Fresh Air (OPEN)

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan was out for a stroll. He felt that spending all of his time concerned with the problems surrounding the city would just drive him to an early grave. He didn't want to die, so... He went for a walk. It wasn't long before he came upon the park. He hadn't been here in a while, so... He decided to spend some time around it instead of just walking through.

He played Frisbee with some kids, pet a few dogs, and... Breathed. Relaxed... He knew it wouldn't be long before e would have to go back to being depressed, but... He was going to enjoy this while it lasted.

[John Nicholson]

The park, a  good place to go for a walk, John had always liked how the parks in this city were quite well designed towards older people. so there he was, sitting on a bench, looking at the people passing by, where did they come from and where did they go? he didn't really care as long as they left him to his own devices. He was thinking about recent events; the awakening of his persona and the discovery of the truth about the outer circle. What was going on here? Was the outer circle the real world or an alternative world? and what was the nature of these 'shadows'.

He sat there, contemplating, when a certain individual in the crowd caught his attention. He was a teenager, 14, maybe 15 years. He looked like something was troubling him. John, being in a surprisingly talkative mood, decided to try cheer this young man up, after all, he still had a whole life ahead of him. unlike John.

He gestured at the young man, trying to catch his attention. "Hey you, can you come over here son, I think there's something troubling you" He had no idea whether or not the kid would come over or even hear him talking. If he decided to ignore him, John would just remain sitting there, most likely lost in thought again.

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan glanced around. He had just heard a voice, and he couldn't tell if it was directed towards him or not. He looked around when he saw an older man looking at him. With a grin starting to spread across his face Tristan turned to face the old guy. "Sir, are you talking to me?"

Deciding that the man could only of been talking to him, Tristan meandered over towards him. "Not much troubling me, sir, other than the impending demise of the city." Now, Tristan didn't say this lightly. He used it as a sort of test. He couldn't tell anymore who knew about the Shadows, so he used a generally two-meaning question. Someone didn't know what he was talking about would generally assume that he was crazy, talking about a video game, or talking about something related to the "radiation" outside. Someone who knew about everything would automatically know that he knew.

It seemed pretty ingenious to Tristan, at least until he said it out loud. It sounded pretty stupid then. Sighing, he looked to the old man. "My name's Tristan. Nice to meet you."

[John Nicholson]

Impending demise fo the city? What a strange thing to say. at first glance the military lockdown of the city was quite secure, so the average joe would have no reason to suspect there was any real danger to the city itself. Following this train of thought, this kid either didn't trust the lockdown's security or had seen wat was in the outer circle. In any case, it was a safe bet to at least allude to the truth of things. "Nice to meet you too, Tristan. So what is it about impending demise and the like? It's not like there are monsters out there. Or at least, that's what the general public knows." He gestured over to the empty spot on the bench he was occupying. "Are you catching my drift here?" If he had guessed wrong about Tristan's knowledge about the situation, the worst he would get were probably some strange looks.

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan followed the man's gestures and sat down. Not any monsters out there? Well, at least I was smart in what I said. It would have sucked to have ended the conversation early. He looked at the oldtimer, wondering how the old guy knew about what was out there. Is it possible that this geezer has the power of Persona? Or is he a civvie like that one guy in the fight with the schoolgirl?

With a smile, Tristan responded with a nod. "I catch your drift. Monsters, huh? What would make you think of those? After all, the odds of anyone knowing about them are slim, if they did exist. Well, unless some people had some sort of special power or what-not."

[John Nicholson]

Well, it seemed the allusion and play of words was starting to pay off. but it was time to get a definitive answer. "Ok, enough with the subtlety, I'll ask you bluntly, are you an user?" John chose that particular word as it seemed fairly neutral yet would allow the other kid to confirm him being a persona user,  presuming he actually was a persona user. And if he wasn't, John could simply handwave it away as being an 'old people thing' or something of the like.

[Tristan Carter]

With a fit of laughter, Tristan looked at the one-eyed oldtimer. "Bluntly indeed!" He started to break into another fit of laughter, but was able to calm himself. "A user? Most people would think you meant drugs, old man. However, I'm not most people. Yeah, I'm a User. Now then... Are you a User? Or are you just someone who knows the truth? Because if you are a User, you're the wrinkliest one I've met."

Tristan suddenly felt bad. He just insulted the old guy. That wasn't exactly like him. Even if these were unusual times. He sighed, hoping that the man realized that he had meant nothing by it. "Sorry about that. That was rude of me."

[John Nicholson]

John laughed at the boy's profuse apologies "No need to be sorry about that son, Back in my day me and my friends used to call each other all kinds of names. you would have to do much worse efore you even mildly insult me. And to answer your question. Yes, I'm a user too." He wondered what kind of weaponry the kid used. He looked quite physically imposing, Being a bit larger than John himself. "So, How long has it been since you awakened, It hasn't been that long for me. I still have trouble believing all this is real sometimes."

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan considered what the old man said. Also a User... Wow, everyone is starting to jump on the bandwagon. Even those who look like they'd break a leg doing so. With a small smile, he looked at the old guy. "I've had mine for a while, but haven't really done anything about it until recently." He had his Persona for about a month, trying to get a grip on things.

"As for the trying to figure it out, I'm fairly sure it's real. Otherwise, the pain's pretty good for just a dream or hallucination. Trust me, it isn't exactly all that great. Which actually brings me to my next question. How well are you able to hold yourself in a fight?"

[John Nicholson]

How well was he able to carry himself in a fight. Well, it seemed like a good time to talk about that. "Son, take a look at this Beret here" He gestured at the clothing piece on his head "you might not have noticed, but this beret signifies me being a former US marine, Even if I didn't have the power to summon an awesome dude that comes out of thin air and blast things with energy blasts, I would still be able to clear a room in the time it would take you to get the door open." His voice now had a certain vigor to it as he started to think back about the good times. "So, what are you worth in a fight?"

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan looked at the guy with respect. "Former Marine, huh? That seems like an interesting job. As for me, I can shoot fire from my fingers, as well as light and darkness. Oh, and I can heal myself if needed. Plus, I have a wicked scythe that allows me to fight all nitty-gritty." He considered a moment. That was quite a bit of bragging from him. He had just lost some respect for himself.

Other than that, he figured it was all true. He could totally do all of that. "Sorry, if i seemed overconfident. It's just that I haven't died yet!"

[John Nicholson]

Tristan seemed to have a degree of respect to John's status as a former marine. "Trust me kid. Being a marine was anything but the best years of my life" The kid then continues the discussion into his own capabilities. It all seemed quite believable given the context of his claims. Although even then John had to stop and question the practical effectiveness of a scythe in combat. If it had been a katana or whatever those eastern swords were called these days it would at least have been a weapon that was actually designed with combat in mind. But a scthe seemed like a needlessly complicated choise of weaponry. "A scythe huh. That doesn't exactly sound like the most practical weapon ever."

[Tristan Carter]

The man had doubts about the practicality of using a scythe in battle, huh? Tristan didn't blame him, but the scythe was a solid weapon. "Well, the scythe has seen me through a share of battles. It hasn't let me down yet, so I'm not going to start doubting it now. And you, sir? What do you utilize?"

Considering that the oldtimer used to be a marine, Tristan figured he was proficient in using firearms. The specific kind was what interested him. A man's outlook on fighting was reflected in his choice of gun, and he was curious in how the old guy fought. Probably not a sidearm, he'd figure it wouldn't do as much damage as something bigger. Hmm...

[John Nicholson]

The discussion had now shifted to weaponry. Tristan inquired on Johns choice of weaponry. "Well tristan, I use a shotgun. mostly for the fact that it doesn't require much precision aiming. You would be surprised at how much harder it becomes to use firearms once you lose your depth perception." He said while gesturing at his eyepatch. He sometimes did miss being able to precisely judge distances. Although he adapted to it over time. "Well Tristan, I think it was a good idea of me to decide to talk to you." It was good to have allies in troubled times like these. "But I think it's about time I go home. Is there any place I could reasonably expect to find you if I ever need backup out there?"

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan contemplated the old man's weapon of choice. A shotgun was simple and easy to use, sure. But what if he ever ran out of ammunition? It didn't make for a great weapon. Still, he couldn't begrudge the old guy. A shotgun is probably what he's most comfortable with.

As for here the old man could find him... Tristan had started to frequent the bookstore. And there was always school, although it may look a little odd. So he doubted that it would do. "Well, sir, not really anywhere. Unless you're up to sitting around a bookstore for a while."