Part 9: Entry Eight: May 9th, 2009

Entry Eight: May 9th, 2009

Mood: Drained
Music: Deep Breath Deep Breath (For those of you who don't watch today's video, this is the song from the dungeon we go through today.)

Well, I'm still alive, so that's a good sign. I'd say you wouldn't believe what just happened, but I think the rest of my journal's already gotten pretty unbelievable, so I figure this won't tip the scales and end up getting me sent to the loony bin.



The morning of the ninth, I was heading into school (we have short school days on Saturday here in Japan, you American readers might not know about that!) when I ran into Akihiko.

Akihiko: How's it going? Have you been training in Tartarus? It never hurts to train while you have the chance. My wounds will heal in no time, and then I'll be able to join you on the front line. But don't just rely on me.

Yeah yeah, we already know how eager you are to punch Shadows in the face, Senpai. Just give it time.



Anyway, after class, I had a really bad feeling, so I decided to go straight home instead of doing anything else.



That night, at the Dark Hour...



Mitsuru: Yeah. You never know when the enemy might appear.
Akihiko: But I thought you couldn't scan outside of Tartarus?
Mitsuru: To be honest, I lack the power...



Mitsuru: Although, the power of Persona seems to be broader than I thought. We've even got someone who can switch Personas in the middle of battle. There's something special about his ability...it hasn't been long since his awakening, either.
Akihiko: I have to admit, I was surprised too. But in the end, it's up to him whether or not he can reach his full potential.

Suddenly, a burst of static crackled from Mitsuru's radio.



Akihiko: What? You actually found one?!
Mitsuru: Wait, something's not right. The reading's too big...we've never encountered anything like--

Then it hit them.



Mitsuru: It must be.
Akihiko: Well then, this is gonna be fun. I'll wake up the others.



Junpei, Yukari, and I rushed to the command room as soon as we could.

Junpei: Where is it? I'll rip it a new one!



Mitsuru: We don't know for sure, but we think it's another big one. We have to defeat any of them we find as quickly as possible. Most people don't know that the Dark Hour exists, but if half the city is destroyed, there will be panic. That must be avoided at all costs.




Yeah, that's definitely a guy I want watching my back when a huge demon from another dimension is threatening to eat my brains.

Mitsuru: Akihiko, you stay here and wait for the Chairman.
Akihiko: What?! Are you kidding? I'm going!
Mitsuru: You still need to recover. You'll just be a hindrance.
Akihiko: Tch...
Mitsuru: They'll fare better than you, in your current state. Have faith in them, Akihiko...they're ready. You'll get your chance, but for now, wait for the Chairman.
Akihiko: ...Dammit.





What, me again?!

Junpei: Him again...?
Mitsuru: We're counting on you.




Man, he doesn't have to be a dick about it.

Akihiko: You should let the three of them go first. If you're providing backup out there, you'll need time to get ready, right?
Mitsuru: Wait for me in front of the station. I'll be there as soon as I can.



We got to the station and waited awhile, but Mitsuru was nowhere to be seen.




I hadn't yet mentioned to them that I have my own theories about what happened during the Dark Hour on the night of a full moon.



Mitsuru showed up on her bike shortly thereafter, thankfully.

Mitsuru: Listen carefully. Tonight, I'll be providing support from here. Everything else is the same.



Mitsuru: To get there, you'll have to walk on the tracks.
Junpei: Are you serious?! Isn't that dangerous...?
Mitsuru: Don't worry, no electronic equipment is operable during the Dark Hour, including the monorails.
Junpei: But your bike...
Mitsuru: It's special. Now, if circumstances change, I'll notify you immediately. Let's get started.



With that, we went up onto the tracks and started heading down toward the train.

Mitsuru: You have to stop the Shadows before they harm the passengers. Hurry!




Tartarus loomed in the distance as we rushed down the tracks toward the train.



Mitsuru: Can you all hear me?
Yukari: Yes, I can hear you clearly. We just got here, but I don't see anything out of the ordinary.
Mitsuru: The readings are definitely coming from that monorail. Proceed with caution and stay together.





Geez, I might hang out with old people and little girls and spend nearly every day trying to get into the pants of a desperate geeky chick, but I'm not a pervert.



Junpei: He's been Transmogged, huh...creepy. So...guys like him don't remember a thing, right? It's probably better that way.
Yukari: Huh? Wait a minute...we're not at a station, but the doors are wide...



Suddenly, the doors slammed shut on us.



Yukari: It looks like we're trapped inside...
Mitsuru: It must be the Shadow...it knows you're there. Be ready for anything! Proceed with extreme caution!
Yukari: R-roger!

Okay, I made an animation of the rest of this, but I also made pictures. You can watch whichever you'd prefer:

Dungeon - Monorail



We continued down the train, passing by a Transmogrified passenger every so often.



Junpei: I don't see any Shadows...




We finally ran into some Shadows! Or, well, a Shadow.




Before we could do anything about it, though, it took off toward the front of the train.

Mitsuru: Something's not right...the enemy is acting strangely.
Junpei: But if we don't go after it, we're gonna lose it!
Mitsuru: Minato, you're in charge over there. What do you think?

I agreed with Junpei - we should probably go after it, since we'd have to at some point anyway.

Mitsuru: But why did it retreat after revealing itself? It doesn't make any sense.
Junpei: Who needs your advice?! We can beat that thing no problem!



Oh, for the love of...



Junpei took off on his own. The man's clearly a MENSA member.




And, of course, this distraction is just what the Shadows needed to get the jump on us.



Yukari and I took them out with few issues - I even missed once, so it was just like Junpei was there!



Mitsuru: We have no choice. You have to go after him, or you'll be picked off one by one.
Yukari: Dammit, Stupei! What are you thinking?!
Mitsuru: From what I can tell, he's only a few cars ahead.
Yukari: Okay, we'll catch up to--




Ugh, fucking Shadows never know when to quit.



This was a new Shadow, the Heat Balance. I couldn't figure out how it was even supposed to be alive..what I DID figure out pretty quick was to avoid using Fire or Ice attacks on it, since they hardly worked.



We took out the Shadows and kept on going down toward the front of the train.

Yukari: He should know it's too dangerous to go alone...don't you think he's acting weird? Did you say something to upset him, Minato-kun? Well, we can ask once we've caught up to him.



Further still down the train, we ran into Junpei...



...surrounded by Shadows, unsurprisingly.





Despite his stupid bravado, we ran in and helped out anyway. I'd rather be alive than proud, personally.



They were just standard Shadows, so they didn't pose much of a threat.

Yukari: See! That's what happens when you don't listen! So are you alright?
Junpei: O-of course I am...I was doin' just fine...
Yukari: Excuse me?!



Mitsuru: I don't detect any movement, but stay alert!



She didn't detect any movement, but we sure did, especially when the train started taking off with us on board.



Mitsuru: It seems the monorail is under the enemy's control.
Yukari: Whaddaya mean, "it seems"?!
Junpei: Uh...this doesn't look good...



Oh fuck. I figured if I didn't do something, more than my life would be a goddamn mess.

Yukari: What?! Oh god, what are we gonna do?!
Mitsuru: Calm down and listen. I sense a strong presence in the front car. That must be the one we're after. You'll have to defeat it to stop the train!



And right about then, still more Shadows showed up.



There was another new one, shaped like a table for some reason.



I wanted to get an analysis of it, but we were kind of in a hurry so I just torched it instead.



We only had eight minutes to get to the last car, and we'd already wasted thirty seconds fighting those Shadows, so we had to haul ass.



Yukari: We're gaining speed?!

We ran through the cars, fighting Shadows off as quickly as we could along the way...



...until we entered the last car. I made an animation of what we saw inside...I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have nightmares about it:

Boss - Priestess

(Priestess has high defenses, several immunities, and an irritating tendency to summon minions. When she has minions out, your party members will attack them instead of her unless you tell them otherwise; just killing them outright is a good idea in theory, but she'll just make more. As she nears death, the minions will start trying to heal her, so that's when you need to finish her off quickly.)



Junpei: Hey, we're still moving?!
Yukari: We're going too fast! We have to put on the brakes or else...!
Mitsuru: What are you waiting for?! There's a train ahead!
Junpei: Dammit, I don't know how to stop this thing!



With the last few seconds we had, I dashed to the controls and pulled the first level that came to mind...



...and it turns out I got very, very lucky.

Yukari: I think so...
Mitsuru: Is everybody alright?!
Yukari: Um, y-yeah, we're okay...ha...my knees are still shaking...
Junpei: Dude...I'm like drenched in sweat...



Mitsuru: I'm sorry I couldn't do more on my end. I don't detect any more Shadows. You guys did a great job, so come on home.
Yukari: But how did you know which one was the brake?

I didn't. I just did what felt right.

Yukari: You saved me again...thanks.




And when someone's grateful for something I did...





...it's usually a good thing for everyone involved.





(Every time you win a storyline battle, you get a new tactic for your party members. Some of them are useful, some, like this one, aren't so much.)



Mitsuru: This is Mitsuru. We've successfully completed the operation. The monorail didn't sustain any noticable damage.



Ikutsuki: When I heard they'd hijacked a monorail, I feared the worst. Well done. Now I don't have to worry about tomorrow's headlines.
Mitsuru: The team did a great job. They're learning quickly.
Akihiko: But what are the Shadows up to? Taking over a monorail...this is getting out of hand.
Ikutsuki: I'll be looking into the matter.



Ikutsuki: Hmm...let's not jump to any conclusions. For now, we should study their behavior for patterns or clues. We cannot always afford for them to make the first move.
Mitsuru: If I had more power, things wouldn't be so difficult for the others.
Ikutsuki: Don't be so hard on yourself, you're doing fine. More importantly...



Akihiko: Huh...? Why do you look so tired, Ikutsuki-san? Wait...don't tell me that bicycle outside is yours!



We got home not long after that, and I'm writing this up before heading to bed. I'm totally exhausted, believe me, so I'm thankful I have tomorrow off. I'll write more about the events of the next week in awhile, along with the Links you guys voted for, but for now I'm taking a well-deserved rest.

Coming up in the next entry: Back to the daily grind!