1st Truth☼

[leaderly]

[Video]

[The screen shows Souji standing in a parking lot, the baseball field he arrived at in the background. He's holding his NV in front of him so it's not completely steady, but he's doing his best. He has a serious expression on his face, his eyes sharply looking at the camera of the NV.]Naoto Shirogane, if you can hear me, please stay where

Comments

[outbursting]

Sorry.

[He is just too shocked to see the both of them. The last that he saw Souji was during the riots ... Rise and his dead body. It's more than a little weird to be talking to him now, like that didn't happen. But it seems like he doesn't remember it. Kanji was awhile ago, too, but--]

This is a city in Canada. The Core is what brought you here. It's ... well, no one really knows what it is other than it has a lot of power. It closed off this entire city so that people can't leave it, but people get dragged here for one reason or another. If you try to leave, you feel what is known as the Pull ... your heart starts to hurt.

[Crossing his arms, he continues.]

Honestly, I ... I come from another timeline than you guys. Like, I dunno how to explain it, man. Time works differently when you're in these cities. Back then, back when I was in Inaba, it was already December. But then I was dragged out of Inaba by one city known as NeoGenesis. We -- the friends that I made there -- were able to break free, but just before we were able to go home ... we ended up here in Siren's Port.

[His arms fall down to his sides.]

As for the others, I guess, I guess they're back in Inaba. [Yosuke resists saying, 'for now.'] Does that clear anything up?

[leaderly]

[Souji listened quietly and put a hand subconsciously to his chest when Yosuke mentioned the Pull. It was almost too much to take in. Pulled? By a city? Then again, jumping into TVs and wielding Personas wasn't exactly normal either...]

So...it's like another dimension?

Only Kanji and I were "pulled" here.

[His gaze had become sharp and steely.]

...And you were displaced twice?

[outbursting]

Yeah, exactly that!

[Those were the words that he was looking for but unsure how to word them. Yosuke nods a second time when it seems like Souji got it, but then, he got a lot of things really fast. That just was why he was -- is -- their leader.]

Yeah, I was.

[leaderly]

[Souji was...unsure of how to proceed from here.]

What have you been doing this whole time?

[outbursting]

Living in this city.

[leaderly]

You haven't just been sitting around for two years is what I meant.

Right?

[outbursting]

No. I've been trying to figure out how to get back to Inaba, but I haven't been very successful.

[leaderly]

[For the first time in awhile, he breaks his concentration on Yosuke to look away in thought. Well he had already explained the pulling in his heart...So just getting up to leave doesn't work. What about...But Yosuke's been away from Inaba for two years...He must have tried this by now, but it was worth asking, just in case. His tone is even when he speaks.]

What about the "Core" that you were talking about? Is there a way to reverse it so that it sends us back?

[outbursting]

[Yosuke lets out a soft breath. The last time that he had spoken with Souji, the two had ended at odds with one another. It seemed like he could only trust in Kanji. His gaze slips over to the other in question, smiling awkwardly, before looking back at the questions.]

I dunno, man. No one's letting anyone get near it. SERO has it pretty much guarded and it has some radiation issues. Last people that tried to attack it ... I think one went blind. So it's not the smartest plan to take it on. If you get past the suits guarding it, you have to deal with the trouble that it brings in just its presence.

[leaderly]

...I see.

[Souji puts a hand on his hip as he thinks for another minute or two, trying to decide what to ask next.]

Kanji and I first...appeared here from over there. [He points back towards the baseball field]

Who were those people in the blue and white uniforms?

[outbursting]

[He nods, agreeing that made sense.]

SERO. They're more or less in charge of the Core now. Probably gonna get a lot of shit about people arriving when they said they had it under control.

[leaderly]

Other than "in charge of the Core", who are they? How did they come to control it?

...And do you think that they'll be able to help us get back?

[outbursting]

The mayor gave it to 'em. They're full of scientists and the like ... try not to look like having too many interesting powers. They may snatch you to try to figure out how they work...

[He shakes his head.]

They're only supposed to look at the Core. Observe it and nothing more. I dunno if they can actually help us go back. I'd rather not be in debt to them.

[leaderly]

[Souji blinked at this.]

How would I look like I "have interesting powers"?

[outbursting]

[A small gesture and his Persona card appears in his hand. He holds it up to Souji.]

Can you feel it? You should be able to summon these here. I think that it's all right that mine seems to be mostly healing and I haven't used any of the other abilities, so... I'm kind of boring, I'm sure.

[leaderly]

[This time, almost completely in shock, Souji subconsciously reached up towards the card. This was too strange. They were in the real world...supposedly. Almost as though to double-check, he looks around to make doubly sure there are no Shadows around.

He closed his eyes and attempted to feel his Personae. He had never done this in the real world, and so it was odd when he felt a tingling sensation in his right hand and 8 tarot cards appeared in his hand. His eyes snapped open as he stared down at them.]

I have all of them here.

[He looked back up at Yosuke, calming himself down, his face sliding back to neutral. Something was off with the second part of what Yosuke said.]

Why would you need to use healing?