The sky over Tokyo had darkened earlier than expected, streaked with violet clouds that pulsed like veins.
Something was bleeding through again.
And this time, it wasn't subtle.
A Call from the Underground
Futaba's message hit everyone's phones at once.
đ "Shibuya Station. West entrance. Distortion spike. We've got a 'bleed.' Confirmed."
Ren was already in motion. Tae, Makoto, and Ann joined him at street level. The crowd at the station had frozen, hushed into an eerie calm. A shimmer, almost like heatwaves over concrete, hung in the air just past the ticket gates.
A woman stood in the center of it all. Still. Smiling.
Not human. Not quite.
Yusuke said it first, stepping closer:
"She has no shadowâŠ"
The Mirrorbound
"We were waiting," the woman said, without moving her lips. Her voice came from the air around themâsoft, layered, as if several people spoke through her at once.
A symbol glowed on her collarboneâa fractal mirror with seven shards.
"You know us already. The Mirrorbound.But we are not your enemy, Phantom Thieves.Not unless you make us one."
She gestured behind herâa young girl, unconscious, shaking, mid-awakening. "We saved her from your bleeding realm. She was cracking. And now⊠she is becoming whole."
Makoto stepped forward, fists clenched. "You're manipulating them. Weak minds, broken heartsâthey're vulnerable, and you're turning them into something they don't understand."
"We don't manipulate," the woman said gently."We reflect."
Then she stepped back into the shimmerâand vanished.
Leaving behind the girl and⊠a portal. Jagged, raw, pulsing with energy.
The New Bleed
"We're going in," Ren said.
The Phantom Thieves entered the rift, weapons drawn.
What greeted them was unlike any Palace or Mementos zone beforeâit was a fractured corridor of overlapping realities, Tokyo twisted in mirrors. Familiar streets looping in impossible geometry. Time dilating.
Ann gasped: "These are our memories."
And it was true.
They passed versions of their old selves, distorted:
Yusuke painting alone, forever.
Ryuji standing before a father who never left.
Haru looking in a mirror, wedding ring on her fingerâsomeone else's dream.
In the distance⊠a temple-like structure, built from broken glass and divine marble.
"Veluria," Tae whispered, shivering. "This place reeks of her."
Divine Entanglements
The team pushed deeper, drawn to the temple.
Inside, a divine mirror hovered above a pool of silver light.
It pulsed when Ren approached.
"Veluria calls this a Fragment of Truth," Makoto said, breathless."But this isn't truth. It's⊠temptation."
The mirror showed them their deepest wantsânot material, but spiritual.
Power without pain. Love without risk. Belonging without cost.
And thenâa boss emerged.
A being of masks and flowing silver, its voice a choir of doubts:
"You reject the gift. You cling to your wounds. So be it."
The Fight â Shardweaver, Herald of Reflection
Mechanics:
Each turn, the boss summons a version of a team member, echoing their doubts.
The environment shifts every few minutesâmemories become weapons.
The boss adapts to Personas' weaknesses, forcing the team to use synergy rather than brute force.
Tae and Futaba combined skills to nullify mental status effects.
Makoto and Ryuji synchronized charge techniques.
Ren triggered a fusion comboâArsĂšne + Veluria's shardâsummoning a new form:Nocturne Requiem, a Persona that weaved divine energy and Phantom flame.
Together, they shattered the mirror.
Aftermath: A World Still Cracking
The Fragment dissolved. The temple faded.
But the damage was done.
Back in Tokyo, reports of strange behavior surged.
People speaking in others' voices.
Shared dreams growing in number.
Velvet Room portals appearing in corporate buildings, shrines, and schools.
And one message lingered in everyone's dreams that night:
"You are not alone.Your reflection waits."