Disclaimer: hello and welcome back everyone to my very first crossover. I know… another story? Well I got no excuse. I just have an ever-changing Fantasy. Now I won't say much now. I try a new format of writing so you will have to see the end of the chapter for notes.
With that said… have fun and I hope you enjoy!
Golden Rebellion
The End of the Phantom Thieves?
The World is not as it should be.
Filled with distortions, ruin is everly impending.
Distorted desires of the sinners, suffering brought upon the innocent and undeserving acts of good will being punished by society.
It almost seems as if it is the Worlds very fate to fall down into the abyss, drowning in their misery and doomed to suffer ruin.
But a world standing at the edge of despair, will always have Heroes awaken to protect it. Heroes who will have hope as their guide, their hearts as their biggest strength and who will fight to steal the World back from those who brought it down this destructive path.
Those people, who desire change and oppose destiny, are called Tricksters.
This is the story of one of these Tricksters.
But will she succeed in her trials?
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The Alarm rang loudly in the Casinos walls.
Something must have happened but what? It was all the people thought as some hurried to collect what little they had gained through gambling and some others what little they still had left. The security of the place was hurrying, shouting commands at each other and checking their weapons in case they were needed.
And the culprit for all this was right above their heads.
Above the anxious people was a small figure, jumping from platform to platform, no matter if belonging to a very large slot machine or a chandelier. It seemed to be nothing but a yellow/golden blur.
Than the blur stopped…
Standing atop the Chandelier the figure finally stood still. It was a young woman, wearing the mischievous smile of a Cheshire cat. Long blonde hair fell down her back like a waterfall of liquid gold and beautiful purple eyes looked down upon the masses. They were hidden beneath a colombina, a half mask worn by those women who were not afraid to show their true self. The mask was golden in colour and in such detail decorated, that one could assume it was out of reptilian scales.
She wore a yellow corset that left some part of her midriff open, the emblem of a burning heart was emblazed on it right above where her heart lay. An open, sleeveless dark gold jacket accompanied it with two long gold-trimmed rectangular detachable tails going down from it, like a coat or wings belonging to a fantastical creature. Her neck was covered by an orange scarf. A black belt covered by a pleated black piece of material reached from hip to hip around the back of her waist above yellow shorts. On her left hand was a single blood red glove and on her left shoulder could be found a dragon-shaped mark. Her right arm however was completely different. Instead of a metal prosthetic like it would usually be, a golden scaled dragon arm was revealed to the world, giving the girl a beast like look. The claws, strong enough to cut through metal, gently held a silver briefcase. Kneehigh dirty yellow boots and a purple piece of cloth tied around her left leg completed her look.
Two security guards noticed the woman. Not enough for her plan to work. With that in her mind she grabbed behind her something was carried by the belt on her hip. Now the mysterious girl was holding a handy but very effective shotgun.
With two shots in the air, chaos broke out. The masses panicked and hurried to get to safety, blocking the security in their path by accident, who was now all alarmed and shouting at each other to capture the intruder.
Smiling even wider, the girl jumped on top of another platform, honeycombed and purple. Now she was ready for the plan.
She heard a voice through her earpiece. Not just one but multiple, those of her trusted partners in crime.
"Good. Now get running!" said what appeared to be a youngish boy.
"This is our only chance!" came from another boy.
"Stay calm! You can get away now!" spoke a girl, younger than the others, except maybe the young boy.
"We will retrieve the treasure on our end. Be careful not to get caught." this voice belonged to a stern woman, always making extra sure that everything would go according to plan.
"…suspects…not confirmed… hold your positions… the Thief… capture alive…"this was another frequency. They were really giving their best to catch her. Too bad. For them.
"You guys better be careful too." That was the beastly girls reply.
"Don't worry about us. Just focus on getting away leader!" reassured her the boyish voice.
"You got it." was her own answer as she jumped onto a translucent purple fixture. The voices of her comrades still being in her company.
"But I gotta say, showing yourself above the crowd was a very excellent distraction. Nice work as always Ace."
The girl, now revealed to be known as Ace, allowed herself a small second to enjoy the praise.
"I bet King wouldn't be able to pull it of that smoothly." A new voice, this one being a kind of teasing girl.
"Hey! I could totally pull of some jumps!" spoke a boy who was now known as King in protest.
A different young man couldn't resist the temptation and made fun of it.
"But you lack the grace for it. It would more look like a sloth falling from a tree."
"No one asked you Lotus!" King snapped at him. Lotus could only chuckle.
"There she is!" She turned around. Some of the man had now managed to get through the crowd and were trying to climb up.
In alarm the young girl could be heard once more. "Just run! Get out of their!"
Choosing to comply, Ace continued to run. Her team may be panicking but she was not. She showed no fear as she jumped across a series of arches. Allied voices resonated in her ear once more.
"Okay the enemy still focuses on her. That means we can all slip away unseen."
"So where do we all meet up again?"
"I got it! Outside the Casino is a safe zone, I guide you all there."
A quick motion and Ace swung herself over a balcony, overviewing the player area. But she was not granted even a second to catch her breath. Before her three guards stood, strong and prepared to strike her down. She gladly accepted the Challenge with a smirk.
"Take em down Ace!"
"You got it sis." And with that all words were spoken, her eyes changing from calm purple to wild, fiery red. Two of the guards rushed her. She avoided the strike of a baton and twirled her body, with one precise kick the guard was send over the balcony, crashing down on a Poker table. The second guard was not even granted a moment to attack or think as Ace slammed the briefcase into his belly and swiped his legs. One throw later and the second guard joined his partner on the broken Poker table.
The last guard, the biggest of them all, charged at her, prepared to avenge his comrades. The blonde jumped high into the air in response, flying like a majestic bird, she landed on the Guards shoulders, reaching down to violently grab his 'face' before ripping it away! The scream the 'guard' made was like sweet music to her ears.
She jumped of, granting the 'guard' a moment as it was enveloped into shadows, black particles surrounding it and moving, shifting. It was then that the 'guard' revealed its true form. That of a bull like creature, starring down at the girl with murder in his eyes.
"A Moloch heh? Nothing I can't deal with." she thought as she throw the briefcase in the air. Her monstrous claw ready, she slashed at the beast, knocking it down with a uppercut. The beast groaned and prepared to engage, as feeble as it may be. A stream of fire erupted from its mouth, aimed right at Ace who didn't even bother to dodge. Instead she grabbed her golden mask…
"Persona!"
And with that one word spoken a being appeared before Ace, weaved in so many flames its form was unrecognizable for the human eye. It took the brute force of the fire without being faced. When they subsided the Moloch looked dumbfounded, scarred even. Ace almost felt pity as she gave the command to attack. With claws much like her own the creature grabbed Moloch by its horns RIPPING it apart by them. Moloch screamed as it could feel its death was coming. Soon two parts of the creature were lying on the floor and as it slowly dissolved, the silver briefcase she had thrown in the air came down again. Ace catched it without even looking, smirking the whole time, as her eyes changed back to purple.
"Good, you defeated them with ease." commented the youngish boy.
"Crap! More of them are approaching you're position."
Like always there was no time to relish in small victories. Already a different 'guard' was running at her, where he had appeared from she had no clue. Not important.
The 'guard' was raising his arm, baton in hand that buzzed with electricity. But the beastly girl dodged it with an unexpected grace, back flipping out of harms way. Vaulting herself onto a platform behind her, jumping onto a higher balcony.
"Ace behind you! Go through the door! Then the second left!" The girl she so affectionately called sis directed. Ace followed without wasting a second thought. She knew that her sister could be trusted.
She ran through the door and the dark corridors. Avoiding the sight of the other 'guards'. Still, her worry for her teammates was all to present.
"Is everyone of you still okay?"
"No problems here!" King replied. Something that managed to put her at ease. If he was okay than the rest had to be too. It was uncommon for him to NOT be the first one affected if something goes wrong.
"Don't worry about us sis. I pick up everyones signal." her 'sis' calmed her as well. With that in mind she walked faster and faster, becoming nothing but a golden blur. She jumped so quickly up the stairs it might as well be considered flight.
Her way, directed by her comrade, ended at another door. She kicked it open and clutched at a railing… wait railing? She was on one of the balconies again!
"Something wrong? The exit should be up ahead." her sis asked.
This got a reaction out of the blonde. "You mean through the window?"
There indeed was a window… on the other side of the hall.
"It's the only way. After all the ruckus you created the floor is completely closed of. You think you can make it?"
That now sounded like a challenge. The familiar smirk returned to her face. "Who do you think you're talking to?" she heard a giggle on the other end of the line.
"Stop right there!"
"Wow they are persistent."
Snapping her head around Ace saw multiple of the casino 'guards' once more. Guns raised and pointed straight at her. "There is nowhere to run. Surrender immediately!"
"Good idea but I have a better one." was all the thought she spared the 'guards'. Before one could even blink she held a small orb in her hand. She threw it with deadly accuracy at one of the 'guards'. It immediately went of, covering the whole hallway in white smoke. Their coughs were like a triumphant Orchestra as she leaped onto the railing, running on it and approaching her exit point.
The 'guards' cursed as the smoke subsided and they got a final glimps of the mysterious woman. Her words of parting were spoken sheepishly.
"See ya!"
And she jumped.
Through the window.
The beautiful formed glass broke into thousands of pieces around Ace, her arms held forward to protect her fell to her side as she soared through the air. Not flying but elegantly falling you could say. "What a show-off." her sis commented. "You're way to reckless you know that?"
Yes, yes she knew. Not that it ever stopped her anyway. Or that her team ever really minded. They knew what she was capable of, her flair for the theatrics was not much of a problem.
She ended her leap of faith with a roll, her escape successful. She allowed herself a moment to enjoy it, the glass around her falling and shattering. Ace stood up and faced away from the Casino…
As thousands of lights blinded her. Lights from… the Police! Actual Police not the 'guards' of the Casino!
This was… less than optimal. Her comrades agreed. She could hear their panicked voices over the earpiece.
"There are enemies here!? These readings. How is this possible?"
"Whats wrong!?"
"What happened!?
"They had an ambush planned!"
"Oh no!"
"This is bad."
"Ace get out of there!"
The girl starred at the small army in front of her, not unfamiliar to a deer caught in the lights of a Car.
That last warning was all she needed to snap out of it. And she ran. She ran as if she was hunted by the Devil himself. Searchlights trailed her every step. Swinging herself up the ladder of a fire escape she did her best to climb up. Sadly it was in vain. Her eyes widened behind her mask as she reached the top and several officers already awaited her.
"Oh fu-"
Her curse was interrupted by one of the man ramming his gun into her temple. The force was strong enough to make her tumble, losing her grip on the ladder in the process. She fell, deeper and deeper down, right before the Police men. As if they were a bunch of hyenas they rushed her, pushing her down, before one of them managed to tie her down with a set of handcuffs, through her wild struggle.
"Didn't expect to find some girl." One of the braver police man commented at the downed Thief. He knelled down beside her, looking her dead in the eye, he grinned. Grabbing her by the hair to make her look directly at him, he ignored her angry hiss. Instead he talked more.
"You have your teammate to thank for this blondie. You were sold out." The shock was not hidden by the mask.
The man released her hair and then…
The world went black.
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"Guess the drug was to strong."
"Are we sure we shouldn't just let her sleep though?"
"You know exactly that we need to get a confession out of her. Come on don't be a pussy and help me wake this bitch up."
"Hey this bitch is one of the most wanted criminals of the decade! She can somehow make you suffer a mental shutdown, steal your heart and who knows what else. Besides haven't you heard about what it was like when she was arrested? Her clothes were completely different and her arm… her arm was covered with scales or something. This girl isn't normal."
Voices… they sounded very distant. Where was she? Who were they?
"Yeah, yeah whatever."
She could her him grab something. The next second she was drenched with water. Eyes wide open from the cold she looked around in haste. Everything was blurry. Finally her vision focused on two men before her. One of them held an empty bucket. She wanted to stand up but couldn't. Her arms were chained behind her back by… handcuffs? She struggled harder at realizing this.
"You still don't get it huh?" The man throw the bucket into a corner of the dark room. Threateningly he advanced towards her. "Give it up!" he kicked her in the belly, with enough force to knock the air out of her and make her fall to the floor. She pulled harder at her cuffs. She did NOT like the idea of being helpless around these people.
She growled as another impact followed. This time he put her shoe on her head.
"Come on cooperate. Or do you want another shot?" she was getting a headache. Not only from this bastards foot but from whatever they had injected her with. Angry tears ran down her checks. Her eyes suddenly focused on a camera in the corner. The man in front of her followed her gaze. He shook his head and kneeled down lifting her up by her hair (some deep part inside her told her that she hated this). He smelt like alcohol and her face twisted from it. "What about the Camera. You think it can be used as evidence?"
Evidence? For what? For how these asshole was treating her? She had no idea. She couldn't even get the words out. Instead she focused everything she had on memorizing the men's face. If she ever gets out of this she would definitely make him pay.
"Didn't you hear me?" he let go of her hair. "Answer!" Only to continue ramming his foot into her belly. She coughed in pain. Some spit was coming out of her mouth and she hunched forward, wheezing at the attack.
The man ignored her whimpers and instead grabbed a clipboard from his so far passive partner. All the while the girl tried her hardest to not throw up and deal with the pain.
"Do you have to be so rough? She is still a kid!" She heard the passive Police man complain. "Shut up!" was all he got as a response. "She isn't a kid. She is a criminal. One of the worst this world has seen as well. You want to protect children? Well how many died during the accidents she caused?"
"Accidents? I… I caused accidents?"
Loudly the aggressive man read out the things on the clipboard as his partner cowered away. "Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons… manslaughter too."
What? Manslaughter?
"I… killed someone?"
"And to think all these crimes were led by a bitch like this." the man scowled at her a last time. Anger in his eyes. "And you seemed to be enjoying every second of it too."
The blonde was confused. Just what was going on here? She would never kill someone. What did these people want? Where even was she?
"Why… why would I enjoy it?"
He flicked his hand, giving a sign to the other suited man in the room. The passive one leaned down and unlocked her cuffs. She was surprised at this act of mercy but realized what it was for when the scary one approached her, saying something about confession under her name, while handing her the clipboard.
Something sparked inside her at this. For a brief second she wasn't confused or scared. She was only angry and wanted to show him, in SOME way, that he didn't get through to her. She pushed the clipboard away, a simple but effective gesture.
"I see." he commented, only more angered by her small act of defiance. "You know… it's kinda sad that you need to have this arm prosthetic. Must have sucked losing an arm."
She… lost an arm?
He was right. Where her right arm was supposed to be there was nothing but metal. When did that happe-?
She had not time to think about that further as she screamed in pain. Her leg was aching. The culprit of her misery being none other than HIM again. Slamming his foot into her knee he rubbed the pain in. As if he was some kind of deranged doctor. "It would be a pity if you end up losing a leg too."
He released her leg. She could feel her anger rise. This time she accepted the clipboard and a pen. The man left her like this with one last threat. "Don't expect to walk out of here in one piece. We're going to make you understand. One must take full responsibility for their actions."
Even in this hazy, drugged, pained state she was in she could muster up the strength for a cold look in the man's eyes. She half expected to be punished for it again, but instead he left her alone, to write this confession.
So they needed her name.
Her name.
What was her name?
Come on focus. Focus! She was…
She was…
Finally after a lot of attempts she managed to write her name. 3 small words all with four letters each:
Yang Xiao Long.
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Things were blurry again after that. Everything went by so fast. The two men took her confession and left the room, the psycho of the two giving her one last glare, before leaving her alone to lick her wounds.
There were so many. She couldn't see all of them but she knew that her face must be a mess. She could feel them. Some blood was probably the reason why her shirt was clinging to her. Either that or the sweat and water made it so. Probably both.
It was cold. So... very... cold.
Everything hurt. Her head, her legs, her arm, her belly it… it all hurt.
How long has she been here?
The door opened again and Yang weakly raised her head. Thankfully it weren't the two men from before. Instead… a woman with white hair entered the room. White hair… why does that strike her as familiar?
The woman sat down on the chair in front of her, shock was visible on her face before she caught herself. Her eyes searched around the room and Yang followed her gaze, right to where a used syringe lay. So she really was drugged.
"Disgusting." was all she said to comment on it. Immediately Yang was finding this woman a lot more sympathetic. She hasn't beaten her so far and even seemed angry at them. This was probably as good as it was going to get as long as she was… here…
Here… where was here?
She had the feeling like she should know where she should be. She was forgetting something. Something very important.
Her train of thoughts stopped as the woman spoke once more. "I wouldn't have expected it to be you."
Yang didn't know how to answer to that so she just shrugged. The woman with white hair (seriously why did this strike her as important!?) leaned over the table. "Can you hear me? It seems they put you through a lot." Yang nodded. She was doped up on whatever chemical they had put in her but she was able to at least hear.
"Good." said the mysterious woman. "Because I need you to understand something." Her face immediately became stern and… concerned for her? "Almost anything can happen here. And I lack the authority to stop any of them. This is why I need you to answer my questions honestly. We don't have much time. I am the only way out you have."
Yang believed those words without a doubt. This woman in white was very likely the only person in this whole… wherever… that didn't want to skin her alive for some reason. It would probably be a lot better to cooperate with her. At the very least, she preferred her over the guy from before.
She wanted to answer… as something striked her. Out of nowhere, like a flash of lightning.
She… she KNEW this woman!
White hair… white… Weiss (wait who was Weiss?)… Weiss's sister?
"Alright Winter." her mind finally managed to scramble together. A small success. Winter seemed pleased by this as well. "Good so you are able to remember things." Winter smiled for a brief moment and soon adopted her professional tone once more. "Now I need you to tell me everything. Why did you cause those incidents. Who are the Phantom Thieves of Hearts? How is it even possible to steal someone heart?"
Aaaaaaand there went her moment of success.
Yang had no idea what Winter was talking about. Incidents? Stealing hearts? And what the hell is a Phantom Thief!?
"What kind of World did you stumble into?"
Yang would like to know THAT too! What kind of world did she ran into that it lead her to land here!?
Winter could see the confusion of Yang. She sighed and, now using a more comforting tone, spoke again. "Relax and start from the very beginning."
The beginning. Where even was the beginning?
Yang thought hard. She felt like her head was about to explode.
Something happened in that moment. There was nothing but a dark void surrounding her. Nothing but herself… and a small blue butterfly, flying calmly around her. It spoke in a soft and gentle voice.
"You are held captive. A prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance. This is truly an unjust game… your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you… I beg you. Please overcome this game… and save the world."
Wait… saving the WORLD!? She just remembered the names of herself and one person! How would she save the whole World!?
"They key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds. The truth you and your friends grasped. It all began that day when the game was started half a year ago."
Half a year? Just what happened? Yang tried to remember but it was all like a fog in her mind. Nothing clearly visible. All hidden beneath drugs and illusions.
"For the sake of your worlds future as well as your own… you must remember." was the last she heard of the beautiful blue butterfly before she disappeared and the World came back to her, the black void disappearing.
Concentrating, Yang began to see something. She slowly started to remember, started to see through the fog…
And thus Yang's journey through her memories began.
And she reminiscent back to the craziest year of her life.
Oh dear just how did Yang got into this situation?
Well I assume some of you already have a good idea.
So first I think it would be good to get some questions out of the way.
1: Will this be just a novelization?
No it won't be. It will follow the original game but I have my own few touches here and there. I even reworked a lot of the Thieves. And I can tell you now I didn't stop with the codenames (there's a reason why Yang is not named Joker by the way). I have some ideas in mind that will make this story different from the game. On that note, there are even different personas most of the time. But because of that there will be no persona evolution. Why? well simple. Its really damn hard to come up with persona designs. And even harder to actually come up with characters to base them of. Seriously I have a whole new respect for whoever thinks up the designs for the personas at Atlus.
But it was pretty fun and I CANT WAIT to see you guys react towards what Yangs starting Persona will be revealed as. It wont be goldilocks or Arsene. I have something WAY better. :)
2: What's up with the Thieves and Yang?
Well for starters, I didn't feel like reusing Akiras/Rens/Jokers outfit so I reinvented something. Clothes are in the Metaverse a symbol for your rebellion so I figured something out that would be fitting for Yang. Considering her character and motives what you just read is the result. Now I am not sure just how good I managed to bring her design across though. I would like to give you a picture but I can't draw to save my life.
Basically it's a combination of Velvet Crowe from Tales of Berseria, Yangs original design in the show, some dragon mixed in and some of Jokers Thief outfit. I really don't think this is farfetched.
On that note if there is anyone willing to make art of it than I would really appreciate it. Ill happily make it the cover image.
3: Why Yang and not Ruby?
I just KNOW that some are going to ask and the answer is very simple.
Yang just works way better for this story.
Persona 5 is themed around rebellion and taking justice into your own hand. Really Persona 5 pretty much embodies the Justice Arcana. Yang just fits this better than Ruby in my opinion. that and once I actually got around to developing who would play who, it was a no brainer for me that Ruby would fill Futabas role.
If Ruby would be the protagonist than I would honestly say Persona 4. 5 just doesn't work for her. She can shine way better in a different role.
That and quite honestly? Ruby is ALWAYS used for these type of stories. Whenever there is a crossover than its almost always Ruby the one who takes the lead. Either her or Jaune. I am bored of this. So yeah… Phantom Thief Yang is starting this thing of everyone.
So with that said, get in and prepare folks this will be a long one.
Until next time where we will find out how Yangs journey started.