28 The Scalpel.
As they ventured into Mementos, the eerie red glow that suffused the air lent an otherworldly quality to the sprawling subway labyrinth. The chains, red veins, and the overwhelming crimson atmosphere enveloped them, creating a palpable sense of unease and curiosity among the group.
Ann's voice, tinged with a mixture of awe and apprehension, broke the silence.
"So this is 'everyone's palace.'" Ann said as her gaze swept across the gloomy expanse.
"The collective unconscious." Shiho added softly.
Walking forward in front of the group, Ren looked around in search of Jose. But the strange kid with a connection to Mementos was nowhere to be seen at the moment. That was, until Ren felt a strange vibration in the wishing star that Jose had given him, almost as if pointing him in a direction to follow.
"This place must be pretty massive then. How are we gonna get around?" Ryuji questioned, his voice echoing slightly in the vast, empty space.
Morgana's response came with a hint of mischief, his laughter echoing slightly in the vast space.
"Hehehe, now this is where I come in. Morgana Transfooooorm!" With a theatrical leap, he transformed into a small bus, eliciting a mix of surprise and amusement from the group.
Ren turned his attention from the star to the bus, his eyebrow raising in surprise.
"For some reason, cats turning into buses is an extremely widespread cognition amongst the general public. Which means I can also do so!" Morgana said with a proud expression before adding. "Shiho, Ann, ladies first."
"So anything that becomes common knowledge amongst the public can also manifest in here?" Ren asked with curiosity.
Morgana, now in his bus form, confirmed.
"Yeah, in theory, it should work. We are in the world of cognition, after all." Morgana answered before nudging everyone to enter, eager to explore the depths of the place.
With a thoughtful nod, Ren made a mental note of Morgana's explanation before sliding into the driver's seat, the rest of the group settling in behind him.
"Morgana, do you know how to find the shadow of Principal Kobayakawa?" Ren asked with curiosity.
"Of course, just give me one second," Morgana responded, a brief silence falling as he attempted to locate their target. After a moment, he admitted, "Uh- well… actually, he might be a bit far from us because I can't sense him anywhere."
"Alright, in that case, we have a quick stop to make." Ren declared, steering the Morgana bus down the seemingly endless tracks in the direction the wishing star pulled him.
The shadows they encountered in Mementos were starkly different from those in Kamoshida's castle. These were not armored knights but gargantuan, humanoid shadow monsters, adorned with countless masks.
They roamed the tracks aimlessly until the sight of the Morgana bus sparked a frenzied aggression in them. Yet, for all their menacing appearance, these shadows were surprisingly weak. At least when compared to their fight with Kamoshida, the group was able to overwhelm their enemies with relative ease. The shadows around here must have also noticed the difference in strength because a few more shadows had joined Ren just like Pixie had done before.
Weaving through the labyrinth tracks, the Phantom thieves eventually arrived at some stairs that led deeper into Mementos. As they descended the stairs, they were greeted by a massive, ornate wall with strange engravings blocking the path down.
Morgana, who had returned to his cartoonish cat form to descend the stairs, ran ahead of the group towards the wall, but to his dismay, the wall didn't budge.
"Crap, it's just like before. The path closes off right here," he lamented, his frustration palpable as he gave the wall a futile kick.
Ren looked at the strange wall with his third eye, trying to gain any information, but even then, he couldn't sense anything. Walking forward, he reached to touch the engravings, yet the moment his hand made contact with the wall, it trembled. He could feel the wishing star in his pocket warm up slightly as the wall began to open up.
Ryuji couldn't hide his amusement at the turn of events.
"Ha! I guess Ren's got that magic touch!" he quipped, eager to understand the sudden change. "How'd you do that?"
Pulling out the shining star from his pocket, the group looked at it with amazement.
"When I first came to Mementos, I met a kid named Jose. He gave me this star as a sign of friendship. I knew it could do something, but now I have a better idea of what that is." Ren said before putting the star back in his pocket.
"There was a kid in Mementos?" Ryuji asked with confusion.
"He wasn't human. I'm not sure what he was, but he seems pretty friendly. And he knows the way to Kobayakawa. The kid has a strange connection with Mementos." Ren elaborated, sharing his insights as they ventured beyond the now-open wall.
The floor beyond the wall was slightly different than the one before it. The oppressive chains and pulsating veins remained, but the overwhelming crimson was replaced by a thick, dark blue fog. This shift in scenery brought with it an almost imperceptible sense of unease, a subtle discomfort that lingered at the edges of their consciousness.
Not so long after the group descended, as if summoned by their conversation, a pair of headlights pierced the darkness, a small car racing towards them with a series of cheerful honks before coming to a halt.
"Hey! I was wondering when you were coming back! And you brought your friends with you this time! Are you ready to go help out your other friend?" Jose greeted them with infectious enthusiasm as he hopped out of the car and walked towards them.
Ren responded with a warm smile, introducing his companions to Jose. After which he said.
"Hey Jose, I think we are ready. Could you lead the way?"
"Absolutely, leave it to me!" Jose replied, his smile radiant. He leaped into his car, and as it came to life, they all set off, following him deeper into the enigmatic world of Mementos.
The connection the kid had with mementos must have been something special because it was almost as if he could glimpse deeper into it than everyone else. He approached what seemed like dead ends, only for the walls to crumble before his car, revealing new passages as if obeying his silent command.
As they ventured further, guided by Jose's mysterious ability to shape the realm, the atmosphere around them shifted, growing increasingly oppressive with each new layer they penetrated. Yet, remarkably, the shadows that typically prowled Mementos were absent from the paths Jose chose, offering them an unobstructed passage.
The strain of the heavy atmosphere began to take its toll on Ren and the group, who contemplated calling off their mission. However, before they did, they came to a halt before a massive wall.
"He's here!" he exclaimed, his voice not burdened at all by the heavy atmosphere.
As they stepped out, the weight of Mementos' depths was palpable, prompting Ann to voice her concern.
"I- I'm not sure if I can fight under this pressure," she admitted, visibly struggling with the oppressive environment.
Ryuji and Shiho, though slightly more resilient, were clearly affected. The heavy atmosphere was not going to allow them all to fight at full strength. That was, at least, until the group could build some resistance to it.
Observing the toll the environment was taking on his friends, Ren faced a difficult realization.
"We might not be strong enough for a direct fight." He admitted with a sigh.
Yet just as he was about to call the mission off until they were stronger, he felt the scalpel that Igor had given him tremble once again, reminding him of its presence. Almost as if to reinforce the call, he felt Tartuffe beckoning him forward.
After a brief moment to think, he opened his eyes with determination as he spoke.
"I'll go in by myself. Worst case scenario I can use one of my personas to escape. I'll sneak in and get an idea of what we are dealing with. Morgana, you stay here in bus form and prepare to escape if anything bad happens, understood?" Ren asked, earning a few determined nods from the group.
"Are you sure it is not too dangerous?" Shiho asked with concern.
Ren reassured her with a calm voice.
"At the first sign of danger, I'll retreat." His confidence dispelled part of her worry as she jumped onto the bus.
The wall that blocked the path crumbled under a simple tap of Jose's hammer. A hammer he had pulled out of seemingly nowhere. Opening the path. With the way forward now open, Ren proceeded with caution, his steps measured as he navigated the newly revealed corridor. Once he was sure the rest of his team was out of sight, he called forth Tartuffe.
Ren observed intently as the shadow beneath him expanded, giving form to the inky black, shadow-like, featureless figure of Tartuffe, who held the blue scalpel in his hand. Time seemed to slow, drawing attention to Tartuffe's deliberate actions as he raised the scalpel to its own face. Tartuffe cut along where its face would be, delicately tracing the perimeter.
With a soft movement, Tartuffe revealed a mask of inky blackness devoid of any distinguishing traits. The inside of this mask was a nest of dark, teeth-like tentacles writhing in anticipation. They appeared sentient, ready to attach themselves to a face with a hunger for connection.
As Tartuffe fashioned the mask, Ren was overcome by a sudden, overwhelming sensation. A visceral wave of nausea and pain washed over him, making it feel as if his very insides were in turmoil, on the verge of tearing him apart. This intense discomfort brought him to his knees, robbing him of his breath in a mere instant. But as quickly as it had arrived, the wave of discomfort vanished, leaving him gasping for air.
Yet, even after the strange sensation was gone, Ren still felt something was wrong. Staring at the mask, Ren couldn't shake off a creeping sense of unease that clung to him, a discomfort that intensified with the sound of a deep, familiar chuckle echoing off the walls of Mementos.
~Confidants~
Igor (The Fool) Rank 4
