Chapter 22

Yu, Ruby and Aigis had goodbyes to say. They knew very well that the battle they faced could be their last. Even in victory, survival was not guaranteed. Though they did not know him, Ruby and Yu had Minato's fate in mind just as Aigis did. Would they be required to make a similar sacrifice?

"If I don't make it back, take care of everyone for me." Yu said, shaking Yosuke's hand. "You've been a good friend."

"You'll be back." Yosuke said confidently. "Now go before I get emotional." Yu smiled and moved on.

"Kick his ass!" Chie said.

Yu wanted to hug her but that would have just embarrassed her. Yu settled for resting a hand on her shoulder. "Keep fighting, no matter what." He said. Chie struggled to hold back tears as Yu moved on.

Yukiko embraced Yu. "I know you can do this." She said. "Besides, what would we do without you?"

"You don't need me." Yu said. "You'd be fine on your own. Don't worry though; I have no intention of falling here." They smiled at each other and Yu moved on.

"Beat the shit out of that asshole." Kanji ordered. He hugged Yu tightly, too tightly for Yu's liking. "You showed me what it means to be a man. Now show that son-of-a-bitch what kind of man you are."

"I will." Yu said, still recovering from the bear hug. "Whatever happens, never stop being you." Kanji nodded and put on a brave face as Yu moved on.

"I love you Senpai." Rise sobbed, burying her face in Yu's chest. "So you'd better not die. You wouldn't want to let me down."

"I'll be fine." Yu assured her. "You will be too. Don't let what happens here change you. You wouldn't want to let me down." Yu held her at arms' length for a moment, as they gazed at each other, and then he moved on.

"Sensei!" Teddie cried. Hu hugged Yu and could not say anything else.

"Believe it or not, you've got yourself sorted better than most of us." Yu said. "Don't let this change that. When I get back you'd better be the same happy-go-lucky Teddie." Yu pried Teddie off of him and moved on.

Naoto said nothing, just looking at Yu with tears in her eyes. "If I don't make it…" Yu started. To his surprise, Naoto slapped him, hard.

"You're coming back." Naoto said, pressing her index finger into Yu's chest. "If death couldn't keep me down you'd better not let it stop you."

"Alright then, I'll be back soon." Yu said. To Naoto's great embarrassment, he hugged her. "Now, I think it's time for me to go." Yu took a long look at the glowing arch before turning back at his friends. "I love you all." He said.

"Weiss, I know we haven't always gotten along, but I've really enjoyed being your friend." Ruby said. "I know you'll miss me if I don't make it."

"Don't say something so stupid, you dolt." Weiss said, trying to put on a mask of anger but unable to hide her sadness. "This team needs its leader, so you'd better make it." Ruby nodded and smiled before moving on.

"We really don't have much in common, and I still don't know much about you, but it's been really fun." Ruby said to Blake. "If I come back I hope you'll let us all further into your world."

"I…I will." Blake promised. "Just defeat Tuoni and come back, please."

"I'm looking forward to learning more about you." Ruby said. She moved on.

"Yang, I know you want to protect me, but just know that it's not your responsibility." Ruby said. "You can be your own person and I'll be mine. You shouldn't let me hold you back. If anything happens to me, I just don't want you to blame yourself."

Yang could not help but cry. She hugged Ruby tightly, too tightly for Ruby's liking. "I never think of protecting you as a burden." She said. "I just want you to be happy." She paused for a moment, struggling to compose herself. "Please don't die."

"I won't." Ruby said. Then she moved on.

"You're the first person who was nice to me at Beacon." Ruby said to Jaune. "You're a great guy. I mean, I still have no idea how in the world you got into Beacon, but you're a great person. Keep being the leader your team needs."

"You're talking like you're not coming back." Jaune said. "If it was me going in there, yeah, sure, probably not coming back. You though, you'll be fine." Reassured, Ruby moved on.

"Nora, you're the craziest person I know, and I mean that in the best way possible." Ruby said. "Don't ever stop being your crazy, happy, energetic self."

"Okay, but you've got to do me a favor." Nora said.

"Sure, why not?" Ruby replied.

"Break Tuoni's legs!" Nora shouted. Ruby giggled and moved on.

"I'm not really sure what to say." Pyrrha admitted. "I know you helped get Jaune's head on straight, so thank you for that. Just don't get yourself killed."

"I'll do my best." Ruby said with a smile. "Don't give up on Jaune. He's pretty dumb, but he's a good guy."

"Oh I know, and I won't." Pyrrha said. Ruby moved on.

"I can honestly say I don't know anything about you." Ruby said to Ren. "That said, for someone who almost never talks, you're a great friend. If anything happens, make sure Nora's alright."

"She'll be fine because nothing will happen." Ren said with quiet confidence.

Ruby smiled and turned to face the glowing arch. She turned back to her friends. "You guys are the best friends a socially awkward girl could as for." She said.

"Just know that you will never be alone." Aigis said, awkwardly embracing Labrys. "Even when I am gone, you will still have all these great friends."

"I know." Labrys said, smiling. "I'm not gonna' have to worry 'bout you bein' gone for a long time though. You've beaten more than one god; this one'll be a piece of cake."

"Yes, I will see you soon." Aigis said. She was confident, but still feared sharing Minato's fate. Still, even if she did, she would be able to return to say her final goodbyes. Aigis looked at the glowing arch for a moment before turning back to Labrys. "I am so proud of you." She said.

"This is it." Aigis said to Yu and Ruby as they stood before the arch.

"The final battle, just the three of us." Yu said, frowning.

"Oh come on, cheer up!" Ruby said. "After we take care of Tuoni we'll finally get to have some fun together without anything hanging over our heads. I'm tired of all the doom and gloom." Ruby said with determination, holding Crescent Rose at the ready. "Let's finish this." Yu and Aigis nodded. The three stepped into the light together.

For all the light pouring through the arch, the world inside was fairly dark. It was also filled with a thick gray fog. Yu slipped his glasses on but they made no difference. This fog was different than the fog in the TV world. He looked around, squinting to see anything. It seemed he had been separated from Ruby and Aigis. Tuoni was nowhere to be seen.

"So Helia turned coat." Tuoni's voice boomed through the fog. "I suspected as much. No matter, you still have no chance."

"We took down Rosso and you're next." Yu shouted back.

"Helia took down Rosso." Tuoni corrected him. "The rest of you didn't have the courage to do what needed to be done." The voice was much closer now. "I wonder if you're man enough to kill me."

The voice was very close now. The fog seemed to part, revealing a silhouette. Yu approached carefully, his weapon at the ready. As he closed in he could see that it was Tuoni, his back turned. Yu lifted his sword and slashed at Tuoni. Something was wrong. He held up at the last second, the blade millimeters from his target's neck.

"Yu!" Ruby yelled, spinning around to face him. "What are you doing?" He had almost sliced her in two.

"You were…" Yu started.

"So close." Tuoni said with disappointment. Yu and Ruby turned to face the voice. Another clearing in the fog appeared, Tuoni standing there with a taunting smile on his face. "You have no idea just how much pleasure I would get from you killing each other."

Ruby swung Crescent Rose around and fired at Tuoni. He dodged the shot and suddenly was no longer Tuoni. "Ruby stop." Aigis said. "He is playing tricks with our minds."

"That was really quite rash Ruby." Tuoni said. "You saw what I did to Yu, and you still fell for it."

"Just show yourself!" Ruby shouted. "If you're so strong, face us."

*Recommended Music: The Battle for Everyone's Souls (Persona 3 Soundtrack)*

"Gladly." Tuoni said. The fog blew away, revealing a cratered ground that resembled the moon, but with fissures oozing lava in some places. A geyser of lava shot skyward, drawing the group's attention. Tuoni stood in front of it. His eyes glowed brighter than before and his confident smile had been replaced by a scowl. "It is said that man fears that which he cannot see more than that which he can, but I think you will find the opposite can be true. You have already witnessed a fraction of my power when you faced Tuonen Piika. Now, behold the full power of death." A blinding red flash was emitted from his eyes and his suit burned away as he was engulfed by a mass of shadows. Shadows piled on, building into a tower forty feet tall. The exterior melted away, revealing Tuoni's true form. His face was replaced by a featureless blackness in the vague shape of a skull, broken only by his glowing red eyes. His body was skeletal and black, only tendons and ligaments holding the bones together with the help of rotten muscles. His right hand had grown into a giant blood-red claw and his left arm formed a gigantic blade. "Tremble with fear." He growled.

"That's it?" Yu said with disappointment. "That's all you are?"

"What!?" Tuoni shouted incredulously.

"Yeah, I was expecting something scarier." Ruby agreed with Yu. "A pile of bones isn't that bad."

"When I fought death, it had taken the form of our planet's moon." Aigis said flatly. "This pales in comparison."

"You will pay for your insults!" Tuoni roared. He charged at them, wildly swiping his claw and blade as he ran. The three easily dodged his charge, ending up behind him. Just as they had planned earlier, their taunts had hit Tuoni's ego and pushed him into a mistake.

"Open fire!" Aigis ordered. She aimed her hands at Tuoni's back and fired. Yu and Ruby aimed their weapons and poured bullets into Tuoni as he groaned in pain. The bullets slammed into his bones, which reacted as if they were liquid, blobs flying off as each hit made a wet slap. Tuoni spun around, his eyes seeming to burn with rage. He stomped back across the apocalyptic landscape toward the trio, more controlled this time.

"I don't think are weapons are having much of an effect." Ruby observed.

"It's time to up the ante." Yu agreed. "Izanagi!" He crushed a tarot card in his hand in an attempt to summon his Persona. Nothing happened. "Not this again." He sighed.

"Did you really think I would allow you to use your powers?" Tuoni laughed. He swung his bladed arm at Yu, the blade extending to meet him as Yu blocked with his own weapon. The force of the impact sent Yu flying, but he was able to keep control and land on his feet. His blade showed a deep gash.

Aigis raced forward and leapt into the air, heading straight for Tuoni's face. She stabbed her spear forward into one of Tuoni's eyes, sinking it deeply into the monster. She could feel energy gathering in his head and sure enough, a ball of fire blasted out of the penetrated eye, sending Aigis tumbling back. She skidded to a stop on a foot and a knee as Tuoni stared at her, apparently uninjured by her assault. With Tuoni distracted, Ruby attacked his legs, slashing Crescent Rose at his shin bone. The blade scythed through cleanly, meeting little resistance, but as soon as it passed through the other side Tuoni's leg reformed. Tuoni slammed his claw down at her as she used her semblance to escape in a flurry of rose petals.

"Do you understand now?" Tuoni said. "I am invincible. Your weapons cannot harm me. You are only delaying the inevitable."

"What do we do now?" Yu asked.

"We keep attacking." Ruby replied. "He's got to have some sort of weakness. If he was invincible he wouldn't have gone through all the trouble of trying to get us to destroy ourselves."

"Your efforts are futile." Tuoni declared. "I grow weary. I shall stay my hand no longer." Tuoni's eyes flared and a ball of blinding light appeared above him. It slammed down and exploded, knocking Yu, Aigis and Ruby off their feet. It was a tremendously powerful attack and it left them dazed. Tuoni's eyes flared again and another ball of light appeared. It too slammed down and exploded, pressing the three into the ground. This was it. One more and it would all be over. Tuoni laughed with satisfaction as his eyes flared a third time. A ball of energy appeared and slammed down, bathing the area in light.

When the light faded, three figures stood firm. Yu, Aigis and Ruby, still dazed, stumbled to their feet behind their protectors. Before them stood three Personas, Izanagi-no-Okami, Messiah and Angelic Rose. Izanagi-no-Okami shared a similar appearance with Izanagi except that his clothing was white and he carried a long thin blade with a circular hilt. Messiah had the appearance of a mechanical angel, all white, with Minato's head. Angelic Rose represented Ruby's mother Summer, but idealized and bathed in light. The Personas stood between their wielders and Tuoni, acting autonomously.

"Personas?" Tuoni boomed. "Impossible." He waved his claw at the Personas. Their wielders could feel a crushing pressure on them but it soon disappeared, their Personas standing strong. Tuoni grunted angrily. "No matter, I will destroy them too." Tuoni's eyes flared and burned brilliantly. A ball of blinding light grew above him, larger and brighter than before. With a grand sweep of his arm, Tuoni directed the ball of energy at the Personas. The Personas raced forward to meet the attack, catching it mid-air. Tuoni kept his arm outstretched, willing the attack to land as the Personas resisted. The ball of energy flew back at Tuoni as his might was overcome. It slammed into him, blasting away at his skeletal body. Chunks of shadow exploded around the space as the energy burned them away. A great blast wave knocked Ruby, Yu and Aigis off their feet.

The light faded as the three stood. Tuoni stood before them, back in his human form, doubled over in pain. "We have won Tuoni." Aigis said. He raised his hands and fired at Tuoni, her bullets tearing chunks away as they tore through their target.

Tuoni stumbled forward, reaching out an arm. A ball of energy began to appear in his palm but Yu rushed forward, his blade held high. He sliced through Tuoni's arm, splitting it cleanly at the bicep. The severed limb dropped to the ground and burst in a cloud of ash. "You'll never win." Yu said. "Humanity's will to live, our will to live, is too strong."

Tuoni composed himself and stood straight. Ruby carefully approached him. "I will face defeat with dignity." He said.

Ruby slammed Crescent Rose's blade down just behind him, positioned to slice him in two. "It's over, finally." Ruby said. She pulled the trigger, slamming the blade back and scything Tuoni in two.

Tuoni's halves fell apart and landed with a thud. "As I fall, you fall with me." Tuoni said just before bursting into a cloud of dust.

The ground began to shake violently as geysers of lava shot up all around. The arch that had been their entrance collapsed. "We need to leave now." Aigis said.

"But how?" Ruby asked.

"I have an idea." Yu said as the world crumbled around them.

"What's happening?" Yosuke asked as the ground began to shake. Teams RWBY and JNPR, the Investigation Team and Labrys stood atop the Tower, waiting for their leaders to return.

"I think it's safe to say they did something big." Yang said. The shaking grew more violent, making it difficult for them to stand.

"We need to get out of here now." Jaune said, falling clumsily on his face.

"But we have to wait for them." Labrys pleaded.

"If we don't go now, they'll be no one for them to come back to." Weiss countered.

"Yeah, but how do we do this?" Kanji asked. "There's no way we can just run down the stairs before this place collapses."

"We've got our own landing strategies." Blake said. "You should figure one out fast."

The Tower collapsed upon itself and they fell.

Blake landed on her feet in a crouch. It was a hard landing but nothing she could not handle. Yang landed soon after, using the recoil from her gauntlets to slow her down as she neared the ground. Weiss floated gently on her glyphs. Nora sailed through the sky on Magnhild, landing on her feet. Pyrrha shot toward the ground like a dart, slamming down hard enough to crater the concrete ground. She looked up just in time to spot Jaune, repositioned herself slightly, and caught him. Ren dropped slowly, directing his aura downward to slow his descent. Helia descended in a pillar of fire, like a rocket launch in reverse. Next came the Investigation Team, carried gently to the ground by their Personas. Labrys floated down, carefully finding a landing spot with the help of the rocket boosters on her axe.

"It's a good thing we could use our Personas again." Yosuke said. "Otherwise you'd be scraping us off the ground."

"Thanks Pyrrha." Jaune said, stumbling around. "I've been meaning to figure out the whole landing thing."

They looked back at the Tower to see that the twisted labyrinth they had fought through was gone without a trace. Only the original Tower remained. Beacon had returned to normal. "Where are those three?" Blake asked nervously.

"Let me check." Rise said. She summoned her Persona and scanned the area. She concentrated hard but ran out of energy, falling to her knees in exhaustion. "I can't sense them anywhere." Rise reported, struggling to catch her breath as Labrys helped her to her feet.

"I can't sense them either." Helia confirmed after scanning with her own Persona.

"I don't smell them." Teddie said with growing alarm.

"Yang, what about you?" Pyrrha asked. Yang just shook her head.

"Does that mean…" Yukiko started. She did not have the heart to finish.