Imperial Magician's (Tristan, and Vice)

[Aile Kalias]

It had been a somewhat long day for Aile. The recent stream of events had been bothering him, and somehow, by mere chance, Aile had managed to summon Volt for a second and third time, once by accident in his room when he starting doing a random self reflection while going over some homework, and the third time, when he got lost while walking in his free time, as he ran into a shadow. 

Upon the second time of meeting the man's inner self, Aile had taken to calling Djehuti Volt, as he used electricity and also seemed wound up like the American Energizer bunny. Also around this time, Volt had taken to talking with Aile mentally, which bothered him at first, since he was essentially talking with himself, but it helped pass some of the free time that he had whenever he finished homework and wasn't in the mood for games.

Now, back to the current time, it had been a long day for Aile. He had a test for almost every class he had that day, and was mentally exhausted and for once, external help was somewhat useful, though it was more like internal help. Volt had managed to help with some equations and other important things that Aile forgot while taking the test, but despite the help that was given, it kept distracting Aile all throughout the tests because Volt had a tendency to wonder off into random topics that encircled Aile's head from earlier in the day. Needless to say, there were a lot of stray thoughts written down, instead of test answers.

Then after a few moments, the bell rang, and the students started filing out of the room, excited for the weekend. The magician did not rise with them, as he took his time, packing his bags, and grabbing his practice sword, slinging its case over his shoulder. He was excited for what was to come this weekend, somewhat. He was supposed to help some guy who was failing a few classes, and then would proceed to his room after the study session to play games.

After Aile was done packing up, he started towards the door, only to see another student still in the class, with his feet propped up on a desk playing some sort of game, and after thinking back a few days, Aile remembered that the guy had pissed off a few people over something big, something city wide...like the lock down.

Aile rather interested in the lock down, and why they were locked down, but for some reason most people didn't want to talk about it. Were they scared of something? So, with Volt's mental pushing, Aile walked over to the man and then said, in a curious sense," So, what're your thoughts on the lock down?"

[Vice Ysal]

There were a lot of things to do in life, and more nowadays if only because of the new possibilities that would open up due to the lock down. Ironic that the moment where new doors would open would be when so many had to be literally closed off to them. Still, living here for the past 19 years did have both of its pros and cons though with how adventurous Vice had been in his 'younger days' a lot of the places that could have been seen as entertainment had more or less turned into nostalgic reminiscing or as a means to waste time when his body wasn't feeling up to exploring the shadow lands. The biker shook his head as he spat out the fluorine from his mouth and gurgled some mouth wash soon after. He was in one of the communal bathrooms in the park, cleaner than most areas surprisingly enough, and had taken a break to keep up with his dental hygiene. As it were, he also had plans tonight to head back to the shadow lands for a bit more practice and maybe get some work done on the maps that were in his room.

Splashing his face with some water, freshening up a bit, the young man once more took a good look on the mirror and adjusted the collar of his leather jacket. The maroon shirt inside was still prim and proper while the dark blue denim pants were still clean. Biker boots were still clocked up and he was out again on the road towards the school, the sounds of his motorcycle rounding up quite a few looks. Positive or negative, it isn't really important to him. The winds whipped against his steadily growing hair, hair that already reached up to his shoulders with how long it was, and soon enough he managed to reach the gates of the school that he had graduated from roughly 5 years ago. And just like a normal day for him, the moment his black vehicle made it into view of the students who had been exiting the grounds to finally enjoy their weekend would turn their heads in either wonder, irritation, or any plethora of other reactions at seeing some rowdy ass motherfucker decide to park his noisy, the thing was loud enough to reach the roof top of the school building, ass motorcycle into school grounds. Where one would expect the guard to be a hardass on Vice, the old man just laughed heartily and patted the young man on the back.

"Still up to your old shit, sonny?" The greying guard asked with a broad grin on his face as to which Vice just represented with a small grinnish smirk of his own. The biker gave some of the onlookers an upward nod of his head as if to say 'Sup'…though a lot of them took it as a challenge and quickly bowed out. Bah, looks like his name was still a big thing around here. And here he thought going to University would have rectified that. Shaking his head, amusement leaking off the action, the young man then placed his bike back to park it properly and to avoid having it stolen by some of the more notorious kids around. The guard wouldn't mind looking after it but still, better be safe than sorry. Standing back here though, on the school grounds of where so much shit happened, well, Vice couldn't help but be nostalgic about it. It did put him on a great mood though, so his reactions to quite a few things may change as compared to his usual demeanour.

Well, now that was here, might as well start looking for some of the teachers to visit and see if some of the kids who were under him were still here…and maybe find something out about what had happened a month ago in the auditorium.

[Tristan Carter]

Having finished his test early, Tristan had made himself comfortable before pulling out his handheld. He had it just for occasions such as this so that he wouldn't have to spend time bored. He played around a bit, figuring out the aspects of a new game when someone approached him about the lockdown. This snapped Tristan to reality long enough to realize that the school day was done.

With a grin, Tristan stood up and stretched. He hadn't noticed time had went by so quickly, so engrossed into the game he was. He then turned to the kid who had talked to him about the lockdown. It wasn't as if his views about the subject were secret. He had yelled at a few freshmen who were joking about going out to the shadowlands. This had earned him a bit of a reputation. He didn't pay attention to what the reputation was, but he doubted it was good.

Still, as for the question at hand. He needed to come up with a good answer, one that would keep the kid away from the shadows. Tristan doubted that the kid had a Persona, but even if he did it wasn't as if he was safe. This in mind, Tristan started his bluff.

"My thoughts on the lock down? Well, even if the radiation thing is a lie you'd have to put up with the military. So, while I feel the lockdown is bull, it wouldn't be safe to venture out there." With a nod of his head, he noticed Vice wandering the halls. "Hey kid, follow me. This guy will probably help me explain." That said, he headed out the door, calling Vice's name.

[Aile Kalias]

It seemed that the man had finally heard him as he put his game away and started stretching before stating his views on the topic. The way he talked seemed familiar, not the voice, but how the actual words came out, almost care free. After that, the man had dragged Aile, not physically, but mentally as he said there was someone who could explain everything in more detail, so Aile in his piqué of curiosity followed Tristan. And after a few brief moments, they came across a man who was wondering around the halls as though he was looking for something, but also did not look friendly. This had caused Aile to blurt out,"Is this biker guy the one you were talking about? He doesn't look like he really knows much about the lock down, but maybe some more of the back streets." It was rude, and somewhat insulting, but Aile didn't care. He wanted to let this man know what he thought of him to get any possible awkward introductions out of the way.

Crossing his arms, the more novice magician crosses his arms saying," So...biker guy, despite your looks, my friend whose name I don't know says you can answer some of my lockdown questions." He paused briefly before adding," My name is Aile." He didn't bother giving his full first name, because it was long and most people would forget the last part or pronounce it wrong, so he didn't bother giving it.

This blunt remark had caused the child like persona to butt into Aile's thoughts as he waited for the seemingly thug like guy to respond. "I agree, he does look like he knows a whole lotta nuthin'. I can't believe the guy we're hangin' out with believes this brain dead lookin' guy might actually know something about the military placed lockdown." With this Aile simply nodded. He knew that this was pretty much the same conclusion of the things he just came to, but the re-confirmation of it helped with how he thought, but also brought forth another...possible stray thought...looks can be deceiving.

NOTES: Blunt Aile is Blunt, also what volt says is only within Aile's mind for clarification.

[Vice Ysal]

"Ah Lazarus, it really has been a while!"

An old woman smiled, her teeth showing just enough to show how positively surprised she was at the unscheduled visit by one of her former students. Seeing as class was just about to end, the normally strict and grumpy old timer decided to use up the remaining three minutes of the class she had left to introduce the young man that had decided to drop by. Straightening up, her eyes narrowing in that same creepy way she did a few years, one couldn't really tell that the woman who had just been smiling was the same as this rickety old timer who looked to have a penchant for smacking highschoolers around with a meter stick for good measure.

"Listen up you ungrateful brats! This kid here? This kid here used to be a student of mine and he was helluva lot more disciplined than you all combined! Texting during class, gossiping about some hishhash and such, bah! Girls, this is a guy you pick to go to bed with! Guys, this is a role model for you!" Vice didn't have the heart to tell her that he didn't give that much of a damn about her lectures either. Looking at the rest of the class, the biker just gave them a small apologetic tilt of his head and a rueful smile as the old hag continued ranting about the weakness of the younger generation. Like most old people did. Soon enough, the class finally got dismissed and along with them did Vice file out of the class. He got a few looks, whose intent he wasn't quite sure on, from both males and females but decided to just drop it. He still needed to find the janitor anyway and ask what the hell happened to the auditorium.

He was just about to head on over there, check up on things, when a voice called out to him. Turning to face said voice, the biker momentarily deflated at seeing who it was. Ah well, can't always expect to get what you want. Honestly it would have been easier had it been one of his former pseudo underling thing but it just turned out to be another User along with some other kid. At the mentioning of the lockdown thing though, really. "Ahah. The biker jacket still does that huh?" A small smile on his face still, Vice then proceeded to pull out a familiar looking rubber band before tying his hair back into a ponytail, pulling out a pair of glasses from the insides of his pockets, and taking off the jacket to hang over his shoulder. "Sup? Name's Vice." And introductions are now over.

"Feel free to ask if you've got questions. I'll be heading to the cafeteria first though. Been a while since I last had a late lunch here."

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan watched as Vice pulled his hair back and put on glasses. He was dumbstruck, as this was the first time that he had seen Vice look like this. He actually looked, well, respectable. This was a major change.

Getting over his sudden shock, Tristan started to head towards the cafeteria. He only got a few steps when he turned around, remembering something. "Aile, you said you are? My name's Tristan." With that said, he turned to Vice. "I was just telling my new buddy here about how it would be dangerous to wander outside of town no matter if the radiation was real or not. Don't you agree?"

[Aile Kalias]

Quietly Aile followed Tristan and Vice to the kitchen after Vice had gone through his somewhat entirely altering appearance, though it didn't exactly change the blunt man's mind on how he viewed the man, one who changed for another respect was not worthy of that respect unless he proved it, but considering how Tristan was convinced that the man knew a lot of the outside area, Aile would pay some respects to the biker.

Upon reaching the cafeteria, Aile said, somewhat ignoring Tristan's attempt to get to Vice," So, I am aware of the danger outside of the circle, well aware of that exactly, as I have experienced it first hand, and a few things happened afterward that I can't remember too well exactly. What I want to know is what is causing it to be dangerous that the military ,that has yet to be affiliated with any country if I recall, has decided to pretty much quarantine an entire massive city? Is it because of some of those black sludgy things? Or maybe something they aren't telling us?" With this, he then sat down across the table from Vice. He wanted answers, but he also wanted something so much more than answers, he wanted experience, he wanted to feel the thrill of fighting those creatures again, but alas it would be stupid to take them on by himself with very little combat experience. To sum it all up, Aile wanted to go back.

With this, the newer magician thought to himself about the topic. He was truly curious about what was going on, and hopefully this chain of events would inspire a newer piece of art from him, but he also needed to worry about getting a job, the dorms weren't cheap and he was slowly running out of abroad studying money.

Then he asked," So...how do you supposably know so much about the shadowlands?" That was the last major question that he could come across, as it was also one that had his curiosity at the purest core. Was there something special about the man across from him that gave him this supposed knowledge of the surreal place of darkness and disaster.

[Vice Ysal]

The cafeteria hasn't changed at all. Still the same old sterilised place that it was all those years back and still the same healthy paste that cost a fortune to eat. Vice swore, something about schools and food and as generic as possible. Still, the food was as filling as anything else and he still got a discount from it thanks to the ID in his wallet. Uttering a small thanks tot he counter girl, Vice brought the tray of food he had to an empty table in the center of the room. Less suspicion, less looks, and since there weren't a lot of people who tended to stay behind after school hours, it'd be easy to talk about a few things that indirectly concerns them without having their curiosity piqued to a self-harming levels. Though the biker didn't look like it, Vice was honestly listening to whatever it was that was being thrown at him. Just that he considered getting some food in his stomach to be a more important thing than answering at once. A few more spoon fulls and a sip of his orange juice, and the alumnus was ready to speak.

"Good to hear that you know what's really going on outside then." Vice began as he rolled the food he had left into an easier form for his spoon. "The reason as to why the Military did that? That's something all of us have been asking ourselves but with the development of the researches, we've managed to come up with a couple of theories of what's happening: the most prominent one being that the Military is in fact Shadows taking a disguise. What are they doing this for? Most likely to feed themselves or some such. Thought processes and habitual records of shadows have yet to be properly examined so it's difficult to actually say anything without tripping over it." Another sip of his delightful orange juice. "And yes, if you've noticed, those 'black sludgy thingies' are called Shadows. That'll be important for future references so make sure to remember it."

Taking another spoonfuls to finally finish his small order, Vice then drank down the remaining of his orange juice and gave Aile the old 'Glare' he had reserved for those people who actually crossed him. It was just a moment though, but it should be enough to at least show something off about him. Being underestimated was fine for the most part, made for easy pickings when Vice surprised them, but by now the guy should at least begin to have some stock in the biker's words.

"That said, the reason why I know? I've been at this for a bit longer than most Locals. And for the record, I do know quite a bit about the backstreets of both Inner and Outer Mosaic too." Finished with a grin, Vice leaned back a bit to see if anything else would be forth coming from this conversation.

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan had been listening to the conversation between the two before he could finally form coherent thoughts, let alone words. Still, when he did the words flew out of his mouth in an incoherent jumble. He knew that the other two would just look at him odd, but he couldn't help it. Best he could do is fix his mistake and speak reasonably.

He started with the new guy, Aile. "You're a user? Let me give you a piece of advice from someone who's experienced this firsthand- you have a really good chance of dying you go out there. I'm not going to stop you, but keep it in mind. Don't be afraid to run if needed." He then turned to the biker.

"You say we know next to nothing about how our enemies act outside of battle? Shouldn't we have started to study these things? It seems like it's in our best interests to learn as much as possible about our singular enemy. These things could help in learning how to get rid of them from the area. Heck, isn't that how it works in games half the time?" He inhaled sharply, not wanting to seem like he was on a rant but already knowing it was too late. "You say we don't know much. What do we know?"

[Aile Kalias]

Aile listened to the two as they were obviously more experienced than he in the somewhat secret art of fighting shadows. Yes, going alone would be bad, but how could improve if they never left the nest on their own, birds have to fly on their own at some point. But when Vice glared at him, Aile just started glaring back. The faces one could make didn't really mean anything unless they were funny, but Aile would partially respect Vice for his knowledge of the creatures aptly named shadows.

He then said," So, obviously I'll need some training, probably a lot of it since the first time he was summoned, we barely made it out and it seemed what he was doing was actually effective against the monsters. So, is there a special training ground, or do you guys wanna take me to the shadow grounds to train?" Then after thinking of what Tristan said, Aile also added," Yes, I agree with Tristan, what all do we know of the shadow creatures?"

With this he began thinking, if he just so happened to run into two people who could fight the shadows, within a time span of roughly ten minutes or so, how many others could fight the shadows?

[Vice Ysal]

"Before I explain anything else, I just want to be clear on one thing." The biker continued as he let out a slightly exasperated sigh at how things have been going. There were enough upstarts in the team and trying to make yourself out to be better than you actually were, all, those choices carried some pretty hefty consequences. "Death is a possibility. You've barely seen the tip of the iceberg so don't even think that you're anything but an inconvenience for the Shadows. All of us are. There is nothing special, nothing grand, and nothing to be personally gained from this debacle. And no, the only area where we can actually get a better feel for our Persona is in the Shadow Lands." Vice sighed again. He hated having to give this speech. Honestly. "Everything you do there counts, be it stopping to take a whiff of the air or bending down to pick up a rock. It isn't a game where you have a second chance."

Turning to Tristan before looking back at Aile, the biker scooted away a bit to give himself an easier time to look at the two of them without making it seem as if he just staring into the space between them. "With that out of the way, in regards to general shadow behaviour, do you want to know why its so difficult to find new information that doesn't pertain to living conditions, Battle tactics, spells and skills, individual characteristics, and external stimuli? It's because Shadows who actually show off any kind of notable intelligence are the most dangerous kind. They may not attack on sight, nor would they even consider you a threat, but they know what we're doing and they know how to keep it hidden. Not to mention the fact that they're leagues stronger than the average shadow, and you can see why getting information can be deadlier than you can imagine."

"In regards to what we do know, their nests are locations that we've been able to map out well enough. The weaker shadows simply mill about like animals, doing what they can for the most basic of instincts: survival. As they progress in strength, they become smarter, more intelligent, and exhibit more sentient measures of action. Shadows can talk, change forms, and interact with people. We also have a more detailed board of information but explaining it like this wouldn't be of much use." Another sigh as Vice adjusted the glasses he was wearing. "That said, the only way we can even think of learning anything more is to get stronger to thrive outside so that we can figure out what the hell is happening. And to get stronger means we have to fight. Knowing everything doesn't mean anything if you can't back it up on the field."

[Tristan Carter]

Listening intently, Tristan noticed that Vice spoke of shadows changing form. He waited for Vice to finish before asking him about it.

"Changing form? So it stands to reason then that the two shadows who barged in on the big battle, the ones who people knew and actually said had human forms, that those would be really upperclass shadows? Obviously not the highest class, per se, as they needed our help during the fight; but that means that we were fighting alongside some of the strongest normal shadows out there?"

Tristan asked his question before realizing that Aile would need to be filled in on this subject. Turning so that he could easily swivel between the other two users, he looked to the newest member of the growing group known as "Users." With a sigh, he worded everything the best way he could before speaking.

"I'm able to help fill you in on some more recent developments. Let's see... On full moons extremely large shadows enter the safe area. It gives off this... Horrible feeling, one that seems to crush your soul. At least, that's how I feel." He realized that he had yet to discuss this peculiar feeling with anyone else. He assumed that the others felt it, but he recognized that he could be wrong. "In the latest one, we were helped by multiple shadows. I don't really know why, but they knew people that were there. They spoke to them and were responded to. It was scary, truth be told. Anyway, I've found out recently that one of them is actually a classmate of ours, Aile. His name's Gin." He looked at Vice, unsure if he had missed anything major. Then the last part of Vice's chunk of speech set in.

"Wait," he said, unsure about where this is going. "This sounds like you're getting ready to take this guy out to train. If that's so, then I'm coming. Before you even say anything for or against it, hear me out. This could not only help provide him with a way to tell the differing strengths of users, but it could also help him work on teamwork before the next full moon. I know that our's was lacking in the last one, but this could be of use to help prepare more for these things." He wasn't sure if Vice would go for it or not, so he turned to Aile. "What do you say, wanna train alongside me?"

[Aile Kalias]

After listening to the two Aile answered with a plain and simple yes to the training, before he added," I'll need to improve some how, which means it would probably be best to go now, but what Tristan said brings up another question to my mind. You said shadows....were fighting....other shadows. Was there a specific reason for this, or merely an attempt at showing dominance?" With this, Aile thought back to what Tristan had just said prior, one of his class mates was a shadow. That brought up a few questions, primarily why would he be in school, and also what would be the cause as to why he hasn't tried to kill any of the class mates yet. Other than that, Aile was perfectly fine with this information as long as it didn't lead to trouble.

Then Aile stood up, out of his chair and motioned for the other two to follow suit in his request for training. He had a feeling it would be fun, at the very least it would be useful excersise for the mind and body. And with a subtle confirmation of his request, he tightened his now existant grip on his practice sword, before Volt chimed in mentally," I think if we are going to be fighting these shadows, you'll need something better than a wooden sword. Maybe we'll find something better soon? Either way, lets get a move on, I'm gettin' excited."

[Vice Ysal]

"The shadow in question, according to the atmosphere presented during the battle, showed signs of wanting to team up with us Users. Naturally, that's a rather unexpected case seeing as we've deemed shadows to be enemies of human kind as of the moment. It's also an isolated event so there isn't enough statistical evidence to reject the null hypothesis." Vice began, answering the lingering question from the newest member of the 'group' before turning his head slightly to face Tristan.

"I haven't gotten a clear evaluation as to where he stands. Physically, he should be able to handle it with the help of his Persona but in terms of Mental ability, well, I did have a few tests in mind yet you seem to be so adamant on this, Tristan." Cue the mandatory evil villain glasses manoeuvre to catch the light from the light bulbs. "As per the usual, I'll be leaving him in your care." The words I won't be helping out this time did not need to be reiterated if only to drive the point of death being a possibility further home. Turning to look at Aile, who's posture was indicating that he was about to leave, Vice made sure to increase his voice up to a good enough level to make him sound commanding enough. That, and to make sure that Aile wasn't going deaf on him.

"Aile." The biker began as he stayed seated on his spot. "There's no reason to be in a rush. Go home, gather your things, and maybe get a few lunch boxes for yourself. Don't expect this to be as simple as a video game. We unfortunately don't have the luxury of save points." Stretching a bit as he stood up from his position, the oldest of the three then placed the jacket back on his person, took off the glasses but kept the pony tail on.

"Tristan? Take him to the usual place and be there at 9 PM. Don't forget your support skills either."

[Tristan Carter]

Tristan was listening to Vice when the biker said something that threw him off balance. "You want me to do the training? I'm... I don't think I'd be the best option. Not unless I could bring in someone else. That way, if we encounter something really big we'd have little issue in taking it down if needed." He considered a moment. He could probably bring in Phoebe on this, if he could get her to help kill the shadows.

"You know what? Sure, I'll do it. However, Aile, I'm gonna need to know something. What all spells have you used so far? This'll be important on the field, and it will help me know what to bring." He looked to Vice. "Would you recommend anything?"