The first thing that Goro heard was the music. It was the same, always the same- the 'poetry of the soul', as Igor had called it.

It meant he was in the Velvet Room, which was not, in and of itself, surprising. He had, at least, wanted very badly to sleep for at least a week straight, after the whole Alastor clusterfuck, but apparently, it wasn't to be.

He stood, albeit shakily, and that was when his eyes and ears supplied him with the additional information that beneath his feet was not worn wood, swaying gently on the waves below, but rather stone, smooth and (as ever) blue.

Also, the only pair of eyes staring at him were the bulbous, bloodshot orbs of the Velvet Room's enigmatic master.

"Oh dear," the man said softly. "Welcome to the Velvet Room, young man- though I daresay it isn't the one you're most familiar with."

He stiffened, crossing his arms and fixing the man with a glare. For all the good it did- Igor's smile twitched not so much as a fraction of a millimeter. "This had better have an explanation. You know the New Year's coming. I have too much shit to do- where's Renée? Why is the Room different, it's usually a ship." He glanced around, taking in the sights before him. Doors, leading off in different directions. A... conspiracy board? What.

"You are aware, I think, of the nature of this room. My dear Renée is so fond of calling you 'Detective'- why not furnish me with a deduction? You are a Guest, after all, and this room and all its amenities are open to you. By all means- observe, and hypothesize."

The crow narrowed his eyes. But, point taken. The doors were an object of consideration first, and so he opened them, checking to see what lay beyond. Cities he didn't recognize. An alley behind a shopping mall. The main street of a small town. And- Shibuya. Curious. A sign advising visitors not to enter unarmed, and another warning not to visit the tower that appeared after midnight. Curiouser.

And then there was the Board. Red string and pins connecting a bunch of theories written in tidy, practiced handwriting. In fact... he reached up to take one of the notes, examining it more closely.

Akechi Codenames-

"What the shit..."

After a moment's reading, Goro Akechi ars Goetia whirld around, stalking towards the desk at the center of the room. Both hands slammed down on the table, anger burning in crimson eyes. "If this is another place like Reverein- if you've sent me back- I was done! I was out, I had a fucking future-"

And Igor simply smiled. "I have sent you nowhere, my boy. In fact... it's possible it is your connection to Reverein itself which draws you to such a place. Similar, yet not. But worry not- you shall return when you wake... and, of course, we are not in the business of tampering with our Guests' memories. You shall retain all knowledge of this place upon your waking, and you may well find yourself returning... should you wish to. Perhaps it would be best to think of this as... a vacation."

"A vacation?! Are you high- The Purge. My team-"

"All awaiting your return, and none the wiser. You may find the stakes, here, much lower, this shared dream filled with familiar faces- some you may even have missed. Your presence here may be unexpected, as ever it has been... but it is nevertheless enjoyed. Take your time... and do remember to visit, now and then; the Velvet Room is ever quiet, and I so enjoy our little chats."

It was hard to stay angry with the man, not when he always spoke in that grandfatherly tone, the one that suggested he always had time for whomever he was speaking to, was delighted to have a chance to talk- even if he so rarely revealed anything beyond cryptic hints and metaphors.

Goro straightened, swearing under his breath and kicking a wall- mistake, as it turned out. He was Dreamwalking again, something he hadn't done since leaving Reverein, and with no apparent way to exit willingly, which was just fucking great. A mental checklist, at least, produced useful knowledge. The Arcana weren't severed, not like they had been when he'd left Reverein, so presumably he could just... go back. The connections were still there. His Personas were still there. He could even fuse, presumably, since Igor was here- though Renée would have had the Compendium. Could he still use it without it being physically present?

The physical checklist was simpler. Wallet, keys, phone- which curiously was not working, which. Fucking great. Metaverse Navigator was still there. Ankusham was strapped to his waist still, the talwar's familiar presence reassuring- not that he'd expected it not to follow him. Something about a sword forged from his own Persona seemed like it ought to follow into such a place. More surprising were the clothes he hadn't been wearing when he'd gone to sleep, the soft weight of his pistol beneath the jacket, the duffel bag he'd always carried on Metaverse excursions, tucked not-quite-out-of-sight beneath the desk, with its inventory entirely intact.

So here he was, having been thrust, for a third time, across some kind of boundary between worlds- how the fuck did that happen, anyway- but with no apparent strings attached.

Multiple 'Goro Akechis'. Not something new, not based on his fucking history, but so many? Vampires? Time travel. Some kind of Quantum Dream Magic Bullshit was going on, and he was going to figure out exactly what.