Part 103: 3/20/12 Part 2

3/20/12

The food court was empty when I first arrived.

VIDEO- "The Letter"

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> This is where you had spent so many afternoons going over the case with everyone…
> Just sitting here brings back a lot of memories…
Huh!?
What a coincidence… It must be destiny!
Ah, so you guys came here too!
It's our very own special headquarters… There are so many memories here.
Yo there, Senpai! Thought you'd be here!
We had a feeling we'd run into everyone if we came here.
We were planning on seeing you off at the station tomorrow…
But I was feeling too restless, so I decided to come here.
Well, since we're all here, why don't we have something to eat?
Ooh, let's have steak! Steak! And make Yosuke pay for everything!
Will you shut up about your steaks…

We didn't make Yosuke pay for absolutely everything.



I really had fun in this world.
Dude, your whole existence is about fun.
…Well, what we've gone through wasn't all fun and games, but I gotta say… I've never felt so fulfilled in my life.
It seems we've been working on this forever… but at the same time, it felt like it went so fast.
We won't ever gather here again like this… or tear our hair out trying to solve the mysteries…
Even if we wanted to talk about it all, there were so many extraordinary things that no one would believe us.
Come to think of it… For me, I think it all started when Chie told me about the Midnight Channel.
I think I heard about it from her too.
How did you learn about it, Chie?
I guess… it was just a random rumor? A lot of girls were trying it out.
Huh. I wonder how it started, then.
Who knows…? Maybe someone accidentally came across it?
The Midnight Channel… You know, that really was the cause of everything.
I mean, the fog lifted after we caught Adachi, but there's still a lot of stuff that isn't clear yet.
It's foggy over there, too.
Hmm… Some weird guy might use it to do bad things again.
Didn't that Ameno-something monster say…
…it granted us power…?
"I bestowed power onto those who could brave the hollow forest."
In other words, he gave the power to enter TVs to those who awakened to their Persona ability…
So that he might use us as pawns to enact his scheme.

Chie is seriously an ace detective, she'll make a great cop.



Does that mean you're an exception…?
Well wait, then what about Adachi and Namatame!?
Those two could go inside TVs before all this stuff about Personas, right?
What? Then Senpai and the other two could do it for some other reason?
There must be something you're not remembering. Anything come to your mind, Senpai?
> You're the only exception…
> You had the power to enter TVs before your Persona awakened…
> And the same goes for Adachi and Namatame…
> ……
> You remember that Nanako gave you something this morning as you were about to leave…
A letter…? Hey, this better not be another warning.

It wasn't, but it was from the same sender.



Huh…? This is… from jail!?
It's from Adachi!
Letter from Adachi: I'm sure you're surprised to get this letter out of the blue.
I'm writing this because there's something I need to tell you.
Ever since I made it out alive, there are some things I understand now.
It's true that my game's over.
As you all insisted at the time, I'll abide by the rules of this world.
But as long as I'm in stir here, I can't clean up after myself.
So I hope this will give you something to think about, regarding this case.
There's still this feeling I can't shake…
It's about how it all started... about that Midnight Channel.
Now I remember… Someone told me about it when I first came to town… before I heard the rumors at the station.
And I was intrigued when I noticed that something similar was written on Namatame's reports as well.
But… I can't remember who it was that told me.
Since Namatame and I both gained our power after coming to Inaba… I have a feeling that has something to do with it.
I don't know if any of this will be useful or not… But I hope it can help somehow.
> The letter from Adachi ends there.
Hmm… It's not very helpful to know that he can't remember who it was.

Yosuke had been thinking on the same subject it seemed.



It's like… Argh, I don't know how to say this…
Like, something's connecting all these things… Something beyond what we can see.
That world, the Midnight Channel, the ability to enter TVs… They all feel like separate things.
You know what I mean? First the rumors, then the serial murder, followed by us deciding to investigate the case…
If they all really were separate, they wouldn't fit together like this, right?
There has to be some kind of "conductor" behind everything.
So you think the person Adachi mentioned, the one who told him about the Midnight Channel, is that conductor?
Uhhh… Did I strike gold again? I-It's seriously just something that popped into my head!
Senpai, is there anything like that you can think of?
> The power to enter TVs, where everything about this case started…
> You learned about the Midnight Channel from Chie a few days after coming to this town when she told you the rumor.
> But Adachi and Namatame heard about the Midnight Channel from someone immediately after coming to this town…
> When you think back… you feel as if something happened to you as well upon you arrival here…

Still, that was the better part of a year ago. I knew there was something but I just couldn't remember what.



We were involved in a murder case last year, which we succeeded in solving.
But the monster we fought last said we did well in "playing our parts"…
Perhaps this means Adachi and Namatame were "players" as well.
Could it be that from the beginning, this serial murder case was merely a portion of a much larger scheme…?
And none of the people who were directly involved in the case ever suspected it…
Hey, this "scheme"…
Could it be the whole thing about filling both worlds with the fog and turning mankind into Shadows?
So someone was behind the scenes watching us, the culprits, and maybe even that monster…?
And he manipulated Adachi and Namatame as the very beginning so everything would come together perfectly…!?
Let's go out into town. We might find something.
Although… you may be the only one capable of noticing it.
Please contact the rest of us, should you come across anything.
We can't say our goodbyes tomorrow with this hanging over our heads! Let's go figure this out!
> …Who could've given you the initial "spark" for this power…?
> The one you met immediately after coming to town was…

I was sure the first person I saw in town was Dojima, which gave me a starting point for reconstructing that first day.



> ……
> …In any case, you need to see them and confirm the truth.

I guessed Dojima and Nanako might be by the Samegawa, and was rewarded for my intuition.

VIDEO- "The First Day"

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I want to talk to you.
Mm… What's this all of a sudden?
> You asked Dojima about the first day you arrived in town.
The day you first came to town…?
Hmm, let's see... We were the first ones to greet you, right?
Did we stop somewhere on the way home…?
I'm pretty sure me and Nanako left home that afternoon, picked you up, and came straight home.
Haha… Now that I think back to that night, I was called back to work as soon as we got home, so I couldn't talk much.
And the very next day, those strange murders started…
Sheesh… A lot's happened since then. It's been one heck of a year, hasn't it?
Hey, big bro. On the first day… Didn't we stop at that place…?
…The gas station. I used the bathroom there.
When I got back to the car, you were talking to the weird attendant.

I'd almost forgotten that person. I hadn't seen them around town much, last time I really remembered was before the fog came.



Yeah. When I first met you, I remembered the gas station attendant because he was weird.
Hmm, not that you mention it, I do remember that… I filled the tank before we went home, huh?
…Ah, yeah. I do remember you talking to the attendant there.
I didn't remember seeing him much before, so he stuck in my mind.
But I don't know about calling him "weird"… It wasn't like he looked or acted funny.
Yeah… Come to think of it, I never saw that guy again…
Umm, it wasn't really that the attendant looked weird…
But after you talked to him, you looked sick, big bro.

I sort of remembered when she said something about it.



Umm, don't you remember? I asked you on the way home, "Are you carsick?"
You said you were okay, but…
That attendant… He was just a little scary for some reason.
Hmm… I didn't know about that.
But honestly, I'm surprised you're asking all these questions. I thought you came here just to reminisce.
So why are you looking for the person you met first?
Is something going on with that attendant? Do you know him?
It's no big deal.
…I see. Well, just remember that you leave tomorrow.
I don't know what you're up to, but you should come back home early.
There are some dark clouds on the horizon… We might get some rain soon.
I understand.
…Okay.
> The first place you stopped when you came to town was the gas station…
> Maybe something there will jog your memory…

I went to the shopping district, but the attendant wasn't there. I even asked around about them.



Spacy Girl: I've only seen an older man and an older woman working there…

Then I thought this through, and decided I had no chance without some supernatural backup. So I returned to the Velvet Room.

VIDEO- "A Fragment of Truth"

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How may I help you?
You have solved the mystery and deflected the disaster that so nearly fell upon you.
Is there something else beyond this you need our assistance with?
There's one last thing…
Intriguing… So, is there still something that leaves you unsatisfied?
Hmmm… What may that be?
Well then… Let's take a look and see what it is you might be sensing.
……!
Ah, this is a surprise…
These are shards of power, allowing one to see through to the truth of things without being swayed by hollow rumors.
Interesting… Indeed you have come here today for a reason.
Then I shall play my part as well.

Igor combined the shards into a single orb.



…An orb that repels fabrications of all sorts, dispels lies, and shines upon the truth.
> Obtained Orb of Sight.
Truth is a thing which only appears to those who have observed, considered, and made a choice.
At the end of the path you chose lies the truth… Believe in it, and continue without faltering.
*chuckle * How marvelous…
It seems that you will reveal the journey's true end, one beyond our predictive power.
Now go… To the place where everything began…

And when I left the Velvet Room, the rain started…

VIDEO- "An Invitation to the End"

This Video Is Important

And even though they'd not been there before, the attendant was at the station.



Isn't this where I first…?
Attendant: First…? What are you talking about?
…Oh, is this about the part-time job? I'm sorry, we don't have an opening yet.
Do you know Namatame?
Attendant: ……?
…Ah, that serial murder suspect? A real tragedy, wasn't it?
But the case was solved, right? Thank goodness.
……? Something else I can help you with?
Did those two come here?
Attendant: ……
…Well, that's a weird question to ask.
I don't know if it was right here, but I might have met them before.
…I've been in this town for a long time, so yeah, there's a good chance.
But it's not like I knew them personally.
……
…If you've got nothing else, you mind leaving me alone…?

I was starting to get sick of the run-around.



Attendant: *chuckle * Hey…
I asked you to leave me alone… Did you miss that?
Did you do anything do them?
Attendant: Huh…?
To those two?
……
Ah… That's right, I remember now.
I think I met them when they first came to town.
So I greeted them, saying, "Welcome to Inaba."
But that's all.
…Just that.
*chuckle * What about it?
What did you do to me?
Attendant: What did I do? *chuckle * Don't you remember?
I met you here when you first came to down, and did the same thing as what I did to those two.
I greeted you, that's all. Remember? We talked for a couple minutes.
…Hey, mind if I ask you something?
Why all these questions?
Is there something that's bothering you? About the time when we first met…?

I just asked straight out.



Attendant: ……
Hmhm…
…Ahahahaha!
Amazing…
…You've reached me at last.
*chuckle * Let's drop this charade…
To be quite honest, I was waiting for you to come…
Adachi…
Namatame…
And you…
It is I who awakened that power within you three…
The ones who had potential.
But having said that, I am rather surprised…

I had come looking for answers, but even still I didn't expect what happened.



You certainly have the powers I was expecting.
Why did you choose me?
For your special potential, of course.
Your friends were drawn to the spark I stirred in you. That's why they are here now with their awakened powers.
Still, I didn't think you'd make it all the way to me…
Indeed, I never expected this at all. You're really something.
…What, you don't remember?
When you first came to town, I gave your power a gentle push.
Just like… this.

Just then, I remembered the handshake she'd given me.



Does it surprise a city boy to see how little there is out here?
There's so little to do, I'm sure you'll get bored fast. You'll either be hanging out with your friends or doing part-time jobs.
Speaking of which, we're actually looking for part-time help right now.
Give it some thought, why don't you? We don't mind if you're a student.

I started to get dizzy as she continued.



I did the same for a few other outsiders like you.
A handful of strangers were more than sufficient to stimulate a small place like this.
But it seems the stimulus was stronger than I imagined-enough to envelop this town with fog, and later lift it…
Not only that, you now stand before me as if your assigned part wasn't enough. What for?
To learn the truth.
What will grasping the truth do for you?
Why such greed? I guess it's the foolish nature of being mortal…

The fog rolled in…



And the attendant… changed…



And revealed her true identity.



Ameno-sagiri, ruler of the fog, is merely an aspect of myself that I birthed long ago.
You awakened to a power I had not imagined.
And now you face me with it…
I can no longer ignore this situation as mere foolishness. This may be fate, as decreed by the world…
Very well. This time, I shall pit my full strength against you.
But in return… you must come prepared to follow through with your futile resistance.
*chuckle * I'll be waiting for you there.

Izanami vanished into the fog.



> Her name is Izanami.
> You can hear your friends' voices in the distance…

I was glad they'd seen something too, I was worried for a second that I'd just gone crazy.



Did she… just disappear!?
Wait, don't tell me…!
> You told your gathered friends what happened between you and the gas station attendant…
So… it wasn't over after all.
You're saying this so-called Izanami is the conductor, and she's waiting for us in the other world?
If we don't beat her, I'm sure it'll all happen again.
O-Okay. The others aren't far off, so I'll call them up!
Yeah, will ya? Tell 'em this is really gonna close the case!
Right. We'll defeat her, and put an end to this for sure this time!
Alright, then once we're all ready, let's meet up at Junes!
> You have finally discovered the true cause of everything that happened.
> You must defeat this "Izanami" who waits for you in that other world…
> If Izanami truly gave birth to Ameno-sagiri…
> Then as long as Izanami is left alone, the town will definitely fall into the fog again someday…
> And if that were to happen, everyone… all those precious to you… would become mere shadows.
> This is the most important task you have faced, and it must be taken care of before leaving town.
> You must ensure complete peace for this town, where you've lived with everyone…

And so we prepared. Prepared to fight a god, on her own turf…

Next Time on Persona 4: Paved With Good Intentions