(no subject)

[undyingcrow]

[A message appears on the network one morning, not long after a certain Ren appears.

Not long after it goes up, some parts are edited out.]

Attention, "Crow" and "Joker."

With the arrival of my Ren, we formally challenge you over your precious codenames. Let us prove to you that we are the ones worthy of the titles, while you are mere variations from a simpler, happier world. despite the power you wield.

You may have seniority within this space, but we were forged in the fires of our hardships and have emerged on the other side of Maruki's reality.

You two have likely grown soft from your domesticity. Perhaps you'll find us worthy opponents after all this stagnation. They say the spirit of competition can bring out one's best and their worst.

[Is it bold to proclaim the challenge over the network? Yes. But he'd have it no other way, really. Everyone deserves to know how serious they are.]

As for the rest of you, I'd like to start a little bonding exercise.

Tell me something about yourself, and I'll tell you something about me in turn. Won't that be fun?

[It should be a simple way to start and prove that he's just as capable of "bonding" as Ren is.]

[ooc: Original parts of the message in strikethrough, with the edits after, if you want your character to have seen the original version.]

Comments

[takutomaruki]

...its a fine name

[undyingcrow]

No, he's right. It's a ridiculous name for a ridiculous Persona, belonging to a ridiculous man.

[takutomaruki]

I’d like to remind everyone that Persona names aren’t exactly handed out like job titles. I didn’t choose that name any more than you chose yours, Akechi-kun, though... now that we’re on the subject:

Loki?

Oh, yes, a name steeped in subtlety and nuance. Nothing says “this is a serious, mature Persona” quite like a trickster god renowned for chaos, pranks, and turning into a mare to birth a horse. Very dignified, Akechi-kun. Truly the height of self-reflection.

[unfoggedlotus]

don't knock it till you try it

[undyingcrow]

Utterly depraved.

I'm not even sure I want to know what you mean by that.

[unfoggedlotus]

Call of chaos is a wonderful, wonderful thing with many applications.

[undyingcrow]

Well, now I have to win my codename back.

I'll not stand for Call of Chaos being misused in such a scandalous fashion.

[takutomaruki]

what

[undyingcrow]

[...Damn it.]

Loki is also a god of the hearth, home, and families. He is a multifaceted god, and many of the more malevolent depictions of him were a result of Christianity trying to scrub away the depth in favor of a simple black and white morality.

He also isn't literally the "blind idiot god."

Regardless, the world would have been a better place had you not obtained Azathoth's power. I didn't take kindly to being a bargaining chip.

[takutomaruki]

[Maruki rolls his eyes]

I appreciate your in-depth defense of Loki’s character and your attempt to reclaim some dignity for your Persona. Truly, I do. But let’s not get distracted from the point at hand: I didn’t choose my Persona any more than you chose yours.

Now, as for your... commentary on Azathoth. First, I’ll remind you that “blind idiot god” is just a descriptor that was invented by H.P. Lovecraft. If you have issues with his works, take it up with his estate. I’ll admit Azathoth is an imposing and chaotic presence, but I’ll also remind you that I wielded his power with a specific vision in mind—a vision you disagreed with, and that’s fine.

I’ve had countless debates with other versions of you who also found fault in my ideals. I’m used to that by now, and frankly, I’m not here to waste my breath convincing you.

Will be honest- I don’t exactly remember using you as a bargaining chip. Though I have seen narratives here which suggest otherwise.

[undyingcrow]

Well, if you've yet to make that particular choice, I recommend choosing an alternative path.

I had the distinct displeasure of being led to believe I had died, only to learn that I survived, and the gaps in my memory were a result of your assumptions.

[takutomaruki]

[Why does that conversation feel so familiar-]

You make it seem like I was holding you hostage back in your world.
Why would I make you believe you were dead?

[undyingcrow]

I was a bargaining chip for Ren to choose your reality. The final bargaining chip.

You talked over me, as if I was merely a means to an end for your self-righteous goals.

Perhaps you truly thought me dead, so you changed reality so that you brought me back, which would have necessitated me to be dead, hence the gaps in my memories.

I had no idea I had survived until we defeated you, and the memories returned.

locked

[takutomaruki]

I see.

Well, I only would ever wish the best outcome for all of you- no matter what impression you might have of me. There are gaps in my memory but I have come to solidify the wish of Rens here. I can only assume, for certain that the Akira Kurusu from my world wished the same if we ever reached that point in my life.

Feel free to correct me but was the inciting event of your...mysterious circumstances related to a certain engine room in a ship?

[undyingcrow]

Yes.

The Phantom Thieves assumed I had died. Frankly, the fact that I survived is nothing short of a miracle.

[takutomaruki]

I wouldn't assume things but if that Maruki didn't know about your circumstances, I can only predict that this his way of giving you a second chance.

But I digress. Sometimes miracles are really the only way it makes our lives worth living.

And I apologize for bringing up that location. I just had to clarify things on my front.

[undyingcrow]

Oh, I doubt he knew, and I'm well aware of his intentions.

What I don't condone is letting one man dictate reality.

He turned a struggling artist into an archer because it was "easier" to simply change his trajectory. I doubt he would have left me recognizable.

[takutomaruki]

One man dictating reality, huh?

It’s interesting. That already happens without any cognitive influence—just in different ways. Suits, policies, systems that impose suffering and call it progress.

I’m not claiming my approach is flawless. I can see why you’d reject it; your experiences are valid. But I have to ask—how is life treating you now? This reality you’ve fought to protect... does it truly align with the ideals you hold, or is it simply the one you’ve grown used to?

[undyingcrow]

I'm not a puppet, at least, who can be reshaped into something I'm not. For all the imperfections in this world, at least our identities are not being dictated by some higher power, able to be molded on a whim.

Our pain, our growth, all of it remains. The people we became because of that pain, for better or worse... It's not so simple as scrubbing it all away.

Not to mention, conflicting ideas of happiness. Conflicting wishes. There is no way you could have feasibly pleased everyone.

[takutomaruki]

Your conviction reminds me who I was once—fierce in believing in the sanctity of free choice, defying my parents to become a psychologist. I don’t fault you for holding onto that spark. I remember it well, even if it’s... dimmed now.

I’ll admit, debates like this over the network aren’t exactly my favorite pastime. But here we are. If reality is so good in its imperfections, perhaps everyone should awaken to their Personas. Reclaim their identities. Doesn’t that sound like a fictional story? Something you’d hear in a lofty speech or a self-help seminar? With pain- everyone should just be more self-aware and float against the hailing storm; they will learn how to swim eventually right?

Just because we’re in a world full of chosen ones- persona users who fight against higher forces, doesn’t remove the illusion that pain only perpetuates itself. That it remains a glaring flaw in humanity’s framework and only grows into a cycle of suffering.

And as for what I would do—what I did do—as a god? I don’t remember. I can only comprehend this now, as I am: human. Like you. Like everyone else here. Whatever I thought or did back then feels... incomprehensible now, as if I was someone else entirely.

How is your Maruki doing now?

[undyingcrow]

I'm not entirely sure, though I doubt he's involved with cognitive psience anymore.

I've had more pressing priorities than doing a full background check, though I did alert Kirijo-san.

Tw: slight suicidal thought

[takutomaruki]

[Maruki didn't like any of that. He wanted to ask the pressing matters of whether he even survived after the phantom thieves went after him though he was't sure if he was ready for that answer]

Kirijo?

[paysforall]

But at least it only requires two kana to write.

[takutomaruki]

That's
I don't even know what to say to that

[paysforall]

Well, the issue at hand was the matter of names, was it not? You are the one who attempted to obscure the issue by bringing up tangents into the realm of mythos.

Also, though I can't speak for anyone else here, Loki was not my first Persona in any case. You haven't even chosen a good target.