265Rage Inducer Part 1
Betaed by Flameal15k and Small Nerd
A few months before Akko enrolled in Luna Nova
Tokyo Dome, Japan
Ever since she could earn her own funds, Akko promised herself that if she ever watched baseball live at the Tokyo Dome, it would be a match featuring the Bears.
Ah yes, the Bears. A very recently formed team that blew everyone's expectations away. They were the very definition of young blood, consisting entirely of new faces unfamiliar to the many fans of the Japanese baseball scene. Despite their underdog status, they did the impossible and beat the odds, making a glorious stand before the series final.
As expected, cheering sports fans filled the stadium to the brim.
"I am so excited!" Akko beamed in her seat. "I hope I can get an autograph from them after the match!"
"Glad you are enjoying yourself, Akko," Aradia chimed in. "Still, thou dost not understand the appeal of this sport… I mean, thou do from thy feeling, but also... don't."
The match was intense, with a lot of back and forth between both teams. Both the offense and defense gave it their all. After many close call innings, both teams hit a tie, and the match went into an extra inning.
The Bears were on the offense. Unfortunately for them, this was probably their last chance.
"Don't give up, Bears!" Akko yelled. "We believe in you! Hit that home run!"
There was a heavy tension in the air.
The other team's pitcher's leg raised as the Bear's batter tightened his grip on his bat.
The pitcher's arm swung dramatically and released the ball at full speed.
Akko was grateful for her superhuman abilities, as to her focused mind, the ball might as well be traveling in slow motion. The moment she realized its trajectory curved, she knew the batter was in a heap of trouble.
"Oh no! What a pitch! He saved his trump card for last! I can't watch! Can he realize it fast enough to hit it!?"
PON
Hundreds of cheering audiences exploded in an uproar. The batter had managed to do the impossible. IT WAS A LEGENDARY HOME RUN!
"OH MY GOD!" Akko screamed her lungs out, even tearing up a little. "They did it! THEY DID IT! THEY WON THE SERIES FINAL! What a game!"
"God damn it! Piece of shit team!"
The man beside Akko spouted a series of profanities as he got up from his seat, threw down a sets of tickets, and stomped on it in utter frustration. It was not only him either, as many in the audience did the same.
"Oh?" Aradia chucked amusingly. "Money on the line? Now thou see why so many mortals enjoy watching this."
"Boo. C'mon… Betting on the sport for money just tarnishes the spirit," Akko pouted.
However, things were starting to get a little... chaotic. There were angry gamblers for sure, but Akko began to see unrelated people joining the angry mob… Housewives, office ladies, even a young child. The audience rapidly began to resemble an army of zombies. If zombies liked cursing out sports events and throwing garbage instead of eating brains.
"W-What's going on?!" Akko exclaimed, "Look, I know you guys are angry, but please! Control yourselves! Where's the security—"
Once Akko realized building security had joined in, she knew this was no normal dissatisfaction.
"A-Aradia! What's happening?!"
"This is bizarre for sure," Aradia pondered. "Does this remind thee of anything, Akko?"
"It is like they have been affected by Rage—" Realization struck her. "Oh! You don't mean?!"
"Thou art correct," Aradia nodded. "Try curing them with Patra, we shall go from there."
Akko tried to exit, however…
"Who the hell do you think you are?! Talking shit about my favorite team!?"
"Eat shit, the Bear're bunch of hacks, and I lost so much money because of them!"
It only took one punch, and the situation escalated to violence. Men tackled and headbutted each other; women clawed and pulled hair, kicking up a series of dust clouds.
"Are you kidding me?!" Akko grumbled. "The one time having the best seat in the dome was a bad idea!"
All the large stadium monitors suddenly filled with static. Akko pulled out her phone and realized there wasn't any signal either. "W-What is going on? Does this mean the broadcast got cut off too…?"
"Enough influence to stop communication," Aradia commented. "However, the ones behind this also granted us the opportunity!"
With a nod, Akko kicked her feet and leaped right over the maddened audience in a series of superhuman somersaults. She did not need to hold back since there were no functioning cameras and everyone was too busy being angry to notice her.
On the way out of the madness, she grabbed one of the audience, a young woman, as her test. Her enraged patient couldn't do anything against her monstrous strength as she called forth the Magician Arcana.
"Please work…! Pixie, Patra!"
The blue fairy manifested and sprinkled specks of healing light. Quickly, the woman's anger fizzled out as she returned to normal.
"Oh… Huh...? What was I doing?"
Pixie vanished in a hurry as Akko greeted her. "Oh, thank goodness… Are you okay? You were so angry just now."
"Oh… right. I was angry… Didn't the Bear win…?
To Akko's horror, her expression was distorted and returned to fury.
"HOW DARE THEY—"
Casually sidestepping the woman just as she pounced, Akko sighed and ignored the madness behind her in favor of the exit.
"Terrible outcome," Aradia sighed. "Good to know thou can cure it, but since it's not permanent, then all of thy efforts will be for naught… We need to find the root of the problem."
"Way ahead of you, Aradia!" Akko agreed. "There's only one answer to this! To Cognitive Tokyo!"
Tokyo Dome, Cognitive Tokyo
Akko leaped off Berith as she muttered in shock, "W-What is this?"
The dome— scratch that, the entire cognitive landscape was completely swarmed with Shadow Selves. All people she saw from the audience, and much like their real-life counterparts, all in maddening rage and brutally fighting each other.
"Our guess was correct. A Distortion." Berith shattered as Aradia replaced him. "But one that could affect so many Shadow Selves… It is unheard of."
"We have to put a stop to this!" Akko declared as she transformed.
The maddened Shadow Selves turned to face Akko as they blackened and burst. Now facing Akko was a sea of monstrous foes consisting of red-skinned ogres, women with horns and blades, muscular warriors dressed in animal hides.
"Oni, Yaksini, and Berserker…" Akko labeled. "Fought a lot of them before… but this is way too many!"
"Akko… wasn't the dome sold out?" Aradia asked as realization set in; even her composure was rapidly slipping. "...Wasn't the capacity over 57,000?"
Both Persona and User screamed as the unending sea of chaos attacked.
Akko could only run.
If these were just normal Shadows, she would've wiped most of them out by now. But these enemies were Shadow Selves, and hurting them would seriously wound their counterparts in the real world.
She tried hitting them with Patra, but just like with that young woman, the Rage returned immediately. She could freeze them with Silky, but that hardly stalled their advance since the Onis and Berserkers could easily escape their icy prison.
She could already feel the exhaustion from using her Personas. There were simply too many affected people, and unless she found a way to get past them and attack the source of their Rage, there was nothing she could do… Maybe she ought to retreat and leave this to her senpais, but...
"I-I just wanted to watch my favorite baseball team…" Akko teared up. Even though as a very competent Persona user, she felt so powerless here… What would happen if she left now? Would anybody even be alive by then? Did this just become history's worst sports riot that would result in thousands of casualties?
In her distress, she suddenly heard the buzzing of insects…
"Huh?"
A fly… followed by… a mosquito... Wait, she just saw a… grasshopper— no… That was a very large locust.
Without warning, a swarm consisting of the world's worst pests blazed past her and slammed into the crowd of Shadow Selves, sending them flying back with buzzing fury.
"This presence! You are kidding!" Aradia manifested immediately, protectively shielding Akko from the swarm with her cloak.
"W-Wha, Aradia!?"
A section of the swarm parted ways with the rest and circled Akko, eventually condensing into itself to form a humanoid being. What stood before them now was a terrifying fusion between a man and an insect. Covered from head to toe in a purple exoskeleton with pulsating veins, fly-like wings spread behind his back like the cape of a demon king.
"W-What are you…?" Akko asked.
"What are you doing here!?" Aradia exclaimed. Her tone carried an emotion Akko had never heard from her before. "Angra Mainyu!"
The bug man turned to face them. He seemed amused, but it was hard to tell due to the lack of a mouth. "Aradia, is it? I did not expect to see you here."
"Angra... Mainyu?" Akko asked. "You know him, Aradia?"
"Aradia and I go way back," The bug man said, almost as if he was teasing the false goddess. "Is this your new host? Should I share some tales from the past, O Daughter of the Morning Star—"
"Quiet, you," Aradia snapped violently. "Drop the nonsense. Is this madness your doing, Angra Mainyu?!"
A bunch of Shadow Selves picked themselves back up and attempted to attack Akko... As well as Angra Mainyu himself. Paying them no attention, his swarm of insects slammed into them and pinned them down.
"You know the answer behind that question," the bug man shrugged. "This is nothing more but another troublesome mess I have to deal with."
Aradia seemed to come to a silent realization. "...I expected as much. The power to spread Rage and War, the one behind this was him, wasn't it?"
"Wait! What's going on?!" Akko asked. "So you had some idea who was behind this? Why didn't you say something earlier, Aradia?"
"Nosy little one, wasn't she?" Angra Mainyu commented dismissively, much to Akko's annoyance. "Stay out of this, mortal. Your goddess made the right decision, lest your fate be tied with never-ending conflict."
"That's right, Akko… if the cause behind this was, in fact, him, then we need to leave now and let Angra Mainyu handle this," Aradia said, shocking her user with a very demoralized tone. "Otherwise thou shall face a foe with zero hope of victory—"
"WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU ALL OF A SUDDEN?!"
Akko's loud outburst silenced everyone. "PEOPLE ARE BEING HURT OVER THERE!" She pointed in the direction of the Tokyo Dome and shouted harshly. "Aradia, don't you dare say this again! This is totally our business, and we are seeing it through!"
Angra Mainyu seemed very amused at Akko's reaction. "What a host you got there, so eager to throw herself into death's door. Your luck continues to be terrible." He stepped forward, his body towering over Akko as he looked down on her very imposingly.
Akko wasn't frightened in the least. She looked up and met Angra Mainyu's condescending glance with her own determined glare. "What?"
"Nothing. Just admiring the foolishness that is heroism."
"That's so mean! What's so foolish about wanting to save other people!?"
"Countless heroes have said the same words but perished to the very thing they sought to save," Angra Mainyu said. "The masses are dumb, and they don't feel gratitude. They dump responsibility and blame on those with kindness. A hero is nothing more than a glorified repairman, free for others to demonize at their convenience…"
"I-I don't understand what you are trying to get at," Akko replied, outright mad now. "If you are trying to say I shouldn't help save those people, then forget it! Who cares if I get rewarded or not?! THEIR LIVES ARE MORE IMPORTANT!"
Much to her anger, Angra Mainyu proceeded to burst into borderline mocking laughter. "What a stupidly amusing host you got for yourself, Aradia!" He turned his back. "Very well, do as you wish." His body dissolved into countless insects and flew for the Tokyo Dome.
"Ooooh!" Akko's face was tomato red, with steam coming out of her ears. "The nerve of that guy! How condescending can you get!?" She turned to Aradia, "How and why are you friends with him anyway?!"
"Less a friend... More… Acquaintances, I suppose," Aradia shrugged. "I shall tell you some other time. But for a god of evil, he's already as nice as he could possibly be."
"... WHAT?!"
Angra Mainyu's swarm of insects bulldozed through the herd of Shadow Selves. Their numbers meant nothing when they were immediately inflicted with debilitating Ailments.
Using this opportunity, Akko and Berith rushed through the uncrowded hallways. The steed broke through the fence and leaped into the field.
Akko jumped off as Aradia replaced Berith and found Angra Mainyu was already confronting something... "T-This is…"
An ominous sphere of crimson energy floated above the baseball field. Every few seconds, it sent out pulsing waves of a malicious aura. Shadows Selves near it continued to grow more enraged.
"You are not who I seek." Angra Mainyu declared. "While the power is similar, this is an entirely different source of rage." His feet kicked off as he rushed for an attack. "What relation do you have with him?!"
PING
A crimson barrier was suddenly erected that repelled the attack.
"T-Tetrakarn!?" Akko exclaimed.
Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep…
Sounds resembling computer beeps straight out of an old video game rang out as the red light dampened. What was once thought of as a crimson sphere of madness and rage, was in actuality, a cluster consisting of hundreds of dark cubes no bigger than Akko's palm. They all had one face with a crimson square, looking almost as if it was a magical rune.
"W-What are those?" Akko asked. "If they are Shadows, then they are nothing I have seen before!"
The cube cluster broke apart and… recombined.
It was like watching a game of Tetris, cubes stacked upon cubes as if they did not consist of any form of physical matter but rather of computer data. What they first created resembled a gigantic work of pixel art, and then it materialized into a physical being.
The body was black and reflective as if made of metal or silicon, with crimson neon lines running across its body along with other red markings. It was seemingly entirely mechanical, except for the snake skull that was its head. Even then, it did not seem like real bone, but rather plastic. The skull had no eyes inside its socket, and the closest thing one could consider an eye was the soulless red light inside its mouth.
Aradia was just as shocked as Akko. "That form… An ancient Basilisk? No… That's impossible. Those are long since extinct, so it merely mimicked the form of one…?"
The newly formed serpent let out a devastating roar, and in one lightning-fast motion coiled its body for a massive tail sweep.
Angra Mainyu easily jumped out of the way, but Akko, even with her speed, was surprisingly not fast enough to dodge it. She and Aradia had to block the blow by crossing their arms, which launched them painfully back.
"Aughhhh! What power..." Akko swore her forearms fractured; it was agonizing since Aradia's damage went to her too, doubling the pain. It felt so bizarre since this was her first bone-breaking injury since she became a Persona user.
The serpent roared again. The entire baseball field was engulfed by the same crimson aura it was emitting before, only much more intense. Akko shakily clutched her head as anger flooded her mind.
"Oh no… it's inflicting Rage…"
She was losing control… She wanted to screamandfightandyell—
A wave of healing magic washed over her, relieving her and Aradia's pain and anger.
"Pathetic," Angra Mainyu said, annoyed. "Tame your ego, and don't let such emotion control you."
"S-Sorry…" Akko sighed. "But thanks anyway. Please… Angra Mainyu. Let's team up and deal with this!"
"You think I need help from a child?" Angra Mainyu scoffed at the proposal. He flew for the large serpent, a white sphere of destructive magic condensing between his hands.
As it turned out, the aura affected more than just herself. Other nearby Shadow Selves seemingly gained an unexplained surge of power. They now gained enough strength that they did the impossible and power through Angra Mainyu's insects.
The serpent swung its tail, grabbed a dozen of its freed army, and then threw them at the incoming Angra Mainyu.
"WHA—" Too busy charging his spell, he was caught off guard as the massively empowered Shadow Selves buried him under an avalanche of bodies.
Aradia sighed, "Well, that was embarrassing. Being too prideful is a form of evil too..."
Akko was about to pull her bat but stopped halfway when she still saw the lingering haze of the Tetrakarn. "No. That wouldn't work… only this could!"
Instead, what she pulled out was arguably her strongest weapon— the limited edition bow of the Pink Phoenix Ranger herself, Argus Sniper. Rising it high, pink energy radiated from it as it built power.
"Feather Energy FULL DRIVE! Armed and ready—"
The serpent clearly recognized what Akko was doing was somewhat of a threat. However, signs resembling— Pride? Cockiness? — were all over its body language. It seemed to think that having the Tetrakarn around its body would be enough to protect it from Akko's next attack.
Still, it tried to do what it did to Angra Mainyu, tail reaching for a dozen Shadow Selves...
"ARADIA!"
Quickly picking her user up and shooting straight into the air, Aradia flew away from all the danger. In mid-air, she then spun and threw her user back down.
"THIS IS FOR RUINING THE BASEBALL GAME!"
"OVERLOAD! ! !"
Akko unleashed all the pent-up energy into one devastating arrow of destruction. The barrier might as well not have existed, and the arrow stuck the serpent right in the skull.
The resulting explosion blasted Akko back. Aradia swooped down to catch her safely. "D-Did it work…?"
The serpent was twitching unnaturally while static electricity danced all over its body, almost resembling a graphical glitch. Its skull was completely shattered and destroyed, leaving a headless body with only its crimson "eye".
"No good… We need one more—" Akko reached for her bow again, but her fingers couldn't grab the string… because it was snapped in two. Her bow was a broken mess of a toy now. "NO! Argus Sniper…"
Despite the damage it had sustained, the serpent was far from admitting defeat. Red energy was being charged again, as it attempted to unleash its power of rage from before… Only for multiple explosions to detonate all over its body. As it turned out, the damage Akko inflicted was far more debilitating than it had realized.
One by one, Shadow Selves near it transformed out of their monstrous forms, returning to ordinary and very confused civilians as they vanished in a mass of blue light.
That also meant Angra Mainyu was freed.
The feeling of utter death flooded the battlefield. Akko could feel her heart skip a beat. It was comparable to meeting with David, except ten times worse.
"You dare consider yourself a serpent? Don't make me laugh. Nothing more than a pretentious worm."
The god of evil raised both hands as white energy condensed into a sphere of utter destruction.
"Begone!"
The magic enveloped the stadium, consuming and erasing his foe. The serpent let out a cry that was drowned out by the deafening devastation.
"Ah!" Akko had to cover her eyes from the sheer power.
When the smoke cleared, what remained in the crater was a cluster of cubes. Compared to the massive number from before, barely a third of them survived the onslaught. Static electricity danced all over their cracked shells as they twitched like glitching game objects. An emotionless, artificial voice echoed:
"DAMAGE EXCEEDS CRITICAL LEVEL..."
"PRIORITIZE PRESERVATION OF BLACK BOX DATA…"
A few cubes spun in a circular pattern and then fired a huge beam of crimson laser into the sky, tearing it open.
Both Akko and Angra Mainyu couldn't believe it. Clear blue sky.
"I-IT'S TRYING TO ESCAPE!" Akko screamed as the cubes flew for the exit. She didn't know what method the cubes were using to bridge the boundary between the Cognitive World and the real world. All she knew was that she couldn't let them escape at any cost. She immediately pulled out two firearms from her cape and unloaded them on the cubes.
Aradia and Angra Mainyu followed. Bless and Curse spells bombarded the sky. Swarms of insects biting after them, desperately trying to catch up.
In the air, the cluster split one final time. One half kept going, while the other half u-turned and rammed themselves into the attacks. Bullets and magic annihilated their cubic bodies without mercy but they ensured the preservation of the rest. A few cubes tackled the insect swarm while overloaded with crimson energy as they self-destructed, setting the sky ablaze.
Akko could only watch in dread as the last remaining cubes disappeared over the closing rip in space, vanishing along with the sight of the clear blue sky amidst fire and smoke. She dropped hopelessly to her knees. "Just… what are those things?"
Angra Mainyu was beyond irritated. Some of his surviving insects bought him the remains of one of the cubes and dropped it onto his palm.
Whatever power source was behind it had long since been extinguished… However, it was clear to Angra Mainyu that this was a human creation.
"Humanity, again." He clutched the cube hard enough that it started to crack. "Is this why you are manifesting now? To grant their wish? When will mortals learn to not temper with powers beyond their control?"
He pulverized the dreadful object in his hand with utter hatred.
"You are leaving now, Angra Mainyu?" Akko asked.
"What is it, mortal?" The bug man turned to face her.
"Nothing… I just wanted to say… thank you," Akko said, surprising him. "Look… I don't like your attitude. You were super rude and condescending to me… But I have to admit, people here wouldn't have been saved without your help."
"..."
"You could've killed those Shadow Selves without batting an eye, but you clearly went out of your way to avoid hurting them too badly..." Akko continued, standing up. "So… Even though you are some super evil god. At the very least, today, you deserve a thank you." She reached out her hand, intending for Angra Mainyu to shake hands with her.
"Fufu… fufu… hahahahahaha!" Angra Mainyu burst into his mocking laughter. "What an utterly moronic mortal!"
Akko puffed up her cheeks. She was about to yell at Angra Mainyu before three awkward fingers took her hand for a surprisingly firm shake.
Angra Mainyu withdrew his hand, turning away. "...I am certain your fate will be tied to those artificial beings. Without a doubt we shall meet again, mortal—"
"My name is Akko! Please call me by my name from now on!"
"— mortal."
He dissolved into a swarm of insects and vanished.
"This guy is just…" Akko sighed.
"Thou should be proud… Getting Angra Mainyu to shake thy hand willingly is a feat no one in history could claim…" Aradia said soothingly. "Still… a lot is surely waiting for us in the future…"
Akko sighed. "You said that already…. Embodiments of Death, Shadows trying to hunt witches. Now we have those weird cubes and whoever Angra Mainyu's enemy is…" Her smile was determined and proud. "No matter! We will just have to deal with them as they come! So bring it!"
At the corner of her eye, she saw a Shadow Self that, for whatever reason, still hadn't vanished yet.
"Wait…! It's the batter from the Bears!" Akko beamed, "Wait! Wait! Please sign my bat! ! !"
"So that's how I got this tanuki signature on my bat!" Akko explained proudly.
Sucy massaged her temples, having a lot of trouble processing the story as well as dreading the future. "Okay, for real, please tell us what other ridiculous things are out there trying to kill you."
Cognition Parasite
N.F.S
Profile: Unit Value: 1 bit.
[]
N.F.S - Data Basilisk
Resistance: All elements but Electric
Skills: *Aura of Rage, *Auto-Tetrakarn, Mighty Swing
Profile: Unit Value: 2500 bits. Data is copied from an extinct species of serpent known as Basilisk. Wicca biologists hypothesize that the tail of the modern-day Cockatrice is their direct descendant. How this biological chimerism happened is a highly debated mystery.
*Aura of Rage: N.F.S enemies only: 100% to inflict Rage on all foes. Inflict Taunt.
*Auto-Tetrakarn: At the beginning of own turn. Automatically deploy a shield that repels Phys and Gun attacks for 1 turn. Enemy-only skill.
? ? ?
Angra Mainyu (Jester)
Repel: Ice, Electric, Psy, Curse
Null: Ailment
Skills: Megidolaon, Salvation, *Scourge, Evade Phys, ?, ?, ?, ?
Profile: Zoroastrianism's god of evil.
*Scourge: Angra Mainyu only. Inflict light Almighty damage on all foes. Randomly inflict 3 ailments and Debilitate.
AuthorNCS: Last sidestory before we are fully back. Unfortunately, I will see you all next year.
There is much to be done before this story comes back fully.