Revolutionaries

She despised that word -- hated it -- hated it more than any other word in the English language. It was a word which she was loath to speak: a word which always managed to leave a sour taste on her lips regardless of how many times she uttered it. People often associated it with concepts such as happiness, or harmony, or understanding. But in truth it was none of those things. The human species had learnt a long time ago to avert their gaze from the true meaning of the word "normal" and just what it entailed. They learnt to pretend as though things were alright, they learnt to forget about the pain they saw hidden away in the faces and hearts of those around them; they learnt to believe wholeheartedly in a status quo that spat in the faces of the weak, the downtrodden, and the helpless and laughed as it trampled over them in the name of a brighter tomorrow which would never come. Azami, however, was no ordinary human. There was a time in her life when she could avert her gaze, when she could believe in the term she detested so much nowadays, but that time had long since passed. Azami Aihara was a girl unable to look away from the true state of the world. Ever since that one slap all those years ago... that awful, stinging sensation that lingered in her cheek as she laid on the ground paralyzed with fear...

That was the catalyst. It was what enabled her to see through the countless illusions that surrounded normalcy. Though targets changed and methods varied, the normal world so many desired to return to would always retain suffering in some form, in some way. Loss and pain were always going to be a part of life, if not for the self than for others. And Azami couldn't accept that; there was no way she could live in a reality like that. Of course it wasn't as though she had any choice... Up until now, that is. With the arrival of the supernatural the world became abnormal. Previous conceptions and rules that people had observed within reality easily gave way to the new powers and entities which began to show up all over Azores. Naturally panic spread amongst the populace and fear overtook the hearts of the masses, but Azami felt something far different. For the first time in a long while she felt hope. Hope that a new world could be salvaged from the ruins of the old, hope that her special power could open a gateway to infinite possibilities and tear down the current status quo... It was a wonderful feeling; it filled her with life. Thinking on that brought a smile to her usually dour face as she walked through Lunapa with Joshua and Simon following behind her. She had been silent for most of the walk so far and had simply been focusing on leaving the island, but it was now that she decided to speak up. Her feet would skid to a stop and the Wild Card would spin around to face Joshua: the same grin from before affixed to her face.

"When this whole mess began, when you discovered you were a weirdo and had the power to use a Persona, how'd you feel Joshua? Did you want to go back to how things were before -- to that 'normal' world that people just won't shut up about? Or...?"

Joshua didn't like any of this at all. Then again, when has he liked any of the things Fate handed him other than victory over the people he had to defeat? There was so many things that he couldn't understand about Azami, nor any of her real goals. But now that her life was connected to the islands, she was potentially far more dangerous than what Isla or Zachary could come up with. He saw what Hyde was capable of, the miracle that he performed to banish the Primordials and end the conflict two years ago. He knew well of the potential she had even though she paled in comparison to her predecessor, but her growth was still something to be worried about.

He knit his brows together in annoyance. Why is she asking that question? The Nyarlathotep Child had other shit to worry about than answering questions about himself. But he obliged for now with his lips beginning to part in answer, "If you were talking about the retarded shit two years ago when the Primordials started their bitchfit, then yeah. Of course I wanted things to go back to normal. There's nothing great or wonderful about having these powers..."

Joshua never wanted any of this shit. Being an introvert from the start, he tried to recover from it and tried to experience what life had for him so that he could live without any real regrets. Even after ridding of the Primordials, he didn't ask for any special favors. But all of that changed when that "happened". What he gave back to the World, the World did the equivalent of spitting back into his face.

He utterly owed nothing to it. No one could ever convince him to do anything for its sake because he was given nothing in return. Which is why... it was different when Yamato-Takeru was summoned.


"...things changed when I awakened again for the first time today," he slowly admitted as he remembered that sensation, "It hurt, but... I felt... free. Exhilarated."

He paused for a moment, trying to make sense out of it. Why? Why did Yamato-Takeru come to him? How did it all happen? Even now, despite the means to keep it contained, that Persona possessed the intention to run amok, to run free. But he shook his head at this.

Azami wasn't an inherently trusting person. She was skeptical, wary, and even downright cynical. But this situation required her to place her trust in someone from that group. So when Joshua finished his response she couldn't help but feel happy. At that moment she was confident she made the correct choice. Motioning for Joshua to follow, Azami would place her hands in her pockets and continue to walk forward as she began to speak once more. "When I met up with Nozomi I found myself falling through the stars and awoke to a strange white room. It wasn't the first time I had met with Nozomi, nor was it the first time that I had fallen through those stars, nor was it the first time that I had awoken to that room. In fact, those were more or less the same circumstances behind our very first meeting. But this time things were different. We awoke standing up on opposite ends of the room and there was a strange presence there with us in the form of a black miasma. That presence, that entity... I recognized it as my benefactor. Ever since I killed those moth demons and consumed their power I felt it within me; it watched over me and gave me strength."

"When we were fighting YumiAmi it gave me an extra edge that made that battle a little less troublesome. And just before it yanked me away to that white room, back when I felt my own strength get ripped away from me it, it spoke to me..."

The Entity's Message:

"That's what it said. That entity isn't a problem any longer. It possessed Nozomi, betrayed my trust, and attempted to kill me. It nearly would have succeeded, but Nozomi was able to recapture control of his mind and according to him the two became one. Apparently it was some negative part of him that had become its own thing and was running amok. I'm not sure what sort of connection it had to me... I guess it just noticed my desire for power and took advantage of that. Whatever the case, it's gone now, but the information it left me remains. That white tomb it mentioned -- if it's telling the truth then Rinna's there."

"I'm not sure what's waiting for me in that tomb... But I think it might be some kind of power or some means to gather power. I was initially gonna sneak away from the group and go alone as it asked, but now that I'm aware of its true nature I can't discount the possibility that this is some kind of trap or scheme intended to kill me... or worse..." The mental image of the puppet Nozomi flashed across her mind. She shuddered at the thought of ending up like he had been and quickly shook the idea from her mind. "I need power Joshua. I need it to catch up to Nozomi so we aren't all eaten by the core, I need it as a contingency plan to fall back on in case the entity retakes control of him and leaves no other option but conflict, and I need it to..."

Azami paused and hesitance appeared in her eyes. Was it really okay to tell Joshua that? As she thought over the factors which had led her to choose Joshua in the first place and recalled his answer to her question, she felt her reluctance gradually fade away. If there was anyone in this world who could understand her wish, who could understand her desire, it was him. That she was confident of, although whether that confidence was a mistake or not was yet to be seen.


"I hate it, I hate it, I hate it, I hate it. I hate how people struggle through life trying their hardest only to be screwed over by life again and again. I hate how only the rich, and the powerful, and the elite have the right to impact it on any meaningful scale and choose the direction in which they want to take it. I hate how people trample over each other without a second thought all in the name of their own selfish ends. I hate how criminals who ruin the lives of others walk among us just because of one misguided verdict. I hate how living beings and the pain they go through are reduced to cold, meaningless statistics and numbers which are forgotten about the second they become inconvenient for the person bringing them up. And I hate how people look away from the harsh reality when I can't."

"The status quo which everyone is so obsessed with going back to... I don't want that. I don't want to live helplessly in a world stained with suffering and sadness that I can't do anything about. For the longest time I thought had to. But this calamity -- it's the miracle I believed would never come. There's one thing that allows people to shape the world Joshua: power. And I have a power that belongs to me uniquely. Even compared to other weirdos, I'm a weirdo."

"That first time I met Nozomi... When I awoke to that white room I didn't know what was going on. But something appeared which wore my face. It claimed to be the side of me that's willing to take a stand -- the side of me that's willing to fight for and take what I deserve. And it told me to take these islands. So that's exactly what I'm going to do. I'm not giving Azores to Isla or Zachary. I'm going to take it for myself and remake it as I see fit. I'm done living in a world of suffering -- I'm gonna use the cruel, stupid rules of the world against itself to save it: not just from the Core, but from itself."

Azami paused and took a deep breath. Jeez that was a mouthful. What a wall-of-text long speech. With her motives revealed and her figurative mask removed, Azami would give a nervous and uneasy smile. She didn't like revealing this much; perhaps, in hindsight, she shouldn't have revealed this much. Hopefully Joshua would be able to understand and sympathize with her goal. If not, well...


"Isla can't be trusted. At best she'll seek to restore the previous order and return things to how they were before all this supernatural shit started. And as for the worst case scenario... Well, I'm sure you remember what Zachary said about government quarantines. Speaking of him, even if he'd be willing to welcome us back with open arms I'm not too keen on putting the islands in his hands. His rhetoric's nice and all, but you have to remember to watch out for charismatic people like that."

"I want you to help me stop them Joshua. I've told you what I know about Rinna; as long as that entity was telling the truth then she's wherever that 'white tomb' is. And if there's even the slightest chance of some kind of power being contained within there then I need to find it too."

Joshua wasn't quite sure how to feel about this. He stayed silent to listen to what the girl had to say. But his patience paid off when she finally gave the information that no one would ever give him. He could feel the blood in his vein rush in excitement and his pupils dilate. Finally. After all the conflict and useless drama he was dragged around in, this girl was the only one who finally gave him what he wanted. It was so stupid, if anyone wanted him on their side, they only needed to hand him what he wanted. And yet, they missed out on that opportunity.


He never expected to meet someone like him. Joshua loathed what the World had to offer. Isla or Zachary made no difference to him, they were both shitty choices. But to hear something of Azami's ilk was in a way morbidly refreshing. It was almost as if he was looking into a mirror, disturbingly so. There was a part of him that wanted him to destroy everything. Yet, the limitations of his own strength had hindered him so much. It didn't help when there were morons and charlatans that wielded more power than he did. Joshua hated it. And now, there was someone like him with power that potentially had a miracle like Hyde's.

He was strangely silent at first as if thinking about it, but he finally began to speak.


"It's really funny. I didn't think there were more people like me, after being surrounded by the fucking naive morons all the time. It's not like I don't understand where you're coming from and I agree," he sighed while rubbing the back of his neck, "I'm not interested in any of this conflict in the first place. All I want is to get Rinna back and protect what I have left to cherish. It's all I really care about to be honest. But I have to admit, what you're offering to me is tempting..."

He paused again for a moment. Can he really trust Azami? Joshua had a reason to trust her more than the other options and judging by that long spiel, she was being completely honest. On top of that, she had that huge potential... Maybe, just maybe...

At first she was silent. Though she had been expecting Joshua to agree with her it still was jarring to hear someone openly voice such a sentiment. Azami always felt alone in the world; Azami always was alone in the world. So to hear that someone else could see life as she did... She couldn't help but feel somewhat puzzled. That feeling would soon be overridden by another though. The uneasiness and worry disappeared from her smile and with its departure only one emotion was left visible within it.


"I'm glad... I'm glad there's someone out there like me. For a moment I thought I was the only sane person left on the planet." She commented with a lighthearted laugh. But there was no use in getting all sentimental. Even if he was like her, even if he could understand her wish, she couldn't afford to get too attached. And beyond that they had important business to attend to now that they were on the same page. "That 'white tomb' it mentioned... I'm not sure what exactly it was referring to. I thought it might be located in San Malarus -- maybe the Notre Dame II -- but I'm not too sure. If you've got any ideas of your own as to what it might be I'm all ears." Trying to pinpoint a likely location would be a much more effective strategy than running around searching frantically for it without a clue.

He wasn't sure what to make of any of this. After having to slog through that stupid optimism from Jack and Rita two years ago and how the world was such a hypocritical place, it felt really odd now after finally meeting someone he could agree with wholeheartedly on his own personal issues. But, it really didn't matter right now. They were able to align their goals to match each other in a way that it shouldn't affect either of them dramatically. For once, it felt less bothersome to work with someone. Whatever the case, Joshua began to walk ahead of her and motioned her to follow.


With that said, he began to take the lead to their next destination.

[Exit]

Azami would nod and follow suit. "Then there's no time waste. Let's go. Then after we find Rinna..."


Joshua, Azami, and presumably Simon too... The little Band of Revolutionaries were on their merry way to a new destination. The girl could feel her Journey move just a tad bit closer towards its end. Perhaps her Answer was not as far away as she had once thought.