2025-07-02: Hidden Motives
- Log: Hidden Motives
- Cast: Umie Akabane, Shinjiro Aragaki, Shinobu Shimizu, Masao Inaba
- Where: Kasugayama High, Hirasaka Ward, Sumaru City
- OOC Date: July 02, 2025
- IC Date: June 03, 2012
- Summary: A motley group of Persona users brave the halls of Kasugayama High at night. Not all is as it seems, but when has that ever *not* been the case with anything involving Kasugayama High as a backdrop?
MONAD: A party led by Umie Akabane has begun the event Clean Out Kasugayama High!.
(|==================== Monad - Clean Out Kasugayama High! ====================|)
-==== Round 1: Ora Ora Ora - Challenge Level 1 ================================-
| Approach Options: Guts or Charm |
| Conditions: Bothersome - Charm Down L1 and Scary - Guts Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
The first things your party may notice upon coming up to the front doors of
Kasugaya High are the oni expertly squatting in front, donning magnificent
pomadours and ill-fitting Kasugayama uniforms. One would hope these uniforms
were pilfered from some gym locker or another, and that those stains are just
sauce.
"Lookit what we got ourselves 'ere!" shouts one, his stately pomadour bobbing
with his words.
"'Ey, I was thinkin' I was hungry. Maybe they got some lunch money?" yells
another, rolling their shoulders and making a button fly off their uniform.
"... Or maybe, they could suffice themselves," says a skinnier one, tapping a
spiked bat to her shoulder.
These oni do look rather scary... what will you do?
(|============================================================= Monad 1.0 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
Tonight is a test run. Well, for Umie, anyway.
Wearing a fashionable grey wrap-around wool cloak and a half mask over her face, her identity is 'cloaked' quite literally. The mask is simple: a white half face, stopping just at her nose.
It's a stand-in, of course. Her actual mask is back in her apartment in Shibuya.
There's a possibility of others nearby in this supernatural space; she can taste it, courtesy of Badb. Kasugayama High has been plagued with demons for an unspecified amount of time now just about each night or so, owing to the school grounds being turned by the power of rumors into a playground for them.
Maybe the fact that they're gone during the day is just because no demon really wants to be a part of Kasugayama High's student body during the day.
Either way, it's a perfect test site.
"Ora ora ora!!" One of the oni performatively rolls his R's. "Lookit pipsqueak of the opera 'ere! Sorry, but you gotta pay the fee to get into the show. How 'bout a peek under that mask? We can always add a scar if you ain't got one yet!"
Okay, Umie's set the bait and made a commotion. Will anyone come?
MONAD: Umie Akabane has acted with Bird's Eye View toward Ora Ora Ora! Automap! <Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
It has been a hot summer, day and night. That is why a teenager in a warm and thick red coat and a beanie steps forward, wielding a very large makeshift axe he's dragging along the ground. Scrape, scrape, scrape.
It's a real axe, not some cognitive tool...?
"What a pain," Shinjiro says, glancing to Umie with a tip of the head that basically says 'step aside'.
He looks up to the oni. They're threatening this masked woman... another Persona user, most likely...
Why is he here again?
EARLIER
"Aragaki! I left my bag at school, and I'm not going back, not with the rumors. If you want your money..."
His fellow teen, a nerdier student kicked out of Seven Sisters for grade tampering, told him something that made Shinjiro spit to the side. "Tch. You go to Cuss, right?"
"Yeah..." he was told in return.
Shinjiro stood up from against the wall, moving through the darkness in the direction of Hirasaka Ward. "After this, you still owe me."
NOW
As the oni likely stare at Shinjiro and his axe, he gets as close to them as possible without flatout being attacked. "Out of the way."
And then, with a clearly practiced motion, he sweeps the axe from the ground straight up over his shoulder. This guy knows how to fight.
MONAD: Shinjiro Aragaki has acted with Intimidation toward Ora Ora Ora! Specialty!
<Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
Patrolling Hirasaka Ward for trouble is part of Shinobu's job.
Well, 'job'. Nobody pays her for it unless there's something really dangerous that needs dealt with - she does it for herself, mostly, out of a sense of responsibility.
There might be other reasons, too, but she doesn't think about that.
Suffice to say, she knows what happens in Kasugayama High after-hours. Usually, no one even wants to go by the school if they can help it, so she doesn't have to worry about people wandering where they shouldn't be. But it does happen, so she makes it part of her patrol route from time to time.
Today is one of those times - and wouldn't you know it, there's signs of trouble tonight.
Oni hassle the masked Umie - and soon enough, there's a loud CRACKing sound.
The tip of Shinobu's staff strikes against the pavement - both announcing her presence and acting as a warning. She rests it against her shoulder as she strides forward, then brandishes it toward the pompadour-wearing oni.
It stops just short of his hairdo. If he moves, it'll brush against it - and then it'd be his fault.
"Beat it, assholes. If you're looking to trade scars, I'm willing to oblige. But the only thing you're tasting today is the pavement." Shinobu says, fixing them with a stern look. Her staff doesn't stray. She glances aside only briefly to look toward Umie, who they're menacing, and Shinjiro, who gives them an intimidating look.
She takes note of his axe. He holds it like someone who knows how to use it. At least if it comes down to a fight, she won't be in this alone.
MONAD: Shinobu Shimizu has acted with Former Delinquent toward Ora Ora Ora! Efficient and Bravery!
<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
It's something of random chance.
Masao "Mark" Inaba, grown-ass adult, making a late night run at a favorite convenience store not that far away from Kasugayama High. Just getting a couple of snacks for tomorrow's online courses, a reminder of just how messy a position that a certain artist's confessions left him in for his continued education. Sometimes, taking the scenic route to see what the 'Cuss High' troublemakers drew all over the walls nearby is a thing of nostalgia as much as it is personal interest.
For a month and some change, putting aside the whole nightly weird part of the day - any Persona-User knows the one - he's been blissfully managing to avoid stumbling into the weirder parts of being one. He took what a certain someone said seriously, back then - they all knew who they were, at the end of that entire ordeal, and he's lived honestly with that. He's an artist, and that's the life he leads.
...
"Pff," he says from a distance, "I remember my guys doing that," he walks by.
He stops, moonwalks some steps back, and takes a second look. "...What."
Things unfold. There's a few confident-looking people standing before...
"Demons." The street artist says, incredulous. "Really? We're doing this again." The Resonance doesn't lie. He shakes his head, and...
Masao "Mark" Inaba, who is of below-average height for a Japanese male, just steps on up from roughly Shinjiro's right, glaring daggers at demons who frankly dwarf him in size, and goes with a level of confidence that seems more than just bravado and aggression...
"You're both lookin' a little too short to be going to high school." He doesn't have his weapon in his hand. "Beat it!"
MONAD: Masao Inaba has acted with Smack Talk toward Ora Ora Ora! Bravery and Focus!
(|==================== Monad - Clean Out Kasugayama High! ====================|)
-==== Round 2: Herding Cats - Challenge Level 2 ===============================-
| Approach Options: Academics or Proficiency |
| Conditions: Bothersome - Charm Down L1, Ineptitude - Proficiency Down L2, |
| Scary - Guts Down L1, and Stupor - Academics Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
There's a crinkle of glass underfoot as you round the corner towards the science
lab. The door closest to you is slightly ajar, enough for lights inside to catch
the edges of the broken glass beaker that was cast outside.
Inside, it's like a herd of horses running around. Sure, it may be good to
ignore it and move on, but then again, what are you here for? That's right,
'dealing with demons'.
The sliding door needs a little bit of 'oomph' to get through, and inside,
there's Empusas of the four-legged persuasion galloping everywhere, knocking
over equipment, yowling, swatting at each other, and creating chaos in general.
One, five, ten, wait, no, maybe it's just seven nonono, they keep moving around,
you can't keep track of them all!
(|============================================================= Monad 1.0 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
One person arrives. He has an axe. He's dressed for climate much colder than this, but Umie's not about to call someone else out on choosing to dress differently.
"Oh, here comes a real tough hunk of meat! Come to save your friend, eh? Well, joke's on you, pal, you're outnumbered, as you can see h--"
The hot-headed oni looks ready to barge ahead, when a staff stamp echoes in the night air.
Another comes, with a staff. Not a high schooler, she doesn't think. (Is the other a high schooler? He looks pretty tall. It could go either way.)
"That's even odds still, kid!!"
And then, number three, shorter, perhaps, though the first guy seems to dwarf all of them, at least from what Umie can see.
Umie's surprise is partially masked. Three people. _Three people came_.
"E-e-eh we don't want no trouble here, sir!! Miss! Sir!" cries the quiet one in the middle, a bit more heavy-set with muscle to match. "My friend 'ere, he's just havin' a bad night! Ain't that right?!"
The skinnier one, who was busy licking her spiked bat, looks up. "..... Where did these guys come from?"
The three oni scamper away, leaving the doorway clear. Umie looks at the three, and clears her throat. "..... How about we, er, in... vestigate...?"
She needs more practice at this.
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
As the makeshift group proceeds without further ado into the deeper school, glass crumples under foot. Shinjiro looks down through the darkness, spotting the bits of beaker still left. He nods his head towards the door to the chemistry room stepping over the beaker.
Empusas. Too many too fast to count.
He inhales through his nose, before opening it fully. The Empusas are going to wreck the place. Perhaps he can distract some of them...
"Cover your ears."
He takes his axe and just scrapes the flat end with a bit of torque against the chalkboard, causing a horrible keening noise. He's resisting it with a grimace, but it definitely hurts. It's not an act of pure might, though - he knows how much pressure to put and how not to damage either the axe or the board in the process.
"Do you see a bag in here?" There is no bag. His 'buddy' must not have left it in chemistry... should have asked him exactly where it was.
MONAD: Shinjiro Aragaki has acted with Proficiency toward Herding Cats! Base!
<Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
One of the demons calls her 'kid'. Shinobu raises an eyebrow, giving him a look along the lines of, 'are you serious?'
Shinobu's eyes stray again, this time as yet another person makes his appearance. Masao appears with a glare, intimidating the demons with confidence. He might be on the smaller side, but she tends to have a good read on people - and there's a lot more to him that she can see on the surface, she can tell that much.
She looks toward the demons again - and it looks like three people is the limit of their courage.
"Smart. I don't want to see you bothering anyone again. Get out of here." Shinobu says, shouldering her staff again and then glancing toward Umie. Investigate...? She wasn't counting on going that deep into the school - but if they've gotten this bold, it might be a good idea.
"...Sure, if you think you're good for it." Shinobu says. It isn't immediately obvious to her that the situation was bet. In her eyes, she was being menaced by oni. Can she handle whatever's in there...? "First sign of trouble, don't be afraid to run. You'll only get us hurt if you try to be too brave for your own good."
Shinjiro leads the way deeper into the school, and into the science lab, which is currently being trashed by a series of Empusas trampling around on four legs. He says to cover her ears and she does - and while he does that, she looks around.
"Nothing like that, sorry." She says. But what she does find...
...is a makeshift cat wand, that she assembled from things around the room. They're demons - but they're pretty cat right now?
She waves the wand to get their attention - and, maybe at least get them all in one place instead of causing havoc all over the room.
Today's secret skill - cat-wrangling.
<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
"Look," the last addition to the Oni Scaring Crew says, "this goes beyond just a look-around. This shit is serious."
He blinks as Shinjiro just goes on ahead. There's a quiet intensity about the way the guy's dressed, the way he moves... to say nothing about masked people and someone already brandishing a weapon. All right, then, we're doing this again, he internalizes.
There's shattered glass on the ground. It's Cuss High, that alone isn't... abnormal. But what one hears in the chemistry room...
Where there's two (correction, three) demons, there's a whole lot more.
Shinjiro's axe screeches on the board. "Huh, they look like-- all right then."
"Ladies." Mark raises his voice, steps inside... lightly.
Seductively, striding with dance like steps as he moves across the aisles to try and draw their eyes, flicking a hand up and groovin' as he tries to draw eyes - and hooves - towards the door.
It seems something of a non-sequitur to watch someone do this in the middle of a horde of rampaging demons. One might consider it... out of one's mind.
But no, there is a simple truth here:
> Mark danced crazy!
MONAD: Masao Inaba has acted with Dance Moves toward Herding Cats! Friendliness and Diligence! MONAD: Shinobu Shimizu has acted with Esoteric Skillset toward Herding Cats! Patra and Focus!
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
"... Yeah. To... go see what's inside." Shinobu's wise words feel like sandpaper, sparking secret ire in the masked young woman. "I've got enough experience to know what I'm doing, yeah. I... simply jumped the gun a little."
Crinklecrinklecrackle. Note to self: shoes for her outfit need to be athletic, breathable, and also, capable of stepping on glass.
Also, headphones?? Her hood isn't going to suffice for this.
Gleaning an idea from Shinobu, Umie gets out her kyoketsu-shoge. "Let's see here..."
She swings the metal ring around her head, drawing the attention of those that aren't distracted by the three person performance.
She looks up.
"... Bag? ... Uh, no."
MONAD: Umie Akabane has acted with Can you do this? toward Herding Cats! Specialty! <Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
As the group proceeds to scrape a chalkboard, pull out a cat wand, dance crazy, and whatever it is Umie is doing, the Empusas react in multiple ways.
Some of them are scared off by the screeching, while others are allured by dancing or CAT TOYS (one says, as she kicks behind her ear, "I'm not a cat, you asshole!" before leaving, but it's still treated as a positive).
Shinjiro glances over to the group. "If you see a bag, tell me." He nods to the three, though he's not familiar with what Umie was doing at all.
Is she... a ninja? And then there was that guy dancing... he gives off an experienced aura, at least, and he's older. And finally, Shinobu, who is apparently crafty... well, whatever.
It doesn't concern him.
(|==================== Monad - Clean Out Kasugayama High! ====================|)
-==== Round 3: Out on a Phantom Limb - Challenge Level 2 ======================-
| Approach Options: Guts or Proficiency |
| Conditions: Clumsy - Proficiency Down L1, Curse - -1 to Group Roll (Per |
| Character), Ineptitude - Proficiency Down L2, Scary - Guts Down L1, and |
| Stupor - Academics Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
Did one of you forget to check out that classroom back there? On second thought,
the door to it certainly wasn't there when you last looked. Well, it's there
now, so, it begs to be investigated. Maybe there's secrets there?
Opening the sliding door, you find a normal looking classroom, which seems to
be in the middle of a class.
In each seat is a phantom- ghostly, nearly incorporeal beings, each wearing a
different sort of hat. There's even a 'teacher' at the podium, looking like it's
in the middle of giving a lecture.
However, it's rude to wear hats indoors, so you'd better lay out the rules.
Besides, this class is ready to teach you a lesson about rudely barging in on
their quality education.
(|============================================================= Monad 1.0 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
Mark slams the door closed when the last Empusa is out the door with a stylish flourish. This gives them time, definitively, to be sure 'the bag' is not here. Because it isn't. There is a lot of broken glass, though, if anyone wants it.
(No one does.)
"Yeah, so, we're all on the same page," the shorter adult leaves it at that. He shakes his head. "Right. So you're lookin' for a bag here, guess there's only one thing to do then, huh."
The Empusas aren't rampaging in the hallway now, so, good. They can go to the next room in peace, but something about the classroom door's location feels a little... off, but that's easy to miss at first glance because it's dark in here. (They are here after-hours, after all.)
"Right, so tell us what we're-- what." Mark stares at what he's looking at - an entire occupied classroom.
Of ghostly phantoms, wearing hats, and a teacher-like figure at the podium. One can imagine the sweatdrop going down the trespassing street artist's head as he scratches at the side of his head.
"What, is it normal to wear hats in class now? Man, I was born a few years too early..."
The phantoms are all staring, with increasing agitation for the intrusion and the interruption to class, after hours... post-mortem, even, from the looks of it.
"...The hell are you all starin' at?! School's closed, scram already!" He shouts, but could probably use some back-up because that ghostly phantom teacher is about ready to lob some ghostly chalk that might hurt like the real, corporeal thing!
MONAD: Masao Inaba has acted with Guts toward Out on a Phantom Limb! Base!
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
Shinjiro nods once. "Yeah. Someone asked me to bring it back." He doesn't mention the money, as he steps forth with the others. "He didn't give me many details. School bag."
As they step into a GHOSTLY CLASSROOM, however, Shinjiro tchs. The bag isn't in here either...
He steps over to the teacher, taking them aside. "Get the hell out of here." He pauses. That probably won't work... maybe some advice.
"Unless you want these students to break curfew," he adds. "Look, just go."
Shinjiro ignores the fact he's ALSO breaking this hypothetical curfew.
MONAD: Shinjiro Aragaki has acted with Lone Wolf Method toward Out on a Phantom Limb! Amrita!
<Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
"That can get you killed." Shinobu points out, quite bluntly in response to Umie. It's not like she hasn't been guilty of jumping the gun before. She's speaking from experience, and it's something she needs to work on herself - but it does nothing to dull the edge. "...But, suit yourself. I'll take your word for it."
She nods. Mark has a point. It is pretty serious.
"...Yeah." She agrees.
Mark dances. Shinobu raises an eyebrow - but it actually works. Maybe he knows what they like. The empusas she draws seem to accept her entreatment well enough - even if one complains about it - but before long they have them calmed down and out the door. A bag...?
"I'll keep an eye out." She replies to Shinjiro with a nod - and then another, to Mark. All on the same page...
She follows them as they continues. This room... It's strange. Did they miss it? Or...
Her eyes are drawn up to the ghostly class and their teacher as Mark comments on them.
"I don't think it is, usually." She replies. "I can fix that."
Her staff is drawn again. She spins it briefly - and then swings it outward. Her swing is levelled just so - to knock the ghostly hats from their heads without hitting the spectres themselves.
"Get out." She doesn't bother explaining more than that.
MONAD: Shinobu Shimizu has acted with Former Delinquent toward Out on a Phantom Limb! Efficient and Bravery!
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
Shinobu reacts appropriately. Umie feels glad, for the mask on her face. It certainly makes the heat in her cheeks feel a little less like it'd give up her scheme entirely.
But, is it really a scheme? She's not *really* manipulating them. They chose to be here, just like her.
As the ghosts are dealt with, a subtle glow from underneath Umie's feet foretells the evidence of a Persona. It comes, a ghostly grey and red being, with sleeves long enough to double as wings.
".... I don't see a bag," Umie murmurs, the ghostly persona of Badb hovering over her. "Not here in this room. Plenty of demons, though."
Experiment 1: could she see a bag using her Persona? Outcome: .... negative.
MONAD: Umie Akabane has acted with Bird's Eye View toward Out on a Phantom Limb! Automap! <Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
There is an unsettling silence that falls upon the classroom as they're yelled at by others, and a cool sweep of her staff to knock their hats off. One by one, they all rise from their seats and promptly file out of the classroom in sequence out towards the way one enters the school to begin with. The phantom teacher fades away to nothing.
There is, of course... no bag, though Mark sizes up Umie's Persona for a moment.
There should be a lot of free hats, but they also faded into the aether at their leaving.
"Hell of a time for someone to be leaving behind their bag," Mark says as he closes the door on the classroom while they all assemble back outside. Moments later, he looks over his shoulder and finds the classroom door is gone! In fact, there's a bulletin board right where the door was.
'NO HATS ALLOWED IN CLASS.'
"...I'm not gonna think too hard about it," Mark decides. Onward, to the next compelling-looking classroom filled with demons*.
(* This may be 'all of them.')
(|==================== Monad - Clean Out Kasugayama High! ====================|)
-==== Round 4: P.retty T.roubling - Challenge Level 2 =========================-
| Approach Options: Academics or Guts |
| Conditions: Clumsy - Proficiency Down L1, Curse - -1 to Group Roll (Per |
| Character), Scary - Guts Down L1, Scary - Guts Down L1, Shuffle - Draw 1 |
| Minor Arcana., and Stupor - Academics Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
Like all good investigations, a decent amount of walking is involved. Certainly,
there's other schools that are 'blessed' by phenomena like the Dark Hour to be
much more arduous to get through, but Kasugayama High, being laid out like any
other Japanese school, means a bit of walking is involved.
Each classroom that is investigated seems to be nondescript and boring. Perhaps
this will be an easy night for your party after all.
... Wait, haven't you been here before?
Surely, you've seen that classroom number before. Maybe the party was turned
around? The stairway should be coming up soon.
Alas, the hallway just continues ever onwards, backwards and forwards.
Something is holding you back from continuing on. You'll need to find out what
if you want any chance of continuing on.
(|============================================================= Monad 1.0 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
Umie's mask does the job - Shinobu doesn't notice anything further than mask-deep. The ghosts are dealt with, and her eyes are drawn to that glow from beneath Umie - and the winged, spectral being that emerges. Her other self.
Shinobu figured she'd have one, if she was here - but it's another thing to see it. Is she looking for it...? She doesn't find it, though.
"...Seriously." Shinobu says with a nod of agreement, massaging the back of her neck. "Your friend might be cursed."
Or maybe very lucky, if a bunch of Persona-users managed to convene on the same night he lost it.
They turn to leave, and Shinobu finds herself gravitating toward the front as they continue. She's quiet, as they walk, and as the minutes seem to stretch on...
...The hallway seems to stretch on too, actually. Shinobu turns her head -
- and peers into a claw-scratched science lab. A frown crosses her face.
"...This looks familiar." She notes. They've been going essentially in a straight line. When did they make a turn...?
MONAD: Shinobu Shimizu has acted with Academics toward P.retty T.roubling! Base!
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
"If it's not here..." Shinjiro doesn't finish the sentence. It may seem like he's condemning the bag, but he'd actually be pretty frustrated if he came all this way for nothing.
And then, the hallway loops forever. And ever. AND EVER. Shinjiro has no idea how or why, but a Demon has to be doing it. But he doesn't see one...
"HEY! KNOCK IT OFF. Let us through...!" He shouts out, axe swaying in his hands.
Shinjiro glances to the others. "Tell me if you see anything that sticks out of place. I'll smash it."
MONAD: Shinjiro Aragaki has acted with Intimidation toward P.retty T.roubling! Specialty!
<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
For a while, there isn't any other demon trouble. The street artist among them, for his apparent flippancy in doing things like dancing, takes it all very seriously - opening doors like he expects demons to spill out looking for trouble, or what have you, and isn't taking that much stock in terms of what's inside. If there's no bag, that's as far as he's willing to consider the character of the classroom along this endless hallway they seem to be going down.
"I mean, school classroom, they're all gonna look alike, aren't they?" Mark misses the point as Shinobu mentions them looking familiar--
Until Shinjiro shouts about being let through.
"What? There's nobody else here," he speaks up. Hm... wait, it isn't like that one mall from back then, in that place, is it...?
"You heard the guy!" He calls out. He hasn't felt the need to draw his own weapon yet, thus far, as he sets a hand on his hip and lets the other dangle.
MONAD: Masao Inaba has acted with Guts toward P.retty T.roubling! Base!
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
"I mean, it's possible. Bad luck is a thing here," Umie comments semi-helpfully as the group walks, adjusting her hood.
This hallway's pretty long, though... much longer than it should be. Sevens was never this long, and Kasugayama had a similar layout, or so she thought...!
"Maybe we're the cursed ones."
They're right. Things... are very familiar.
"... You guys aren't wrong. I'm seeing a pattern. Look at the room numbers. Not only are they impossible, they're all divisible by two so far." She waves a black gloved hand. "You add up the numbers. 3-75. 3, 7, 5. You'll get 15. Next is room 3-6. That's nine. 11-4. That's six. And... Room 33-2."
She waits a second, as if by habit, then forces herself to continue. Stupid tutoring habits!! ".... It's... 8. So. Hit the sign."
Huh? (Type "help" for help.)
MONAD: Umie Akabane has acted with Academics toward P.retty T.roubling! Base! <Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
"Good point." Shinobu says, as Umie points out that a curse is actually possible. Case in point - they may have found themselves with a bit of a curse, themselves, as they're caught in the infinite hallway.
"A bit, but not like this." Shinobu replies to Mark, looking toward. It seems like she isn't the only one who noticed the similarity, though. Shinjiro's axe is ready, and he shouts into the void of the looping hallway to knock it off.
Umie observes their surroundings. Impossible numbers, each divisible by 3... She does the math, and says to hit the sign -
- and when Shinjiro does, the world seems to shift for a moment, like the glitching of a screen. And then, they're back. Logic dictates the numbers on the signs once more, and their surroundings are new and unfamiliar. That's a good sign.
(|==================== Monad - Clean Out Kasugayama High! ====================|)
-==== Round 5: He is Not Pleased - Challenge Level 3 ==========================-
| Approach Options: Understanding or Guts |
| Conditions: Bless - +1 to Group Roll (Per Character), Boss - Add 1 Fatigue |
| on failure., Chest - Add 2 Item/Money/Gear., Scary - Guts Down L1, Stony - |
| Understanding Down L2, Stupor - Academics Down L1, and Terrifying - Guts |
| Down L2 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
rumble rumble rumble rumble
Something menacing is slowly moving down the dark hallway towards your group.
rumble rumble rumble rumble
Passing the light a nearby window, the stalker's identity becomes clear: it's
the statue of Ishihiko ?Ishida, coming it enact its revenge on all the terrible
students he had to deal with during his teaching career.
bLike any self-respecting angry Japanese ghost, his wrath does not make a
distinction between those who may have wronged him, helped him, or simply were
at the wrong place at the wrong time.
He is a statue. He is moving. His dedication to his curse could be seen by some
as impressive. What will you do?
(|============================================================= Monad 1.0 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
".... After that last bit, I may be a little bushed." Umie feels a little more comfortable now, walking behind the group. "I wasn't expecting all this walking..."
Project: socialize with Persona users(?) is a success. Her mask was enough, for now. She'll have to poke these same people again later, and see if they recognize her. If they don't... maybe, that counts as a success.
And then maybe, she won't have to worry about--
"Ah. There's... something creeping up on us."
rumblerumblerumble
With the sound of stone against tile flooring, a statue comes menacingly towards the group, somehow gaining speed. "Ishihiko Ishida..." Umie reads, from the plaque at the bottom. ".... Ah. The bag. Is that the one?"
There is, in fact, a bag, dangling from one strap wrapped around the statue's head.
".... We could nab it and run. Nothing wrong with that."
MONAD: Umie Akabane has acted with Guts toward He is Not Pleased! Base!
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
As Shinjiro's axe hits the sign, the world returns to normal. He lets loose a breath. "Good..."
And then, there's a statue following them. Step. Step.
Shinjiro turns around, swinging his axe to keep it at bay. But Umie notices the bag. "Yeah."
Shinjiro might need help, but he says nothing and tries to do it on his own. Instead, he sweeps his axe for the head - not to kill the statue, but to try and remove the bag and also intimidate a REVENGE GHOST into going away. The latter is unlikely, the former may actually be gutsy enough to work.
"If it doesn't work, get out of here. I'll deal with him myself." If he doesn't get that money... he's as good as dead anyways.
MONAD: Shinjiro Aragaki has acted with Lone Wolf Method toward He is Not Pleased! Amrita!
<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
"Ugh," the street artist among them shakes his head. "Was it really like that?"
And then... something rumbles. He gets his yellow bag off his back, opening it up to reveal a two-handed axe, taking hold of it in one hand when he slings that bag back over his, well, back.
"Ah, shit, what the--"
He looks up at the statue, as the one in the mask reads the name aloud. "Ishihiko Ishida... someone important here?"
The lighting's not great, but despite the unfamiliarity with the individual, Masao looks up at the whole of the angry possessed statue. Pissed because of trespassers? Probably.
"...That level of detail," he muses aloud. "I've heard all the stories about this school around the neighborhood, but you know what? That's not a likeness someone just slapped up on the cheap."
Right, what part of that observation would stop any of them from getting punched in the face by a living stone statue?
"This Ishihiko Ishida... with a statue like this, he must've been the coolest teacher any of 'em ever had," Mark speaks unwittingly(?) to the angry possessed spirit that resides within it. "C'mon. Let's not mess with that. Get that bag and let's go."
He shoulders that axe ocnvincingly enough as Shinjiro suggests they all run and let him handle it if it goes bad. "Quit talkin' like that."
MONAD: Masao Inaba has acted with Art Studies toward He is Not Pleased! Smarts and Empathy!
<Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
"Let us know if you need to take a break. Don't overdo it." Shinobu replies, as Umie admits she might be a little bushed. She's used to walking like this - but she can see how someone else not be.
...And then, there's the sound of something rumbling behind them. Something trying to creep up on them. Stone grinding against tile... Shinobu turns quickly and sees - a statue? Ishihiko Ishida... And that bag -
"Is that yours?" Shinobu asks, glancing toward Shinjiro - and shakes her head. "Not a chance. Sorry."
She draws her staff and gets ready for a fight - but then Mark speaks up, commenting on the craftsmanship. How someone - a lot of someones, even - must have cared, to get a statue of this quality made. Shinobu grimaces.
"...He's chasing us. I don't care how cool he was - what he is now is trying to run us down." She replies. She frowns for a moment, and grimaces. "...Lachesis."
It's a name - and the owner of that names becomes evident. A blue light shines around Shinobu - and in front of her, there is a cloaked woman. Her hood is down, and her face is serene - as if she has seen it all, knows everything that has happened and is yet to come.
"Do it." Shinobu commands. Lachesis runs her fingers across an invisible thread in the air - and they come to a stop, framing Ishihiko Ishida's statue.
Energy surges around it, suddenly - but not to break it. Instead, it will suddenly and temporarily feel a good bit more fragile - like it'd only take a single good Strike to Break it.
"...You can tell what just happened, right? Don't push us. Back off and leave the bag with us, old man, and we'll leave your school - or we'll leave you in pieces. Are we good?" Shinobu demands.
It seems Mark's words won her over, in the end - but what happens next is up to the ghost.
MONAD: Shinobu Shimizu has acted with Former Delinquent toward He is Not Pleased! Efficient and Bravery!
(|==================== Monad - Clean Out Kasugayama High! ====================|)
-==== Round 6: It's an Entrance! - Challenge Level 1 ==========================-
| Approach Options: None |
| Conditions: Revelation - The best result. |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
There were rumors about it being in the basement of Kasugayama High, and, as it
turns out, those rumors were right.
Located down some stairs and through a maze of stacked desks and chairs is a
door to an underground bunker type room, with concrete-enforced walls and metal
beams reinforcing the ceiling. On the opposite end are a pair of heavy metal
doors, leading to what is most likely the haunted Air Raid Shelter. Once someone
goes in, they can never get out, so the rumors say
Unfortunately for those that decide that they want to spend even more of their
time in Kasugayama High, the metal doors are locked tight and refuse to open.
% Maybe someone can start a rumor about how to open them, or, at a later point,
something may change. For now, all you can do is go back.
Final Loot: 2 Items!
(|============================================================= Monad 1.0 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Umie Akabane has posed.
Shinobu's words, in spite of Umie's earlier attitude, cause the shorter girl to bow her head slightly. "... Perhaps. This is..."
Admit this is her first time doing something like this is absurd. It's not completely true, even. But it is her first time.... in a group.
Or this far from home. ".... This is fine, actually," she amends. "We should be good."
At least, until the statue comes, which here it comes now!
"You're... going to just do that?" Umie's tone and lower face conveys her disbelief as she looks at Shinjiro. "I mean, dealing with him yourself."
Are others like this? Is this normal? Being self-sacrificing like this?
Masao seems to be the voice of reason here; Umie gestures to him. "What he said! You're sticking around, right? And you?" She looks at Shinobu as well.
Shinobu's powers slow the statue, long enough for Masao's appreciation to settle in.
.... As well as Shinjiro's ax, with snags the bag.
It sits there, still. Seeming to register the lack of weight around its neck.
It moves backwards now, just as slowly. "We should... leave. Before he changes his mind. Down this stairway, maybe."
Down the stairwell into the basement, and around some storage racks of chairs and desks....
"..... A.... bomb shelter, huh. Looks like a dead end for now." Badb forms above Umie's head again, blue light forming underneath Umie's feet as she concentrates. ".... Not having a great time figuring out where he went, but he's still moving away, looks like. Let's get out of here."
<Pose Tracker> Shinjiro Aragaki has posed.
As they get the bag, Shinjiro takes a breather. He doesn't respond to how the others reacted to him, barely reacting to the bomb shelter (though this might be worth a Dark Side of Sumaru post).
Instead, he's immediately opening it *up* and searching inside. He feels through the pockets, and at first is frustrated, muttering "Did you hold out on me?" until he finds a hidden spot in the bag.
Shinjiro tears the pocket open at the zipper, revealing a hidden wad of cash. He pulls it out, not caring who sees him, and quickly checks how much yen it is, counting something aloud.
"One... two... four... six. Ugh. It'll do. Cheapskate... I need to get a job."
The number doesn't match how much money is there - is he counting something he plans to get, or is it just a mystery?
He pockets the money, before considering if he should actually bring back the bag. He decides to do so in the end, slinging it over his shoulder.
"Later." He nods, moving to leave. If asked for his name... "Aragaki."
He's gone.
<Pose Tracker> Masao Inaba has posed.
"Down the stairs? What, there's another way out from--"
A bomb shelter. A dead end. He's looking over his shoulder every so often to make sure they're not about to get jumped by other demons, or maybe other immortalized figures whom might take offense at the trespass which... they all are, the demons, the Persona-Users, all of them.
He's watching the over-dressed guy pull out cash and count it out.
"Is that what this was about?" Incredulous, even, as Shinjiro gives his name and leaves.
"Yeah, we're leavin', all right." He shakes his head, lowers it, and just considers the enormity of something that is, frankly, commonplace in these parts. "...Guess as long as we didn't find anyone hurt by the demons, that's as much as we can ask for, yeah?"
"It's Inaba. I moved into Sumaru about a month back." That might explain some things, but... perhaps not others.
"I live in the area, so... I guess if somethin' comes up," he's not sure if he expects to see the masked one again, but as it is, it's time to go home and prepare for what ordinary human life's got in store for him tomorrow early in the morning.
<Pose Tracker> Shinobu Shimizu has posed.
<poem>Shinobu considers Umie as she starts to say something - but when she ultimately decides that 'this is fine', she doesn't press her on it. And when she asks Shinjiro if he's just going to do that, and her if she's sticking around...
...Well, she's given her answer. She isn't going anywhere.
It looks like the statue got the picture, though - and when Umie suggests they need, she nods.
"Good idea." She replies. She'll fight it if she has to - but if she doesn't, that's probably better.
Shinjiro snags the bag, though. She glances toward it as he rummages through it, but she doesn't make a move to stop him - doesn't even look incredulous like Mark does. Instead, she follows the others down the stairs... where, at the end of a maze, is the entry to a bunker. Shinobu approaches, rapping her knuckles against it experimentally.
"...I've heard about this. So the rumors were true." Shinobu comments. 'Again', she doesn't add, but to those who've lived in Sumaru City for long enough, is implied. She nods toward Umie. "We're not getting through this. Good thinking - let's get while the getting's good."
Everyone else is offering their names - so she figures she might as well.
"Oh, are you the Inaba Dry Cleaning guy...?" Shinobu considers, recognition across her face. She nods, though. "Shimizu. I'm local, too. See you around sometime, maybe."