[h2][center]Geralt of Rivia and [color=BFBFBF]Zenkichi Hasegawa[/color] [/center][/h2] [center]Midgar- Sector 8, Detroit [/center] [center]Lvl 9 (168/90) -> -8 Friend Heart Lvl 9 (163/90) [/center] [center]Lvl 1 (1/10) -> Lvl 1(4/10) [/center] [center]Word Count: 1,326 words[/center] The song of steel clashing against steel sounded throughout the Plaza, Geralt and Zenkichi's blades flashing in a flurry of blows, though Geralt certainly had the upper hand in initiative. He could easily make two or three swings in the time it took Zenkichi to sweep his blade through the air. This was somewhat balanced out by Zenkichi's Persona-enhanced strength and durability, not to mention the sheer heft of his weapon. Geralt could tell the detective was by no means a master of the blade, as a more accomplished swordsman could certainly swing it faster and more efficiently. The Witcher lashed out with a kick to the knee, buckling Zenkichi's balance for a moment before following up with a slash across the man's chest, drawing a pained grunt and a reflexive sweep of the heavy blade, forcing Geralt to back off. His Quen shield had broken from an earlier hit, and he wasn't looking forward to another. Zenkichi tried to take the initiative this time, vicious blows coming one after the other, with no attention paid to defense. Geralt had wondered about that, but when the first few hits he'd landed hadn't carved the man like a slab of meat, he figured that there was even more to him than met the eye. Made it a bit tougher to take him down, though he likely wouldn't have to worry about accidentally killing the man and pissing off Poppi and Tora. Why they asked him not to, Geralt wasn't sure, though the man's power did bear a resemblance to that of those kids that he remembered running off with Yellow Team and then leaving on their own way from the subway. So be it. Carefully dodging or deflecting Zenkichi's blows that came to close, Geralt bided his time for the right moment, and when he saw it, unleashed a blast from Aard to knock him off balance and follow up with his blade. What he didn't expect was for Zenkichi to stumble, slam his blade into the ground, and catch himself while blocking Geralt's strike, sending uncomfortable vibrations up the Witcher's arm from hitting what may as well have been a steel wall while intending to cut through it. Zenkichi smirked, pulling his sword out with a snarl, and swung, but Geralt was quicker to recover, spinning around and cutting across Zenkichi's stomach. Ending up behind the Persona-wielder, Geralt slammed the pommel of his sword backwards, hitting Zenkichi in the back. Geralt twirled again, only for his swing to be intercepted by the heavier greatsword Zenkichi was wielding, knocking his attack aside and crashing into his armor with immense force. The Witcher was knocked back, but not stopped, and leapt back to the fight, steel clashing with steel once again. [color=BFBFBF][i]Really wish I hadn't mag-dumped to start this off[/i][/color], Zenkichi mused, desperately wishing he could catch Geralt off guard with a quickdraw shot to the gut, but unable to do so without having to take a few seconds to reload. He had an idea, and with the others ignoring their clash, it might actually work. Lashing out from a guard and deflecting Geralt's strike, Zenkichi jumped back, thrusting a hand forward and calling out [color=BFBFBF]"Valjean!"[/color] to summon his Persona. [color=BFBFBF]"Megido!"[/color] He yelled, a swarm of spheres of energy bursting out from Valjean behind him. The spheres swarmed to the area Geralt was in, forcing the Witcher to dive for cover from the magical explosions while Zenkichi reloaded one of his revolvers, backpedaling away from Geralt and stowing the now-ready weapon when the Witcher was safe. Only managed one, but it was better than nothing. Drawing his blade, he met Geralt's charge, forcing him to step aside from a heavy slash. Their blades clashed yet again, but Geralt was starting to tire of the dance. He adjusted his grip on his sword, holding it in one hand and dancing around another heavy hit, his free hand taking hold of Zenkichi's wrist while his blade sliced up and along the detective's armpit, drawing a pained hiss and a reflexive elbow, which crashed painfully into Geralt's armor. [color=BFBFBF]"Shit!"[/color] Zenkichi cursed, realizing that Geralt now had him right where he wanted him. Geralt, with his free hand, twisted Zenkichi's wrist and ducked under his outstretched arm, knocking the heavy sword out of his opponent's hand with one of his own, and trapping Zenkichi's arm with the crossguard of his sword using the other. Hooking a leg around Zenkichi's foot, the Witcher forced the pair to topple to the ground, Zenkichi awkwardly keeping his skull from [i]slamming[/i] into the concrete, but he was thoroughly at the mercy of the taller, older, armored mercenary. [color=BFBFBF]"So this is it, huh?"[/color] He sighed, looking up at the scarred face above him. As far as last sights went, at least it wasn't the barrel of a gun. A little more personal. Instead, he heard a gruff "Nope." as he felt something wash over him, his injuries healing themselves and the soreness he'd been feeling as the adrenaline faded vanishing. Geralt stood up, keeping his sword in hand and pointed at Zenkichi. "Give it a minute. It'll start coming back, whatever it is you forgot." He advised, circling to the side so he could get a view of the rest of the fight while not taking an eye off the Persona-user. [color=BFBFBF]"For...got...?"[/color] Zenkichi mumbled, looking around. His G-Men, with the exception of Chemtrail, were either already defeated or being made a fool of, while he himself was in a pickle himself, though for some reason he was being spared? Was this their way of saying they really were on the same side, but couldn't... Oh. [i]Oh.[/i] He was remembering... [i][u][b]KONOE?!?!?!?[/b][/u][/i] Oh no. Oh no. Konoe. Akane. He still remembered her, but...they'd made up? Almost? Maybe? [i]The kids![/i] Nearly bolting upright, only to stop himself when he remembered the sword ready to impale him, Zenkichi looked up at Geralt with panic in his eyes. [color=BFBFBF]"You gotta let me go! My daughter...the kids! Konoe!"[/color] He was practically babbling incoherently, before he balled his fists up and shook his head. [color=BFBFBF]"The...my boss's boss's boss is...oh god. It's Konoe. He's doing it all over again. But...this isn't...and what was...That's what this is, right? He brainwashed me? And...how did you fix it without a Persona? Without forcing a change of heart?"[/color] "What the fuck are you talking about? Who's Konoe?" Geralt replied, eyes narrowing in suspicion. What did Zenkichi mean by him doing it all over again? [color=BFBFBF]"You...you mean you don't know? Oh great, he doesn't know."[/color] Zenkichi was clearly beyond done with this situation, but Geralt just shook his head. "Give it a bit. You've just woken back up. I'll let the others give you the rundown, I always leave something out. But to put it simply, whoever Konoe is, he's not the one who brainwashed you. Whether he's just another pawn in Galeem's game or what, I don't know. But you're not going anywhere, not now. You just passed initiation, like it or not." Geralt smirked down at the detective, who just groaned and dropped his head to the pavement, looking up in shock. He had...so much to do. Akane, first of all. Whatever happened next, he needed to apologize to her for being a dumbass. And...could they wake her up, too? Make her remember what happened, the Phantom Thieves, everything? Oh, he was going to have to go into hiding, wasn't he? Could he keep up working for Public Security like this? This wasn't...this wasn't like with Owada. He didn't have Kaburagi here to help him. Sure, he could trust Looker, but...it wasn't the same. Did...did Aoi even die in this world, or did he and Akane just remember her dying here? Oh god, that was an existential crisis and a half he wasn't ready to try and crack open. Yeah, this...was bad.