Longing For Lauderdale

He felt it start to slip. Bits of his sanity felt like it would shatter, yet he held on. The white that threatened to overtake the black found itself in a reversal as it retreated and disappeared. For now, Joshua was back. But he was still somber as the Nyarlathotep Child continued to listen to her. He remembered about Naomi back in Zela Academy when they fought Ananke, so they were friends and not even she or Lune could help her.

But hearing about her talk about herself... it saddened him. Just like him, they both gave up on the world. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck for a moment with his lips starting to form a dark grin.


He let his hand fall to his side and continued, "I actually hate this fucking world and I could hardly give two shits about it this time around. Both fucking Zachary and Isla can kill themselves over their pissing contest for all I care. Fuck 'em. I lost my parents soon after the whole Event happened two years ago, hit by a drunk asshole who got off scotch-free. You and Simon are the only ones I have left. The way how you're like this... isn't it also because you tried too hard to tough it out and decided to push people away? You're better than this, Rinna. The Rinna I know isn't pathetic enough to just waste away like this. If the world is shit, why not try to remake it for your sake and the people you care about? You don't have to choose between the two piles of shit piles here. Azami here wants to remake the world and she hates it as much as we do. But to be honest, I could hardly care less about it if it means I have to kill you. So I'm not going to do that, I came here for you and you only."

He offered a hand to Rinna and had a tired, yet genuinely warm smile for her.

It was odd. She had expected Rinna to lash out violently against them or shun Joshua and Simon further, but no such thing happened. Perhaps she was smarter than Azami took her for or perhaps she was simply a sentimental woman deep down as her words seemed to imply. Whatever the case, it didn't matter. A fight had been avoided, at least for the moment, and that was good news regardless of the reason behind it. Rinna began to explain as Nyarlathotep's chosen had desired from the start and as she spoke Azami would pay close attention silently taking mental notes over the information she provided.

Annoyingly enough, Joshua seemed keen on revealing Azami's true goals to someone who was working with Isla by her own admission, though she wasn't too surprised to hear him blab about it. She had always doubted his loyalties -- no, not just doubt; she had always known he would choose Rinna over her and her vision if it came down to it. It was something he had made clear from the start himself yet hearing him say those words now... it stung nevertheless. She had done her best to detach herself from Joshua, but try as she might she still felt somewhat of a connection with him. After all, they saw the world the same way; he seemed to share her viewpoint on it and her ability to perceive the flaws that others failed to notice or simply chose to ignore. After many long years of thinking she was alone in her cruel world, that no one could possibly understand her, she had finally found someone like her -- and that someone would be more than eager to toss her aside were it for the sake of Rinna. She felt many feelings in that moment -- pain, anger, loneliness, regret, envy -- yet like always she responded to them in the same way and shoved them deep down inside away from prying eyes. No one had a right to see those emotions of hers: not Simon, not Rinna, and especially not Joshua. Their existence was knowledge for her and her alone.


Even if keeping them locked away hurt, she knew that voicing them aloud would only lead to more pain. So she swallowed down the words that came crawling up her throat and focused herself on the task at hand. And that task, of course, was convincing Rinna to join her cause (or at the very least not interfere with it directly).

"You said it yourself, didn't you? You don't want to live in the society we live in, you find it hard to keep going on... In other words, you're just like Joshua and I, aren't you? Isla will only seek to restore the status quo because the status quo is what benefits her. If she has her way I'm certain she'll wipe the supernatural from this world and return it to the way it was. Things will continue as they always have: the world will be plagued with suffering, injustice, selfishness, and will have no hope of ever changing. And you're already against Zachary, so I doubt I need to tell you why you shouldn't side with him."

"I remember waking up to this power... I felt alive for the first time in a long while. I felt like I had a purpose -- like I could actually do something to impact the world. These powers we wield defy the laws of reality. They're miracles which if used by the right hands could change this world for the better. But if the 'normal' world is brought back then we lose the chance we have to fight back against our current reality and make something new."

"Rinna... I don't need you to join if you don't want to, but I at least ask that you don't try to stop me. Isla and Zachary are a part of the problem, not the solution. You understand that, right?"

She hoped she did. Because if not then...

He listened what else Rinna had to say. But seeing what was becoming of her was worrying. That power she received was clearly too much for her and Rinna was paying the price. Joshua finally summoned his spear in his hand, ready to begin. While he had been gone for two years, Joshua wasn't there for her. Now, it was time to help her.


He paused to breathe for a moment before looking back at Azami and Simon. The Nyarlathotep Child nodded at them. He turned back and gripped tightly on his spear. With a flourish, he swung it to begin hitting Rinna at her arm, that was offered earlier, with the blunt pole instead of stabbing her with the spear tip.

Yellow stained her eyes and she slowly nodded at Joshua. Azami Aihara clenched her hand into a fist and a shinai appeared within it while she began to walk forward. She came to a stop and swung the weapon downward at Rinna's head as asked of her. No words came from her lips, though perhaps her silence conveyed more than what any sentence could.

Joshua simply dismissed his soulbound weapon as the tendrils grabbed hold and immediately backed away to lay his eyes on this monstrous sight. There was a tingling in his spine, it was a familiar apprehensive sensation since he fought against the likes of Ananke and the others. Yamato-Takeru no Mikoto was summoned upon his will. He was in no mood to take any flak from the Tainted Persona, determined to continue the task at hand.

But what the demon had said made him livid. Someone was going to die today.

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Joshua’s Stats:

Before Azami could strike Rinna, Joshua's attack would trigger the emergence of Hecate and several tendrils would attempt to latch onto his weapon only for it to disappear. It seemed that they didn't need to all attack her after all; his attack alone had been enough to draw her out and, judging from her tone, piss her off. The creature was an abomination, a monstrosity which would no doubt strike terror into the hearts of any average person who laid eyes on it, but Azami felt no such fear. Seeing its true form revealed removed any mystery and uncertainty surrounding the entity, and the sudden surge of power she felt flow through her overwhelmed any remaining worries she possessed. The woman's glowing yellow eyes glistened with hunger, albeit there was still some semblance of reason and rationality within them (unlike when she had fought YumiAmi).


The Persona would nod at its master and turn its eyes to the beast with a brief, but inquisitive stare. It seemed to be trying to fully analyze the potential enemy and gather as much information as possible on it. Meanwhile, Azami would look up at Hecate with a calm, arrogant grin. "Don't be foolish. None of us had any intention of destroying or harming your vessel, especially not Joshua. We only wanted to draw you out."

"My name is Azami Aihara and my life is tied directly to that of this world. I am the anchor which holds Azores afloat: if you insist on fighting and manage to kill me then both you and your vessel will be consumed by the Core. Raising a hand against me or anyone else here will spell your demise one way or another. So, if you wish to live, then how about we all take a seat and discuss the situation like adults. Your call, though if you wanna be consumed so badly then I'm sure Bhima and I can arrange that."

Azami Aihara:

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