Part 40: Entry Thirty-Five: November 4th, 2009

Entry Thirty-Five: November 4th, 2009

(Auto-transcribed voice post)

Hey guys, I'm posting from my cell phone to let you all know that we've finally finished off the last Shadow! It's all over! No more Shadows, no more Dark Hour, no more fighting, no more dying, no more nothing. And thank God for that.



As for what actually happened...



During the Dark Hour yesterday, Fuuka found the Shadow without a hitch.



Fuuka: And as expected, there are two Persona-users nearby...Strega.
Mitsuru: They know this is their last chance. Even though we were expecting this, we should be careful.
Ken: Those bastards...
Akihiko: Hmph. Saves us the trouble of looking for them.
Mitsuru: You've all done a fine job up to this point. This will be our last operation; let's come back safely.



I grabbed Akihiko, Junpei, and Yukari, and we were off.




We couldn't just get to the Shadow, though...



...because Takaya and Jin weren't about to have that.



Takaya: You claim to hunt the Shadows to prevent the disaster they bring, yet countless lives are lost every day without their intervention. The power we wield is not itself evil...you cannot deny that. So why don't you just admit it? You do not wish to eliminate the Dark Hour...




Takaya: Erasing the Dark Hour is the same as erasing yourselves. Tch...is even that beyond your comprehension? As I believed, our goals are irreconcilable.



Takaya: Fate shall decide who shall prevail.



Boss - Takaya and Jin (These guys aren't really all that impressive given all the buildup before fighting them. I also find it hilarious that having a grenade explode right under you hurts less than pretty much everything else these guys can do.)



(Takaya's Persona is Hypnos of the Fortune Arcana, though I don't recall this ever being explicitly stated ingame. This is symbolic, of course, and will make sense later on.)



(Jin's Persona is Moros of the Hermit Arcana, which is also never explicitly stated.)



We fought fiercely and eventually defeated Strega.



Mitsuru: Different?
Jin: For us, it's not that simple...it has to be forced out. Didn't you pal tell you?
Akihiko: So it was you who was giving Shinji those pills.



Jin: It won't matter for normal people, since they don't remember anything anyway. But for us...



Takaya: Now, then...ordinary we'd withdraw, but not tonight. This body, as ephemeral as it is...it is worthless without my power. Therefore, only one choice remains..I shall prove my existence here and now!



Takaya prepared to shoot himself, but Jin stopped him.



Takaya: Jin?!
Jin: ...Sorry, but those are your words, not mine.



Jin: Go do what you came for.



The two of them moved to the edge of the bridge...



...and before we could stop them...



...they leapt to their deaths.



Yukari: They jumped...
Junpei: What the hell were they thinking?!
Akihiko: They chose their own fate. Don't let it phase you.



There was nothing we could do for Strega, so instead...



...we gathered our strength and prepared to battle the final Shadow.

Boss - Hanged Man (This is another of those bosses that's painful because it takes so damn long to kill, not because it's actually dangerous. Hanged Man spends the majority of the battle out of attack range, so you spend that time killing his Statues to bring him down. The only dangerous attack it has is Akasha Arts, but support skills can render that pretty tame.)



Once it was dead, we breathed a collective sigh of relief.



Mitsuru: Yes...it's finally over...
Aigis: I believe a celebration is in order.



Mitsuru: You don't waste any time, do you? Well, I suppose I can arrange for it.
Junpei: Ooh! In that case, how about sushi?!
Akihiko: Sushi, huh? It's been awhile...well, I've got dibs on the halibut and sea urchin!
Yukari: Okay, then I call the fatty tuna.
Fuuka: Um, we're divvying it up already? In that case, save me the salmon roe.
Junpei: Hey, wait a minute! You can't do that!




Ken: You should all be ashamed of yourselves, fighting over sushi...Senpai, please order tamago for me. They say you can tell a chef's skill by how he prepares eggs.
Yukari: Um...how old are you again?



Junpei: For real?! Aw man, it's great to be alive!
Yukari: Don't get too excited, Junpei. You're getting the leftovers.
Junpei: What?! But it was my idea in the first place!



We got our last look at the eerie green moon...




...and headed home for the night.



The next morning, though...



...Pharos showed up again.



Makes sense, since there's no more Dark Hour, I suppose.



Pharos: All the fragments of my memory...they've finally come together. I now know my role clearly. The time has come. As difficult as it may be, I must tell you something...



Pharos: I want you to know that for me, our friendship was a miracle. But miracles don't last forever. If only they did...



Pharos: Even if today is the end, the bond between us can never be severed. Remember that.




And with that, he vanished for the last time.




I doubt I'll ever understand what was up with him...




...but I hope he's happy, wherever he is.




(Thanatos is, simply put, Death incarnate. He's also the "mascot" Persona for this game, like Asura in Persona 1 and Maya in Persona 2.)



At school today, Junpei was psyched for tonight's party.



I was, too, so I went straight home after class.



Junpei: Man, I'm starving...can we eat?
ken: Hey, where are Ikutsuki-san and Aigis-san?
Akihiko: He took her to the lab for a tune-up or something. He said they'll join us later.
Fuuka: The Chairman just can't stay away from the lab, can he?



We heard a car arrive in front of the dorm...



...turns out it was Mr. Kirijo.



Mitsuru: Yes.
Takeharu: Congratulations, everyone. You've done well. There are no words to express my gratitude. Though you will never recieve the recognition you deserve, it is undoubtedly a monumental achievement.



Takeharu: ...For lending us your power until the very end.
Yukari: Oh, it's...it's no big deal.
Takeharu: The twelve Shadows that were the cause of all our troubles have been destroyed, thanks to your efforts. You needn't bear this burden any longer; you deserve a chance to experience the joys of youth.



Takeharu: No longer must you put your lives on the line in battle. Tomorrow, you can triumphantly return to a normal school life.



As you can probably imagine, we weren't too thrilled about this - SEES was our life for the past six months. Simply dissolving it didn't go over too well.




Junpei: Sweet! I've been waiting for you to say that!




It's finally over. We did it. We won.





...School is going to be so boring now.



Junpei: I have an idea...how 'bout we all take a picture? Actually, I tried to take one last night, but I forgot it wouldn't work during the Dark Hour.



Yukari: I feel like such a tourist...but I have to admit, I kinda want a picture, too.
Junpei: Oh, wait, Ikutsuki-san and Aigis aren't here...I guess we'll have to take another one later. Alright, everyone get together.




Victory Portrait



After the picture, we went back to our feast...



...well, Junpei did anyway.




Oh, we haven't seen Ikutuski or Aigis yet...well, they'll show up soon. Anyway, I've gotta get back to the party, but I'll keep on blogging away, Shadows or not. Hope you guys keep on reading, even when my entries become boring school stuff again. At least you don't have to worry I'll die and stop posting entries here, yeah?

Well, see ya, everyone.

Coming up in the next entry: We finally wrap up all those loose ends.