GAME OVER (S██'s Palace)

[pointzeropercent]

Comments

[beathollow]

But you didn't. You fought a losing battle for two people, and you know it. And now you're torn up about it, literally, or we wouldn't be speaking to two of you right now.

[pointzeropercent]

The only reason I didn't succeed is because he intervened at the end! I can't be blamed for his actions!

[beathollow]

( internally )

It was still you. And what would you have done if she had died, Shin?

[pointzeropercent]

[Magenta seems to react pretty violently to that, flinging a table across the room. Teal flinches away from it too, like he can sense what's coming before it happens.]

That is not my name!

[metagame]

Yet you believe it a lie, do you not? Your guilt was obvious. If you truly embraced your identity as Sou Hiyori... you wouldn't have faltered.

[pointzeropercent]

I'm not the one who faltered! Everything would have been fine if he hadn't intervened! Just look at him!

[Teal is in fact sobbing quietly on the other side of the room. He hates confrontation.]

Do you think he would have survived even a second in there on his own?!

[metagame]

Why must he do it alone?

[He tilts his head.]

I was in your position once... The angry half of a broken whole. I once saw tears as weakness, too...

We are separated now... That better half of me walks on his own legs elsewhere.

But he's capable of much more than you think. Did he not outsmart you until now? Does he not temper your anger toward better goals?

[pointzeropercent]

Oh? You think he was outsmarting me? You didn't think for a second that I knew where all of you were this whole time, or that I could shut this whole thing down if I wanted to?

I let you get this far for a reason, after all.

[metagame]

And what reason is that?

[pointzeropercent]

To get rid of him for me.

[metagame]

No.

I will not do your work for you. I doubt others would do the same. Something you should already know seeing as we've defied you time again even after what you did to me.

I believe in Shin Tsukimi! I believe he still stands with hope and courage to continue living! To see himself whole!

[pointzeropercent]

So you're an idiot too, I see.

Only one of us is going to survive this, and I doubt you want him standing by you during whatever final confrontation is to come. He can't even summon our Persona, that's all my doing.

[The way Teal flinches when that is said seems to say that there is some truth to that statement.]

If you want to survive whatever is to come, it's best to have a strong ally, right? I'm the one you'll want for that. Dead weight won't help at all.

[finalmix]

[ snorts, then laughs ]

My, my. You sure are full of yourself, aren't you. What makes you think we'll do you a favour when you haven't done anything much to endear yourself to us, hm?

[pointzeropercent]

Your survival. I'm a much more useful teammate than his, and there's definitely some kind of big fight coming soon. Which of us would you rather have on your side?

[beathollow]

Because being the man who put you in this situation to begin with is better? Is it? Is it really?

( its telling how mad she is that she doesn't flinch and instead steps closer. )

[pointzeropercent]

[Magenta does not react to this. If he notices her resolve, he doesn't show it.]

I wasn't the one who chose that name, you know. He did. I'm just sticking to the name I was given.

[beathollow]

( bluntly: )

And you're both stupid for it.

So I'll ask again: What would you have done if she had died?

[pointzeropercent]

Watched her die, then killed everyone else there myself.

[He seems serious about this answer.]

[finalmix]

And then? What after?

[pointzeropercent]

The game would have ended then, and I could have gone back to living my life.

[finalmix]

Sounds awfully convenient. Did you think the facility would let you out just like that? More likely than not they would want no witnesses and disposed of you too.

[pointzeropercent]

They could try. But even if I died, their crimes would have been known. I was close to finishing a data packet that would have been released to the world if Asunaro didn't cooperate upon my victory.

[Leave it to him to have blackmail ready.]

[beathollow]

...

( she just whacks him upside the head. )

That wouldn't have saved you! It wouldn't have saved anyone! If you could have overpowered and outsmarted all of those people, would that facility let you out? Would they let you walk free? They already manipulated even children, what makes you so sure victory would have helped?

[pointzeropercent]

Because I have what nobody else there had: hacking skills. Everything there was electronic: locks, doors, even our voting panels were done on tablets. I had a computer, and with enough time I could have torn everything down myself.

But no. He spent our time creating that useless AI to make Sara feel better!

[beathollow]

Bold of you to assume they would give you "enough time". You're so caught up on the idea that you're right that you can't see how shortsighted you're being.