...10/09/2009 Thursday; Dark Hour...
The ground trembled violently behind Mitsuru and Akihiko.
They turned just in time to see the Shadow erupting again from the floor, debris scattering in all directions.
Up ahead, Minato was still clinging to Hiro's kukri, embedded in the creature's black flesh.
But suddenly... the blade came loose.
He felt the weight of his own body pulling him backward. The world spun around him as he plummeted into the void.
"MINATO!" Yukari's scream tore through the air, desperate.
The fall felt inevitable. Wind roared in Minato's ears as the floors passed by in a blur.
Then—he stopped midair.
Minato's eyes widened.
When he looked up, he saw a hand gripping his.
"Junpei?!" he shouted, staring upward.
Junpei gritted his teeth, hands trembling as he held onto Minato's wrist tightly. Sweat streamed down the side of his face, but he didn't let go.
"Hang on… I got you."
His feet slid against the concrete, trying to maintain balance.
Seconds later, another hand joined Junpei's.
Shinjiro crouched down, grabbed Minato's other arm, and pulled hard.
"Hold tight, Minato."
Up above, on the fifth floor, the Shadow snarled between the levels, wedged between the building's structure.
Mitsuru and Akihiko faced the creature. What now?
Akihiko's eyes scanned the ceiling… and then he saw it.
The fire sprinkler pipe.
"I got it!" he exclaimed.
Mitsuru frowned, confused. "What?"
But before she could ask, Akihiko was already moving.
He ran, leapt at the wall, and used the force of his legs to launch himself upward. His fingers latched onto the fire pipe.
He gripped it tightly. His muscles tensed, veins bulging on his forehead.
With a grunt, he began to pull, squeezing with all his strength.
The structure started to bend.
Then the first crack appeared.
A fracture.
Then another.
Until finally, the pipe burst—and crimson water began to gush from the broken tube.
The water poured over the Shadow like a dark waterfall, soaking every inch of its malformed body.
It roared—a guttural sound filled with agony. Its limbs trembled.
Its claws dug into the concrete, but its own weight turned against it—its beastly muscles gave out, slipping in the growing puddle beneath its feet.
Akihiko hit the ground with a thud, raising his head to Mitsuru.
"NOW, MITSURU!" His voice cut through the chaos.
She was already moving.
Her steps echoed on the wet floor as she ran, the Evoker firm in her grip.
"Everyone, take cover!" Her command rang out through the telepathic channel.
The members of S.E.E.S. ducked instinctively, arms shielding their heads.
Mitsuru didn't stop.
She leapt onto an overturned table, and from there, jumped—the freezing air slicing at her skin as her body arced over the Shadow.
Her fingers tightened on the Evoker.
She felt the weight of exhaustion.
Her body screamed to stop.
But hesitation wasn't an option.
"PENTHESILEA!"
The gunshot rang out.
The flash lit her silhouette in midair.
Above her, the imposing figure of Penthesilea took form—her icy cloak billowing, blades spinning in her hands like a whirlwind of steel.
A white glow gathered around the Persona.
A cold wave spread like an invisible pulse.
The air turned razor-sharp, and in the blink of an eye—
Ice.
Cutting gusts swept through the building.
The Shadow howled as its grotesque flesh hardened. Its body was overtaken by a crystalline layer, every muscle, every joint turning stiff.
It tried to cling to the floor.
Its claws sank into the concrete, desperate to hold on.
But the cold was relentless.
Bones cracked.
Roars became muffled.
Its monstrous eyes, still wide open, froze with a final expression of fury and fear.
The paralyzed creature glistened beneath the pale Dark Hour light, a grotesque and menacing ice statue.
Its weight gave in.
And in a second that seemed to stretch into eternity—
The statue fell.
Every floor it had climbed became its undoing. Its frozen body shattered with each impact, shards of ice scattering like broken glass.
Until it hit the ground floor.
The impact made the entire building quake.
A wave of dust and ice swept through the structure, swallowing everything in a pale fog.
As the curtain of dust began to settle, the scene revealed itself:
The entire building had become a frozen cathedral.
The walls, the floor—everything tinged in crystalline blue, cold to the touch, silent as death itself.
Hiro felt the cold seep into his skin as the vapor of his breath vanished into the freezing air.
The walls, once stained by battle, now shimmered with a thin layer of frost. The floor beneath his feet reflected the pale light of the Dark Hour like frosted glass.
He lowered his head, exhaling slowly.
"Holy shit…" he muttered, his voice breaking the silence. "She froze everything."
On the fourth floor, Junpei and Shinjiro stepped closer to the edge, peering through the jagged hole at the center of the building. Aigis, Yukari, and Minato soon joined them.
At the bottom of the crater—where the ground floor had once been—a faint white mist rose from the rubble. But soon, something else emerged beyond the dust and ice.
A soft glow.
Fragments of the Shadow scattered across the floor began to emit a gentle light.
Then, from the ruins, translucent figures began to rise.
One by one, white souls emerged, light as feathers caught in the wind.
The group watched in silence as the souls floated upward, forming an ethereal spiral through the hole that pierced the upper floors.
And they were smiling.
Aigis raised her head, watching the souls ascend.
One of them drifted closer.
Without a defined shape, the entity wavered like sunlight on water. But for a moment, something clear surfaced—a face.
A smile.
Aigis blinked, surprised.
"Everyone…" her voice was low, almost hesitant. "These souls…"
Minato followed her gaze, watching the figures rise past the frozen ceiling, drifting through the night, flying toward the city.
"They're the souls of the people that light had hit…" his voice carried a tone of understanding. "The ones trapped inside that Shadow."
Yukari covered her mouth with one hand, her eyes welling with tears.
For a moment, doubt cast a shadow over her heart.
Had they failed? Were all those people condemned…?
But now, seeing the souls depart in peace, she knew the truth.
They hadn't just defeated the Shadow.
They had saved those it had imprisoned.
A shaky breath escaped her lips.
She wiped away a lone tear trailing down her cheek, smiling in relief.
"Thank God…" her voice came out soft, nearly a whisper. "They weren't killed."
The cold wind cut into her skin, but Mitsuru didn't move.
Her eyes scanned the scene before her—the ghostly glow of the ascending souls, freed from their torment. A faint smile touched her lips. They had done it.
But then, a crushing weight settled on her chest.
Relief gave way to exhaustion.
A deep emptiness spread within her, draining every last ounce of strength she had left.
Her fingers trembled.
The cold metal of the Evoker slipped from her shaking hand, sliding across the ice until it disappeared into the abyss below.
Her knees buckled.
A biting chill surged through her body, draining her energy as if the frost itself had entered her veins.
Her feet staggered backward.
She gasped for breath, but the air felt thin.
A ringing filled her ears.
Her vision blurred.
Across the way, Akihiko's eyes locked onto her at the exact moment he saw her shoulders drop and her eyes roll back.
"Ah, shit!"
He ran.
His footsteps pounded across the ice.
Desperation drove him forward, ignoring the pain tearing through his muscles.
But she was already falling.
The treacherous ice dragged her toward the edge, her body sliding with no resistance.
Akihiko leapt, arm outstretched as far as it could go.
His fingers brushed against Mitsuru's glove—
A slip.
A void.
And then, Mitsuru plummeted.
Time slowed.
The faces above her blurred.
Arms reached out, but the distance was merciless.
The world spun.
The ice reflected fragments of her fall, every crystal shard a fading memory.
Her eyes closed.
Her body surrendered to the abyss.
Until—
A scream tore through the air.
"MITSURUUUU!"
Hiro's voice echoed, reverberating through every floor, filled with pure, unfiltered panic.
The world around him vanished the instant he saw Mitsuru falling.
Time seemed to stop.
Without a second thought, he launched forward, muscles burning with the force of his push. His feet barely touched the ground before he leapt.
Wind howled in Hiro's ears, but all he could see was her.
Mitsuru was falling, the scarlet strands of her hair floating around her face.
He wouldn't let this happen.
Hiro stretched his arms with everything he had. His body extended in the air, fingers reaching out—
And then, he caught her.
His arms wrapped tightly around her chest, pulling her into him. The sensation of her warmth in his arms made his heart pound wildly.
"I got you!"
He cradled Mitsuru's head with one arm, shielding her from the incoming impact.
But the fall didn't stop.
With no other choice, Hiro twisted midair, putting his own body between her and the ground.
The impact hit like thunder.
Pain exploded through him the moment they hit. His bones shook. The air was knocked from his lungs.
They bounced once. The pain intensified. Then rolled, until they finally stopped.
Hiro lay sprawled on the ground. The world spun around him. His arms gave out, finally loosening and letting Mitsuru fall gently on top of him.
She didn't move.
Hiro's chest rose and fell erratically, every breath a struggle. A metallic taste flooded his mouth before blood dripped onto the ice.
He blinked, his vision blurred by pain.
"Shit… thanks god I caught you in time…"
His voice was hoarse, barely audible.
Her weight on his chest was the only thing keeping his consciousness intact.
Footsteps echoed through the ruined space.
Slow...
Hiro squeezed his eyes shut, trying to focus, but his body felt as heavy as lead.
Each breath burned in his chest, and the warmth of Mitsuru—still unconscious against him—was the only thing anchoring him to reality.
Then, he saw it.
A silhouette stood out under the pale light of the Dark Hour. Shirtless, pale skin marked with scars, dark jeans held up by a worn leather belt—and attached to it, a revolver.
Takaya Sakaki.
His smile was cold, twisted into something between contempt and satisfaction.
Behind him, a second figure emerged, adjusting orange-tinted glasses. Jin Shirato, in his usual green coat, held a silver case tightly in one hand.
Takaya scanned the scene, his gaze stopping at the spot where the Shadow had fallen. A red glow pulsed at the center of the debris.
He didn't need to look closer to know what it was.
"Jin, get what we came for. I'll check on our guests."
Jin nodded and moved forward.
Meanwhile, Takaya approached.
Hiro's stomach twisted. He wanted to move. Needed to move. But his body refused.
The pain from the fall still paralyzed every muscle, and the weight of Mitsuru on top of him made any desperate attempt to react impossible.
But he wasn't going to let this happen without a fight.
With sheer effort, Hiro moved one arm, wrapping it tightly around Mitsuru to protect her.
With the other, he fumbled blindly until he felt the cold metal of the Evoker in his fingers.
But before he could raise it—
A precise kick struck his hand.
The Evoker flew from his grip, skidding across the ground.
Hiro groaned in pain, but what came next was worse.
Takaya stepped on his hand, crushing it into the ground.
The heat of skin against flesh, the despicable weight over his bones—
It was humiliation.
The leader of Strega leaned down slightly, gazing at Hiro with a look that was almost... amused.
"Well, well... who would've thought you'd actually defeat the Abyss Shadow...? Color me surprised."
Hatred burned in Hiro's eyes, but his voice came out weak, dragged by exhaustion:
"You... what the hell are you doing here... you bastard?"
Takaya laughed. Low. Cold.
"Me?" He raised an eyebrow, mocking. "I was simply curious to see what would be left after this little clash. Don't worry..."
He finally lifted his foot off Hiro's hand and stepped back, fingers brushing the grip of the revolver at his belt.
But before Takaya could do anything more, Jin returned, holding an Evoker.
But it wasn't a normal Evoker.
Something was wrong with it.
It had crimson edges. The design more violent, as if it were meant to kill someone.
"Found it. We can go," Jin said, handing the Evoker to Takaya.
Takaya took it and smiled.
"Perfect. Now we have the means to shift the tide."
The Strega leader looked at Hiro one last time.
Then, he drew his revolver.
His finger on the trigger.
And he aimed it at Hiro's head.
But before the shot could ring out—footsteps.
Fast. Heavy.
The rest of S.E.E.S. was coming.
Takaya lowered the gun, turned on his heels to leave, and cast one final glance over his shoulder.
"You got lucky, S.E.E.S. boy. But next time, we'll finish this."
And with that, he and Jin began to walk away.
Hiro's consciousness wavered. His vision blurred into fog.
His eyes began to close.
But before fading completely, he heard one last thing.
A voice dripping with contempt and absolute certainty:
"Until the end finds us again, Hiro Mikoshi."