[5/13 - Midnight]
As he drifted to sleep, a sudden feeling of a gentle embrace enveloped him. A moment later, a tug pulled him into the deep unknown.
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[? - ?]
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He was awakened from his sleep by the hymns of a beautiful voice.
Opening his eyes, he took stock of his unfamiliar surroundings.
He was in some kind of train.
Looking to the side, his interest was piqued as he gazed out of the window.
Beyond the glass was a vast expanse of darkness. No stars, no landscape, only a boundless darkness that swallowed everything in its path. It was as if the train was moving through the unknown, carrying him along for the ride.
His gaze then drifted to the other passengers aboard.
Across from him sat a mysterious long-nosed man with bloodshot eyes, grinning from ear to ear, a finger tapping patiently on the table before him. Beside him stood a beautiful woman with long platinum-blonde hair, her hands gently holding onto a thick tome.
The man's grin widened as he spread his arms in a grand, theatrical gesture.
"Welcome to the Velvet Room," the mysterious man said as he waved an arm. "My name is Igor. I am delighted to make your acquaintance."
The man, introducing himself as Igor, tilted his head to the woman next to him.
"This is Mary. She, like me, is a resident of this room."
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
Igor? Mary? Those names felt familiar.
Clerval looked around, the hymns that played across the speakers of the train seemingly calming his soul, before he asked.
"... Where am I?"
Igor's grin widened.
"This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter..." He crossed his legs and rested his hands on his knee. "Only those bound by a signed contract may enter this place."
Bounded by a contract? But he hasn't signed any contract on his way here...
The answer was proven otherwise as, with a wave of his hand, a contract magically appeared on the table. He leaned forward from his seat to confirm his signature, and he found it signed with his name in red cursive.
"With the contract signed, you shall be welcomed here as a guest in the Velvet Room from now on." Igor leaned forward. "Shall we start by referring to your... unique ability?"
He froze in place.
"Yes. The power of Persona. Are you not interested in your unique ability to call it forth?"
Hesitantly, Clerval gave a small nod. With a snap of Igor's fingers, the contract vanished into motes of blue light.
"You are destined to hone your powers of Persona, but you will require our assistance to do so. But to use my assistance, I only ask for one thing..."
Igor then raised a hand into the air before letting it drop down. Above him, a bluish silver light glowed before resting gently on his palm.
"Assume full responsibility for the choices you make," he said, his voice echoing faintly through the dark train. "For the weight of your actions must be chosen by your own free will."
As the light faded, what remained in his palm was a velvet-blue train card, with the letter "V" painted at the very center of it.
"... I don't understand." He admitted it, to which Igor simply grinned.
"That is fine. Hold onto this for now; it will prove useful in the future."
As the mysterious man finished his sentence, the hymns of the soul stopped playing, replaced by the chime of an approaching announcement.
Igor's gaze drifted toward the speaker above before returning to him.
"Time marches on in your world. I mustn't keep you here any longer."
His vision began to darken, motes of black creeping in at the edges of his sight. Resting his head on the cushioned train seat, just before consciousness slipped away, Clerval caught Igor's voice one last time.
"Until we meet again, honored guest."
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A/N: I just noticed that I missed the actual Chapter 5. SMH, my bad, people! I'll post another chapter this week as compensation. Sorry for the confusion!
NEXT UPDATE: Take a Deep Breath, Deep Breath (8 February, Sunday)
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