The Shadow Chasers

Chapter 13

"Athena!" Aigis called, summoning her Persona and igniting a ring of fire vertically around herself.

She and Athena plowed straight into approaching limbs, destroying them until they reached and eliminated the vulnerable masks on the Shadows themselves at the wall.

"Ariadne!" Labrys yelled, summoning her Persona.

She pointed to the Shadow limbs attempting to both pull Clover and Alex away and overwhelm them. However, Ariadne formed large rotating gears of red energy, that precisely sliced through the multitude of limbs.

"Whew- Thanks!" Alex said to Labrys as relief washed over her, followed by a tinge of pain.

"Thanks, Labrys!" Clover exclaimed, slightly winded from the creatures' attack. 

Her face held a look of renewed determination.  Her right earring translator sparked a bit from a short circuit, causing a mild electric current.  She detached it and dropped it, hoping that the one remaining would do the job. 

Aigis noted the exchange briefly while fighting and dodging, then registered an incoming call.

"We're finished here Aigis," Mitsuru said over the android's intercom. "We're coming to back you up," she added tersely.

"Careful," Aigis managed while striking a number of Shadow limbs with her diminishing fire. "It's a long drop. Dark. Floor's destroyed. Shadows everywhere--" she added, then cut off the call.

Aigis then focused on supporting Labrys, who was defending the spies vigorously. They'd made their way to the far end of the room, and her headlamp verified what her sensors were telling her-- Kaito was right before them.

"It's time to end everything!" he called out in heavily distorted voice.

The number of Shadow limbs increased greatly, and Aigis shifted into Orgia Mode. This gave her a significant boost in speed and power for a short time. She sent Athena to cover the spies with her shield and spear. Aigis used the last of her ammunition to blast away at enemies. Once she ran out, she tore through Shadows with her hands and feet at high speed.

Labrys had her Persona summon red energy in the form of a giant bull's head and torso, and the two plowed through countless Shadow limbs and masks, eliminating them. Clover and Alex were swinging their staves to cover Sam, who finally had a chance to look for the relics, thanks to her M-Rays.

A blast of wind from behind alerted them to presence of their allies joining them. After dropping into the chute, Yukari had used her Persona's wind power to float them down safely to the others where the floor was intact. She'd never used the power so precisely before and was exhausted, so Junpei and Koromaru were covering her. Koromaru's Persona lit the way with three-headed fire. Cerebus now used some of that to blast a score of enemy Shadows.

Aigis had held off the enemy well, but was now damaged and burned out with the end of Orgia Mode. Her Persona had left, and she moved behind Mitsuru and Akihiko to rest.

"Well done, Aigis," Mitsuru said to her friend.

She and Akihiko quickly gestured to the advancing mass of Shadows.

"Ice! Rise up!" she yelled, rapier held out as her Persona appeared behind her.

"Ceasar!" Akihiko ordered. The large humanoid Persona materialized at his call.

A giant pillar of ice erupted into the mass of Shadows, extinguishing them. This was followed by a small electrical storm of lightning bolts which decimated other Shadows nearby. Junpei's Persona shot concentrated bursts of flame at the seemingly endless supply of Shadows. Labrys held a few masses of Shadows in spheres of red energy thanks to her Persona. She swung her axe back, fired up its booster rockets, and gave a loud shout as she swung with massive force through a score of enemies.

Yukari's Persona was unavailable at this point, so she shot off her last arrows, then used her bow for a few in-close attacks.

Despite the bedlam, Sam had finally spotted the relics, hidden behind Kaito himself. He was distracted to the point that she, Clover and Alex had a clear shot at the objects. They had their Laser Lipsticks out in a flash, each using their M-Rays to aim precisely at what would be invisible to others.

A/N:  Hope you enjoyed.  Thanks for your continued support.   Any thoughts?  Feel free to share them!