Persona 5 - The Jester's Point Of View

Scene 168

To say that it all had happened so fast would be an understatement. Then again, it was fast and sudden, something Goro had not accounted for. When he had woken up all was blurry. He didn’t know where he was, only that he was almost sinking into the ground. It made him jump up in one go, trying to not get pushed down by whatever this was. It felt as if there was a tight grasp on his legs yet given that he was able to move around freely, there was no one who grabbed him. He even made sure just to be extra save. Yeah, nothing.

As for the clothes, he had been changed back into his regular ones, his uniform. He was out of the Palace, that was the only thing he could say for certain. Because the area he was in looked so bizarre. It was hard to put into proper words. It was as if he was surrounded by darkness yet he could clearly see everything all the same. There was light shining down but he couldn’t find the light source anywhere. Not just that but how this place felt. A cold rush yet the ground seemed awfully warm. Not just that but it was a little wobbly. Yet he managed to stand up straight and not fall down or trip. And the wet air, giving it a rather moldy feeling overall. He didn’t understand this place nor did he know where this was. Hell maybe? Yeah… Where he belonged. Though something else was weird…

Goro looked at his hands, both of them, then over his entire body. And his eyes widened when he came to a sudden realization… The wounds… There was no blood dripping down nor were his clothes stained red in any way. And there was no pain in his body either. This was… Extremely odd. It wouldn’t be a problem if he didn’t feel his flesh weightening him down but he did, oddly enough. Something wasn’t right here. He thought that he was dead. And yet— No, this had to be a sick joke of some kind. There is no way that he made it out there alive. It was a certain death situation for him! He couldn’t have possibly—

“Haha, don’t look like that boy. Your heart’s beating again.” A distorted voice said from… Well, anywhere really. The voice came from every goddamn direction. Not just that but it shifted the tone every time — The pronunciation, accent and even octave. It was always a different voice but at the same time it sounded familiar. It was truly bizarre. “Lukannie really worked me to the bone here today. That I would have to perform open heart surgery. Buut their wish is my command. At least for the time being.” Though judging from the way it was phrasing things… There was only one possibility.

“Pipistrello, right?” Goro asked, though scoffed this question out. He really wasn’t in the mood to talk to that thing but when was he ever? 

“Ding ding ding! Correct~”

“What is the meaning of this? And what is this place?”

“Oho? Now you’re asking questions again?”

“Oh please. What can you do to a dead man?”

“Dead? Who said you’re dead?”

What!? He felt the shudder coming down his body, noticing the slight trembling at that point. Eyes wide, only standing on the wobbly ground as it was moving like waves, yet it wasn’t moving him in any way. However that worked but he wasn’t really concerned about that. “Wh… What do you mean!?” He asked, noticing his voice nearly cracking. “I was in the boiler room, wasn’t I!? So—”

“Haha, well, I guess you were dead for a little while.” It interrupted, though still sounding rather nonchalantly. “But nothing a doctor cannot fix. I just needed to snip here and cut a little there and deliver a few shocks. And that’s how you were as good as new.”

W… Was it implying what he thought that being was implying? “W… Wait… You helped me? Why would you—”

“Oh, I would have left you dead. I don’t really care. Things would be interesting even without you around. But my dear contractor really wanted you alive. And who am I to deny their wish?”

“Do you mean… Lukanja has something to do with this?”

“Ding ding ding! You caught on fast!”

He clutched himself, gulping in disbelief. Lukanja was the one who asked this of Pipistrello? That… “You’re lying.”

“I’m not. I only do what they tell me to do.”

“You’re trying to tell me that they show up after days of silence? Likely story…” His body had a feeling of disgust overcoming itself. This was just bizarre, it didn’t make any sense. They left, like anyone else. They disappeared without a trace, without saying anything. They had no use and interest anymore. He knew that much. He was certain of it. So this was just nonsense now. 

“Oh, I am a lot of things, boy.” The voice suddenly said, somewhat cold, so cold that the air changed to freezing. “The only thing I’m not is a liar.”

He wanted to protest. It had to be a lie. It really had to be one. It was just so hard to believe, given how things went. But if he said anything against it, who knows what might happen to him. For some reason he felt lost… Scared… It was an unreasonable fear. And he hated it. He hated it all. Maybe death would have been a better option in the end… Ugh… “What do they even want from me?”

“Huh? Want from you? … Oh, I see how it is. Why not talk it out later?”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Hah… Truly, what a stubborn pair. Oh well, time’s up. They’re coming.”

Goro felt his body flinch, a reaction he didn’t expect. “Get me out of here then!”

“Nah, don’t feel like it.”

“Why you little–” But before he could finish that sentence he saw them suddenly in front of him, shoving one of the ‘walls’ aside and stepping right into this room. Out of all things which had to happen now this was something he wished could have passed on at this moment. 

Was this good or bad luck?