on task. We have an idiot to save."

Emerging through a flight of stairs, they reached one of the most lower floors of the Castle, down a long hallway. Unlike the previous areas stationed with guards or patrolled by pokemon, this place was entirely empty. Ryoji turned, halting his steps in a ballroom, a dead end.

"And here we are, the place you've been looking for." He said, a serene grin graced his face. Nothing, there was nothing, no cells, prisoners, or even other people. The calm look of Death's face twisted. Tabbing his feet on the ground, letting the sound echo across the void, Ryoji pointed upwards at the ceiling.

"You see how we're in the basement? Two floors above us houses the grand hall where all those people were…" His clear blue eyes darkened when Minato threw out Honedge, throwing himself in front of White when a dark shadow swiped at her leg, trapping her, causing the two to collide. Being caught off guard, the veteran twisted around to catch her, barely dodging another claw himself when Claudia launched a shadow ball at their attacker. Dark energy swirled, smashing into Mimikyu as it gave way to let Darkrai through the gap when Minato swung his sword, throwing out a shockwave, tossing the creature away.

White reached for her pokemon, scrambling to her feet as her eyes widened, seeing Ryoji charge at them with a dark sword in his hand, with Minato's back turned to face the pokemon when it happened.

Fresh blood splattered across the floor, dying it a brilliant crimson, Death drove his blade through the Messiah.

"R-ryoji y-!" Pain, pain like poison spread through his system, he tried to wiggle free, pushing White to the side, as Minato summoned Kali to dice up his attacker. He coughed, hacking up red.

Ryoji twisted the weapon deeper, tearing his insides "Oh…I wouldn't do that if I were you.".

"Claudia!" White screamed, the spirit was knocked unconscious, beaten up, danglinging by the claw of Darkrai. She reached out, but fell to the floor from the slash by Mimikyu. The gash was large, locking her in place from the pain. She reached inside her bag, when Ryoji shot her an early menacing gaze.

"Do that and I'll have Darkrai tear your grandmother apart." Cold, his words were like razor blades cutting into flesh, chaining her down. His once warm facade melted away to the cruel evil beneath. How had she not noticed his true nature? He returned back to the frozen Minato, pulling his sword out, only to drive it through his stomach this time.

Shaking, losing blood, the bluenette puked out more blood, driplots splashing onto Death. "As I was saying, his tone was honey sweet, "Up there, there are good people. People who don't deserve to die, and down here there are also those who will do good." He gestured to White, who fought the urge to throw up at the gruesome sight. Her stomach was churning, her face hot from the tears, stress fully visible, fighting not to scream.

"You're using them both as hostages…?" Fighting through the pain, he was losing blood, Minato uttered.

Finally, he saw his 'friend' smile, "yes, so would you kindly get out of my way?"

"You're not him…you can't be." He dropped to his knees, his throat tasted metallic, his breathing growing shallow. Ryoji was not cruel, he wasn't someone who would pull such underhanded tricks. Death was kind, not barbaric. Was he replaced just like Black? Or was the enemy playing another trick? Either way, Minato was too weakened to fight back. This cruel god had exploited his main weakness, that being the loss of innocent life.

"Then who am I?" Empty eyes bore at the Messiah, who could not come up with an answer before his ears started to ring and his eyes became heavy.

"Mina…no" White mumbled, shaking, pale. "No…no…don't go."

"Ya…mask…"

"C-claudia!" She felt a deep seated hatred, desperation, reaching her hands out but could only grab at the air around her. They were empty, weak, pathetically fragile as the people around her slipped from her grasp. Shouting, crying, she buried herself in her grief, breaking down at her best friend dropping to the floor, his body going limp.

"No…no…no don't go…don't…DON'T LEAVE ME BEHIND!"

"Well that was underwhelming…" his killer shrugged.

Hate, seething hatred bubbled up, growing like waves, forming into an electrifying vortex, bursting into a brilliant firework, surging to the surface from the sea of the soul. White screamed, the pain growing fainter, as her body was coated into a powerful thunderstorm. Blue eyes lighting up, a thin katana made from pure energy formed her hand when she rushed toward Ryoji, running him through the chest.

"Huh…?"

"Persona!" Pure blue flames coated her form, burning up her fragile form, like a phoenix rising from the dead, emerging in a mystic white mask and dress. "Ziodyne!"

The spiritual form above summoned a stream of electricity, striking down its foe, raising its sword to drill into the enemy, when he pushed the girl off, blocking the strike with his own weapon. Calling back his pokemon, he slid back a few feet, observing the new persona.

"It can't be…" Ryoji clicked his tongue in annoyance, recognizing who it was. Meanwhile, White frantically picked up both Claudia and Minato, blood staining her hands, her body shaking from the summon. It was like her entire head was about to burst from the amount of energy being unleashed, yet she clung on.

"Mina?! Mina!" She had made sure Claudia was alright before trying to help her friend. Deep within her soul, she tried reaching for a healing spell, but it would not be enough in his current state. Tears again streamed from her eyes, her mask hiding her true despair when a subtle voice reached out to her, instructing on what to do. Taking a deep breath, she faced Ryoji, who was still recovering from his wound. His eye twitched in irritation at the situation.

Electricity crackled, for a second it felt like her body was not her own. Like someone had thrown her to the back seat, White's mouth started to move on its own, her eyes steeled like never before. Being possessed by an otherworldly force, she aimed her sword right at her enemy.

"Go back and tell him, I won't let you win this time…"

Lifting the body of Minato, she teleported them away, leaving an even more confused Ryoji.


The moment she arrived back at Interpol's second hideout, everyone had rushed Minato to the emergency room. Blake yelled for the surgeon on staff to get ready, as the office was sent into a frenzy once again.

For the next two days, the Messiah fell asleep, revisiting a memory of his past. For in the last minutes before he blacked out in that ballroom, he felt a familiar presence of that same old persona from before.

In that dark labyrinth, SEES struggled against the many shadows, cornering them before they would face the inevitable. Akihiko was down for the count with Shinji, Mitsuru, and Aigis barely holding on. Koromaru and Ken helped shielded Yukari while Minato jumped into the fray, alone to deal with the most deadly of beasts. Pressing the evoker to his head for the hundredth time, he slashed at their heads, lopping off several card soldiers at once in a sluggish cut. A spear went for his right when he twisted around, launching a barrage of flames, charring his enemies.

Deep breaths in, deep breaths out, Minato was approaching his limits, his body breaking down at the strain. Vision growing dizzy, losing strength, he slowed down to be pierced in the side by an arrow when a surge of electricity zapped it away. And just as suddenly as the battle had turned sour, a new group of voices rang out in the distance, tearing across the deadly maze. Swaths of blue lighting crackled, danced, bringing hope to his ravaged party. Together, they would overcome this deadly challenge.

When the fray was over, Yu Narukami reached out to shake Minato's hand. And that was when he first met the Seeker of Truth.


Opening his eyes, his vision blurred, Minato realized he was back in the real world.

Drawing a blank, he gazed up at the plain white ceiling, barely able to move his body. No, it wasn't that he was physically incapable, but it was petrified at the cruelty displayed just two days ago. Minato laid in bed, a sinking feeling permeating across his entire form at the actions of his old friend. Or rather, perhaps he had already been replaced by a Shadow long ago, which frightened him. Underneath his covers, his hands shook, trying to process what he just witnessed.

Was Ryoji still alive?

At the same time somewhere else in the facility, White sat with her pokemon, crying into Claudia's arms. How had everything fallen apart so fast? She let out her frustrations, hoping that Ryoji was a fake as she experienced her third betrayal in such a short time.

When they had met, she found him to be Minato's opposite, the sun to the bluenette's moon. The way he showed concern for the people around him, regardless of their beliefs, so it was hard to believe such a kind soul would turn on them out of the blue. Yes, just like her brother, perhaps he was just as cruelly replaced by a Shadow. Embracing her pokemon, she could only hope he was still alive.


Days later after recovery.

White concentrated, visualizing the spirit within her soul, the real world around her distorting at the pressure she exerted, trying to project the persona into reality. Clenching her head, she felt an immense pressure pressing down on her mind, forcing her to stop.

She sighed, "Still nothing…" taking a breather. Beside her, Minato, Blake, and the police chief, watched in anticipation.

"I thought you said this power was a product of your world? How did this young lady inherit such abilities?" The chief of Interpol questioned, suspicious.

"I only know what my organization relayed to me back home. Like how Interpol doesn't have information on everything in the world, I don't either." Minato answered bluntly, besides, he was sure the outline White's persona took felt…oddly recognizable. Paired with the electric element, it was uncanny how similar it was to….no, he would hold off for now. After she summons, he'll have his answer.

"Are there ways your people are trained to summon these Personas? When our agents enroll, we run everyone through our programs." Blake pointed out, which gave the bluenette an idea. An idea that he would have to convince the officers and White that he wasn't insane.

"Well, there was one way we did it. It's how I got my first summon."

Curious, everyone gathered around as Minato pulled his evoker out of his pocket. Instantly, the officers tensed. Despite Interpol's reliance on pokemon, it didn't mean they wouldn't have guns in stock. Although firearms were way less effective in the pokemon world considering most mons have the capability to burn a human to a crisp before they could even hope to pull the trigger. The speed of an enraged Garchomp alone would outclass the best shooters from Earth. Still, most regions have outlawed these devices for the sake of protecting wild pokemon and trigger happy trainers.

"Mina is that a…" White had only seen characters fire them off in action movies, having never encountered one in real life.

"A gun? Your organization points people at gunpoint to summon?" Blake gave the bluenette a side eye. Just how evil were they to do something as absurd as this?

"Let me explain…" Now Minato wished Mitsuru was not so detail oriented, but it was better to just show them. "This device here is called an evoker, it's only shaped like a gun." He pointed it at a group of training dummies, pulling the trigger, with nothing coming out the firing hole. "See how it doesn't do anything?"

"I see, so it has a psychological effect." The chief guessed, "from your story of what happened at the Castle, younglady, it appears you suffered something close to a full close breakdown, which could have resulted in your successful summoning."

"S-so I have to go through that every time to summon…?" White clasped her mouth, realizing how much pressure Minato must have been under when he first obtained his Persona.

"Not quite, however for beginners it's the best way to help you manifest your inner self." He pressed the device against his head, pulling the trigger, a whirlwind of blue energy swirled, forming into a majestic bird. Once a Persona user was able to adjust to summoning, they can eventually practice manifesting without the device. Like a machine created to lighten the load, it only assisted in the practice. It was how Minato was able to use his power even before he got his evoker back.

"Now you try."

She took the device, cradling it, tracing every grove, and every dent that shaped it. Inspecting the evoker, she noticed the mini chips and scratches on its surface, engraving all the battles Minato through. Just how many wars had he fought with this item by his side, she did not know. However, she did know what she had to do now if she wanted to see him alive. Inhaling a deep breath, she steeled herself, pressing the faux gun to her head. Heart pounding in her chest at the sensation of the cold steel eating away at her flesh, staring down the barrel of a firearm. Closing her eyes, her mouth once again moved on its own.

"Per…son..a!"

Click

Glass shattered, soft winds blew, until they morphed into a burst of azure flames, enshrouding her entire body. Minato's eyes widened as what emerged before him was a girl shrouded in a bright, white dress, along with…

"Izanagi?"

Taken aback, it was the same Izanagi yet different. Like the one that belonged to Narukami, it stood proudly with its summoner. This Izanagi's palette resembled more of Messiah's monochrome than it did of the original's.

"Have you seen this persona before, Aristao?" Blake questioned.

"Um, Mina? Did I do something wrong?" White followed, her new summon forming into a monochrome mask.

"I…no, it's better to explain if I show you this." He released Honedge, transforming it into that same nameless katana from before, then handed it to White. "Try to swing this around and tell me how you feel."

"Ummm, ok?" Taking the blade for a swing, it was an almost exact replica to the one she had used to stab Ryoji. Her body feeling lighter than usual, she adopted a pose where she delivered an expert level slice to a training dummy, in a downwards arc, bisecting the object in two.

"H-holy shit! What was that?"

Blake inspected the cut, "Completely clean off, that force was at least equal to a champion level Garchomp."

"How did I do that?" She had no formal sword training, yet the moment she picked up that katana, attacking with it felt as natural as drawing breath.

Drawing the real Lucifer's blade out of his portal, Minato signaled for White to swing at him. "I want to test something out, will you help me out, White?"

"What? No! You just recovered!"

"I healed myself back to a healthy state." After he awoke from his hospital bed, Minato simply cast Salvation on himself multiple times before he was back to normal. As long as he had enough time to heal himself, he was damn near impossible to kill.

"As hard as it is to believe, Ms. White, Arisato has been cleared by our medical staff. He is more than ready to spare if he wishes." The chief added.

Hesitant, her hands tightened over her blade, the same voice from before bubbling from her soul, telling her everything will be fine. Assured, she let her body take over, bringing down the katana on the veteran when he swiftly blocked, before raising his right foot to kick when her body reacted by side stepping the attack. Using this opening, Minto pressed his blade against White's, forcing it backwards along with her body, where she barely held her balance, doing a spin in place, she swung it back at him in a fast side slice. Minato ducked, barely avoiding the katana, when he was grabbed by White as she tossed the blade away, embracing him into a hug…before throwing him backwards, slamming his head into the ground in a fast suplex.

"Ouch."

"That looked like it hurt. Did you learn anything from it?" The head of Interpol held in a laugh.

"I'm so sorry, Mina! I got a little too into it!" White apologized, helping the bluenette, as he dusted his clothes.

"It's alright. I was looking for that suplex anyways."

"What do you mean? You…don't enjoy that type of stuff do you…?" She took a few steps away from him for good measure.

"No, but the guy that used to do this to everyone else, sure did."

A mental image of Yu Narukami having a strength contest with Aigis when the blonde robot decided to teach him a lesson in pain, a lesson he would retain and start using on the rest of SEES and the Investigation Team. By the end, he reigned supreme as the Wild Card that preferred brute strength compared to Minato's more caster focused abilities. Akihiko was happy to have finally met his match, but Shinji had to drag him away from any more stupid contests. It made Minato wonder, if he were to face Yu now at full strength, just who would come out on top in a pure fist fight. No doubt he would have grown even taller as an adult by now.

"Was there someone else who had this persona first…?" Summoning Izanagi, White pulled at her mask, letting it materialize into the spirit. The more her gaze focused, the more she felt it staring back at her.

"A persona is quite literally a reflection of one's soul, the other self. This one was called Izanagi and was wielded by someone who had similar abilities to me. The movements you just displayed also belonged to this individual. Minato reached into his soul space, pulling out the shattered katana, "and this was his original weapon."

"But it's broken." A wave of sadness flooded White's soul, an emotion that was not her own.

"Looks like the weapon shattered from an extreme force, likely enough to take out the wielder." The police chief assessed, once again, his intuition was spot on, seeing the tiny drops of dread blood on the sword.

"I only found this after I was reborn here, so I have no idea what happened to him or why it was hidden in my storage. There's also the fact that humans in this world can normally never develop a persona." Minato explained the power of Nyx, and her presence was what forced humanity to develop the collective unconscious, along with the Shadows. It was through the Night Goddess that they were able to summon at all.

"So the only other way for this to happen is if she came into contact with an individual from your world?" Blake concluded, piecing the mystery together.

"Not quite. I've never heard of users being able to trade personas before unless it's through special circumstances." Only recently, did his memories of that shadow labyrinth flood into his mind, where Minato started to remember his time in that place. Along with this, it also answered some of his questions regarding Shadow Black who likely formed from the real Black somehow. What SEES uncovered from the Investigation Team was how shadows are able to take the form of humans, however, he still felt this Shadow was different, as he never confronted its target. It was far too aggressive even if Black rejected his true self. In addition, the labyrinth was the only place all persona users were able to trade summons, due to the power of the Wild Card, yet as his attendant explained, that was a very special space.

Looking to the broken blade, his eyes widened, picking up a loose chip from the metal. "White, do you remember picking a piece of stray metal off the group back in Castelia?"

"Now that you brought it up, yea. I dropped it cause it felt like I was hit by a sharp electric shock…wait, you don't mean that was how I ended like this, do you?" She also recalled surviving a huge thunderstorm where she woke up unhurt and fine from being struck by lightning.

"I couldn't feel anything when I pulled this sword from my inventory, but it looks like it chose you in a way…" Was the best way he could put it, as it only reacted to her.

"No way…I mean…I." She was dumbstruck. "But why would he or them or…" On the inside, she asked for the voice that guided her for answers, yet it remained silent.

"Since you only inherited his powers, I can't tell what his motivations were." Minato comforted, but in reality, he likely knew Yu was either dead, or in a dire situation to pull off something as impossible as this. Because when he became the Seal, he had transferred his Wild Card after his death to Aigis, so it was possible in very extreme circumstances, usually resulting in the original owner's death. His rebirth in this new world with his original powers also meant the transfer was likely reversed.

"Either way, what do you plan to do with this power? Pokemon battles with Team Plasma will already be dangerous as is." The police chief said, "We won't force you to fight if you don't want to."

"I'm fighting!"

Minato shook his head, "White, you saw how brutal things could be back at the Castle. Your awakening surprised the enemy, and that's why you were to get away. If circumstances had been different-"

She stomped her foot on the ground, shutting him up, "Minato, remember what I said before about getting my brother back? I'm not stopping until I do, and if this guy you knew entrusted his powers to me, then I don't want to back down either."

The veteran opened his mouth to voice another argument when the police chief cut in. "Arisato, I know you are protective, but there are times when no amount of arguing will convince the other side." Spoken like a true parent, Blake was just as stubborn as the girl before him. No amount of rules, or people could stop him if he wanted to accomplish a mission.

White crossed her arms, "He's right. Plus, you've lied way too much for me to take you seriously, Minato. If I wasn't there, I don't think you would have come out alive either. I'm not weak, and I'm not going to sit here and watch you get yourself killed again!" She slapped him with a hard truth, as 'Ryoji' would have likely pulled another dirty trick.

Clenching his head, exhaling a deep sigh, he was becoming more like Mitsuru by the day. Minato finally gave in, "Fine, but you'll have to attend daily training sessions if I'm sending you out there…" Sometimes he wondered why he was never this worried about Ken, Yukari, nor Koromaru, yet his hair was going white from handling this one girl. Perhaps he really was older and wiser now to recognize the dangers of battle. He was sure his younger self would have gladly rolled along with a new team member in his party. Then again, the folks he knew were plenty odd to begin with, as they were all twisted in the head in some way, each bearing a horrible trauma they used as a shield against the harsh world.

"Ah, to reach that age. You start to worry about the youth around you, tell me, are you really sixteen, boy? You have more in common with me than them." The old man of Interpol tapped his shoulder.

"No…"

He's a traumatized war veteran trying to make sure everyone comes out alive.


White raised her fist, beating back a volley of punches from Gigi who fired back just as hard. It had evolved into an Emboar from the amount of training it's had, against its trainer.

"Emboar! Boar!" Coating itself into a body of flames, melting the concrete around it, with its heat, it leaped at White who summoned a surge of lightning in her palm, clenching it into a fist, before blowing the pokemon back in one attack. Digging its heels into the ground, skidding back, Emboar punched the ground, sending a wave of earth rippling her way, breaking the ground apart, when White jumped into the air, diving down into a kick that sunk it onto the ground.

"I win this round, Gigi!"

"Emboar! Emboar!" Her pokemon high fived its trainer, Stacy and Claudia clapped from the audience. It had been a week since they arrived at Black City, staying at Interpol's second HQ. The incident at Clay's Gym was covered and Bianca and Cheren were partly informed of the situation. Before things could get any worse, Minato had spoken to them about him and Black's work for Interpol and how he and White would be absent for a while. Other than telling them a few vague details about Team Plasma, they were kept in the dark for their own safety. He promised they would meet again eventually, and apologize for the sudden departure. At first, Bianca was distraught from the situation, however Cheren consoled her, as there was a certain glint of understanding in his eyes. That all the odd events from the past journey only made sense if Minato was pulling something strange in the background and so they were forced to part for now.

"Here's your ID and company card." Blake handed her an agent identification, as he did with Minato before. "From this day forward, you are officially a part of Interpol and a high ranking officer."

"Nice. Do I get any benefits from not starting out at the bottom?" White smirked, playful.

"You only ranked up because of those strange powers. If I see you overspending, we will garnish your salary for the extra funds."

"Holy crap! I'm getting this much?!" She checked her bank account on her new phone, the money already directly deposited into her account. Not even the Elite Four was paid this well.

"Agent Black was sending a large portion of his funds back home. The riskier your job, the higher your pay." Blake finished, noting how White was going to quite literally be on the frontlines if push came to shove.

"No wonder things got better after he went away…" Her eyes drooped, wishing she could have appreciated the money he sent him more. He lied saying it was from all those random internships he did, but deep down, she knew he was up to something dangerous. Mom was working two jobs, barely making ends meet and dad's life insurance was about to run out when her brother had mysteriously departed on a study abroad program. Back then, she was hesitant to see him go, but weeks after he left, expensive gifts started appearing at their door. She even had the chance to take a small vacation with her mother to Castelia. And it was all because Black had volunteered himself for a junior Interpol program in a far away academy.

"After you've finished training, meet us in the office. We have a meeting regarding the letter sent by Team Plasma."

Minato checked news, a little, unknown report regarding a new archaeological find. A small droplet of water in the sea of other big occurrences. Celebrity scandals from Kanto, a new champion being crowned in another region, all plastered as front and center news, taking up a majority of the channel's run time, burying the one important find in a flurry of other trash headlines.

"This week, archaeologist and Gym Leader of Nacrene city, Lenora, has discovered a pristine stone artifact from several ancient ruins." A smooth dark stone appeared on air, only for a brief second along with the Gym leader before disappearing, signaling the beginning of an oncoming war.

The police chief examined a piece of paper, head written, sealed with the emblem of Team Plasma. "Looks like we won't need to see where agent Black is after all."

"I recognized the letter was penned by his hand…" Minato said.

"Could be another trick or they had someone else mimic his writing style." Blake concluded.

"Or perhaps this is a way of them showing us he's alive."

"Dear friends at Interpol, we at Team Plasma invite you to a negotiation for the Dark stone at the Nacrene Museum in a week ."


Meanwhile, in another world, in another time.

Yu Narukami emerged from a police station, the thoughts of the investigation clung to his mind. Another mental shutdown and he was able to collect the data from a collaborator in the police. From all angles, the case appeared suspicious, with the victim suddenly collapsing in public, her eyes popping, rolling back to the back of her skull. She was an advocate for worker's rights currently suing a large financial firm for numerous worker violations.

"Nothing about this feels right…" Yu didn't like where this was heading, with victims piling up by the dozen. Some deaths were random, people who had little power in politics, while others made headlines across the globe, their deaths impacting the balance of power. Almost every single famous family had been hit…except for the Kirijos. Mitsuru was careful once she realized the sinister pattern this disease had established, and so she took on as many precautions as she could for the people under her, so far avoiding the worst case scenario.

"Hm?" Blinking, a flutter of a creature's wing broke him out of his train of thought. A tiny, delicate butterfly had landed on his shoulder. Flapping its wings gently, it then floated in front of him as if asking the man to follow its lead.

Like being pulled by an invisible string, Yu's curiosity made him take the leap, letting himself be led by this odd creature. The big city never had these types of instincts, in fact, they only grew rarer by the year, but here it was, flying freely in the air. Something about it nagged him to go with it. Going down several winding streets, the man watched it fly past numerous people and buildings alike, until it stopped at an old, decaying shake of a house. From the alleyway, Yu was stunned to see a few teenagers gather, before vanishing entirely without a trace.


Author's Notes:

White's Awakening art is on the Ao3 version of the fic along with an end note bonus Ryoji. I'm a bit sick at the moment so my notes will be shorter this time around.

She finally awakens to a persona, but since the humans in pokemon didn't live under the pressure of Nyx, they can't develop personas naturally. In Reload, after Minato's death, Aigis inherits his Wild Card so he must have given it to her, although I won't say for certain what Yu's fate is. White inheriting Izanagi from Narukami is symbolic of her representing her world's version of "Truth".

Ryoji has been shown signs of being sketchy before and now he's going all out. Minato is shocked as he's never shown signs of being rotten before so now he's worried another friend has been replaced.

Ghetsis forcing Black to pen that letter is the start of a real shitshow.