Heart of Justice Chapter 24
5/25
Afternoon had come, and the Madarame Art Exhibit was once more crowded with eager patrons, and even more eager reporters hoping for an interview with the renowned artist, who was currently engaged in conversation with several wealthy socialites hoping to purchase some of his work.
"Oh, no, no, no," Madarame said with a hearty chuckle. "Not yet, you'll want to wait till after the exhibit! I still haven't unveiled my newest project, after all!"
"Surely you'll accept any price!"
"I don't do this for the money, my friend," Madarame replied, smiling apologetically. Yusuke did all he could to conceal a grimace as he stood quietly behind his sensei.
"Um, pardon me, sir?" a suited man stammered as he approached cautiously, weaving through the small crowd around Madarame.
"What is it?" asked Madarame, barely hinting his annoyance at the staff member.
"There's an urgent matter we need to notify you about," the man said.
Madarame noted the deep concern on the man's face and sighed. "My apologies, please excuse us for a moment," he said, leading the staff member away from the crowd, unaware Yusuke was watching him intently.
"Well?" he asked the man, who quickly reached into his coat pocket and took out a small red card.
"We found this outside."
Madarame regarded him with mild curiosity, though making his impatience evident. "A letter?"
"It's, uh..."
Madarame snatched the card from the staff member's hand and looked it over. The back had a red and black bullseye pattern on it, surrounding a peculiar red logo with black shading on it that appeared to be a Victorian top hat, with a domino mask underneath with white eyeholes, though the left eye had flames flickering out of it. Underneath in white-framed black lettering were the words "TAKE YOUR HEART". Flipping the card over, Madarame saw a message printed on it, in a font resembling cut-and-paste letters.
"Sir Ichiryusai Madarame, a great sinner of vanity whose talent has been exhausted," the staff member read aloud, "...You are an artist who uses his authority to shamelessly steal the ideas of his pupils. We have decided to make you confess all your crimes from your own mouth. We will take your distorted desires without fail. From, the Phantom Thieves of Hearts."
Yusuke barely held back a smirk as Madarame angrily crumbled the card in his hands.
"Whose doing is this?!" Madarame snarled, glaring at the staff member.
"We don't know! The same letter's been posted everywhere!" the man protested.
"What about the security cameras?!" snapped Madarame, his scowl deepening.
The staff member shook his head. "There were no signs of a culprit. All we saw was a cat in the recordings!"
"Remove these at once!" Madarame shouted angrily.
"R-right, sir!" said the staff member anxiously. "But... about this affecting the exhibit, we believe it's just a prank but what of the mass media?"
Madarame grit his teeth, giving the man a very dangerous glare as he stood closer to him, folding his arms into his robes. "...Are you insinuating that you believe this obvious malicious slander is true?!"
"No! Of course not, sir!" the staff member replied, turning to leave quickly. Yusuke blinked as reality around him suddenly seemed to flicker and he found himself in a black abyss, alone with the garishly-dressed Shadow of Madarame facing away from him.
"It's those damn brats' doing isn't it?!" Madarame snarled to himself, stroking his chin as the sound of a security alarm seemed to ring from the darkness. "...Well, it means nothing! They'll only be able to do as they please until this exhibit is over!"
In a flash of light, Yusuke once more found himself back in the exhibit hall. Satisfied, the boy turned and made his way to the entrance where Ann, Kyoko, and Ryuji were waiting, Morgana peering out of Kyoko's school bag.
"Will that do?" Yusuke asked.
"It was perfect!" replied Ann with a small cheering gesture. "Not to mention the composition was way cooler, too!"
"The Treasure should appear right about now!" Morgana stated.
"You better enjoy the air of freedom while you still can, old man!" Ryuji said with a smirk as he looked past Yusuke where Madarame was addressing reporters again. His smirk quickly spread to a wide grin, though, as he took out his phone. "You guys check online, though? People're already talkin' about the calling card! We're gonna surprise 'em all!"
"This is our only shot at this, however..." Kyoko gave a small smile. "...I have faith we'll succeed. If by chance we have to fight our way out, I bought some things yesterday..."
"Oh, right! Those!" Morgana disappeared back into Kyoko's school bag and brought out several small charm bracelets in his teeth, each with different stones with carvings on them.
"Uhhh, what're those?" Ryuji asked.
"Are those... Yonaga's work?" Yusuke asked, walking over and looking at them. "I recognize the engravings. When she wasn't painting she sometimes sculpted trinkets dedicated to that deity she believes in."
"Yup, and they seem to be element based, and her belief in them means they may have an effect in the metaverse! It's possible they can protect us from certain elements... I think!" Morgana explained. "The yellow one's clearly lightning based so I'll be keeping that one. Yusuke, you get the fire one. Lady Ann, the ice one, and Ryuji, that leaves the green one for you."
"Aw, it's cute!" Ann said with an amused smirk as she slid the bracelet into her pocket.
"Madarame won't stand a chance, now!" Ryuji said with a proud grin.
"It makes sense. Madarame is viewed as a master of all techniques. Who can say what this... Shadow... of his is capable of if we were forced into confrontation," Yusuke said, accepting his.
"You have no reservations about this, right, Yusuke?" Morgana asked.
"Of course not," Yusuke replied calmly. "We'll do this... and when it's over, I owe Yonaga-san a proper apology."
"You'll have your chance, Yusuke," said Kyoko. "For now, let's get this done."
With a nod of agreement, the Phantom Thieves turned to leave, their next heist was about to begin.
Right away, the Thieves could tell the Palace had changed. The skies had become turbulent, and the museum now emitted a faint red hue as it loomed over them.
"Hm, the atmosphere is certainly different, now," Fox remarked, looking around.
"I mean, we did basically declare war on 'em with the calling card!" Skull said with a grin.
"Yup, same thing happened the last time we did that," Panther explained.
"Which means the calling card has done its job," Ace replied. "All that remains now is to steal the Treasure."
"That's right!" Mona said. "We've already secured a route, we can take the Treasure and do it with style!"
Ace gave her gloves a tug to straighten them, then brushed back her hair as she turned and led the way into the Palace. Even she couldn't help but feel somewhat exhilarated like her teammates, now, being able to bring down another truly monstrous criminal who saw himself above the law. So many, like the man from that night, had the power to block and bury the truth, and twist the law to suit them while using fear to silence anyone who may have otherwise still tried to challenge them, and it was satisfying to the young detective to be able to personally prove to them and everyone else they were not as untouchable as they thought.
The truth would come, soon enough, and from Madarame himself, no less.
When they'd finally made their way to the control room, Ace turned to face her fellow Thieves, folding her arms. "Is everyone ready? There's no turning back, now."
"Trust me, I've been looking forward to this!" Mona said with a smirk. "You just sit back and watch!"
"If worse comes to worse, we may have to fight," Panther said, concerned, looking at her glove where the charm from Angie's shop now hung. "If that happens, hope these work!"
"Let 'em try! We'll kick his ass!" Skull said, giving a grin and a thumbs-up.
"Ideally, we take the Treasure and slip out before he even knows we're here," Ace replied.
"So, we're ready, then?" Mona asked.
"As we'll ever be," Ace answered, looking to the others, who all nodded in agreement.
"Then let's get into our positions and do this!"
"There's an enemy there, now," Panther whispered, crouched outside the glass doors leading to the control room that operated the lights as she looked over at Skull, who was crouched on opposite end across from her.
"Ain't surprisin'," Skull replied. "I'll try an' draw it out. You handle the switch once I do!"
"What if it catches up to you, though? Will you be alright?" Panther asked, concerned.
"Don't underestimate an ex-runner!" Skull said with a chuckle. "Besides, I've been gettin' back into shape, so I got this! Shakin' some Shadow off ain't gonna be a problem!"
Panther gave a nod, smiling from her friend's confidence. "Good luck!" she whispered, getting up and ducking behind a nearby sculpture while Skull stood up and began to bang on the door.
"Hey! There's some weird people out here!" Skull shouted, disguising his voice and then jogging away from the door. "Heeeeey! I need some help!"
A second later, the doors slid open, a Shadow guard emerged, looking about before spotting Skull ahead and pursuing. Emerging from her hiding place, Panther watched as Skull lead the guard away.
"You'd better make it, Skull!" Turning back and heading into the control room, Panther made her way to the terminal, glancing through the window up towards the rafters where Fox stood in front of the hook, having just finished tying Mona on to it.
"Is this good?" he asked.
"Perfect!" the cat replied with a smirk.
"You seem to be enjoying this," said Fox, regarding the giddy feline hanging from the hook.
"Only the best can appreciate these critical moments! Plus, this feels like we're really Phantom Thieves!"
"We'll be counting on you, Mona. Panther as well!" Fox replied, turning and gazing down at the window of the control room where he spotted Panther, waving down at her to signal all was ready.
A second later, the lights immediately cut, plunging the museum into darkness save for the laser guards surrounding the Treasure.
"Ace! Now!" Fox ordered, rushing into the control room to operate the crane where Ace was waiting.
"On it," she replied, pulling the nearby lever and the cables began to turn.
Feeling himself being lowered, Mona descended towards the opening within the laser guards, their red light faintly illuminating Madarame as he stood at attention facing the hall, unaware of Mona's presence as the cat stretched his paws down and grabbed on to the Treasure below him, a bundled, flat rectangular object larger then himself that one would gather was a painting, wrapped and covered in luxurious purple velvet cloth. Glancing up, Mona could see Fox waiting in the rafters and gave a nod, signaling he be brought up. The cable began to wind once more, and Mona soon ascended back into the rafters, his paws gripped tightly on to the prize as Skull, Ace, and Panther arrived to greet him.
"How's that for success! Brilliant plan!" Mona said with a chuckle.
"Lord Madarame! The piece is gone!" a Shadow bellowed down below, catching the group's attention as they looked down at the frantic guards and the enraged Madarame.
"How dare those vermin!" Madarame snarled, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists in anger. "They're around somewhere! We'll corner them like the rats they are! Lock down all the doors at once! They'll have nowhere to run!"
Back up in the rafters, Fox had finished untying Mona while Skull turned over the bundled Treasure, looking it over.
"So, what'd the Treasure end up bein' anyway?" Skull asked, noting the beautiful cloth it was wrapped in. "I'm gonna guess a paintin' or somethin', based on the shape n' all?"
"I have my theories, but we'll worry about that later," Ace replied. "He's already gotten his security looking for us and we'll need to make our escape."
"The window we saw earlier," Fox said. "Of course. Let's go!"
Emerging from the window, the Thieves froze in place as they stood on a balcony that overlooked the courtyard below. From very, very high up.
"Okay, how do we get down?"
"Those platforms! We can probably use them!" Mona ordered, emerging from the window with the bundled Treasure tied to his back.
"Then let's give it a try. They don't look too steep!" Panther said.
Making their way downward, but still finding themselves rather high up, Ace and the others paused as it became clear there was no other way down other then a long drop, till she noticed an archway out of the corner of her eye and turned, a familiar light coming from it that reminded her of the Escher-like chamber in the Palace.
"Ace? You sure goin' in there's a good idea?" Skull asked from behind.
"We have no idea where it goes!" Fox said.
"There's no time! We need to just give it a try!" Mona shouted, glancing up and noticing guards starting to emerge from the window further up.
Without a second thought, Ace and the others rushed in, and suddenly found themselves in the courtyard where they had needed to take down the barrier after their second visit.
"Ha! Knew it!" Mona said with a chuckle, "All that security would've been meaningless if it'd just led back inside!"
"It's just a relief we've escaped them for now. We should leave at once before they catch up!" Fox urged.
Mona let out a low, but excited yowl, prompting an exasperated glare from Ace as he bolted to the middle of the courtyard.
"This isn't the time for this, Mona!" she snapped, following after him. "We have to go, now!"
"Yeah, get excited about it after we're outta this place!" Skull protested.
"I can't wait! I wanna see!" Mona shouted, ignoring them as he tore open the cloth in ecstatic glee and flipping the painting inside over. "Treasure!"
Mona's enthusiasm swiftly evaporated, replaced with a look of confusion shared by the other Thieves standing around him.
The painting was hardly anything of quality, or even much of a painting at all, just some crude brush strokes arranged to form a henohenomoheji of Madarame's face on an otherwise blank canvas.
"This is the treasure?!" Skull protested, unable to believe something so plain and admittedly embarrassing to look at could represent Madarame's desires.
"GET BACK!" Fox suddenly cried out as several small towers emerged from the corners of the pavement where the Thieves stood, the group leaping away from the crude drawing just in time as they switched on, sending a powerful electrical current to form a barrier around it.
Ace's gaze narrowed as she stood back up from the kneeling position she'd taken when she'd jumped out of the way. "We've been set up!"
"How right you are, meddlesome vermin," Madarame's distorted voice sneered from behind them, the Thieves turned and saw him standing at the entrance to the inner part of his museum, flanked by two Shadow guards, one of which holding a gold-framed painting under its arm. "Might this be what you came for?" Madarame asked, gesturing at it.
"You knew we were comin' and had that fake put there for us, huh?" Skull asked.
"Counterfeits are accepted in the world of Japanese art," Madarame explained nonchalantly as the current disappeared and the towers retracted back into the floor. "I believe I've already made that quite clear to you!"
"What made you change like this?! Is it because you became famous?!" Fox protested, tears threatening to form in his eyes. "...Nakanohara-san... Yonaga-san... the pupil who ended his life because of your plagiarism... how can you show so little regard for the people you hurt? Can't you see at all how this all pains me, to inquire about the crimes of my foster father?!"
Madarame shook his head, scowling at the young man before him. "You know, now that I think back, I believe the only reason I ever took you in was because of my ties to your mother," he said coldly.
"Your ties?" Fox asked, confused.
"That woman never lost her passion for art and painting, even after her husband died," Madarame explained. "You think I allowed her to move in out of sympathy and concern she'd no longer be able to support herself, and you? Her skills and talents were quite astonishing... that's why I decided to look after her!"
Madarame's cold scowl twisted into an arrogant sneer. "Your mother and the artwork she created under my tutelage, they're all MY works of art!" he declared, "And for that reason I suppose I can grant you a gift before you all die, a glimpse of the true, genuine "Sayuri"!"
"Genuine?" Fox inquired, "...What do you mean, "genuine"?"
The Shadow guard stepped forward, and turned the painting in its arms over to show, and Fox's eyes widened in shock at what he saw.
The painting now had a noticeable difference to it, the clouds that had surrounded the woman were gone, instead providing a clear image, and now, where they'd once been, the woman was embracing a sleeping infant wrapped in a bundle, her gaze upon it with a warm, loving smile.
Fox could feel his knees weaken once more. The woman in the painting now felt so familiar, the image bringing forth a memory from so long ago. "...The woman... is that... my mother?!"
"Indeed it is!" Madarame declared. "This was painted by your mother! It's a portrait of herself, a woman who knew her death was coming painted her last wishes, a gift for the son she would leave behind. That right there is the truth behind the mystery of "Sayuri"'s expression that has captivated so many!"
"I can't believe you!" Skull snapped. "You stole something THAT personal just so you could get rich off it?!"
"I knew at first glance," Madarame explained, sneering. "...that it would be a huge success if I added a touch to the painting myself and announced it under my name!"
"...And you painted over the infant in the picture," Ace replied, glaring at the man in contempt. "It allowed you to preserve the original painting as much as possible while making it easier to pass as your own..."
Madarame chuckled darkly. "Observant, young lady, but that's only a small part of it! The real reason was to properly stage it! Erase the babe, the woman's expression becomes a mystery!" he explained, letting out a haughty laugh. "That sort of thing is exactly what the general public is drawn to! Each of those parasitic critics even wrote the same thing! In doing this, I draw their attention to her expression, rather then the question of who she is!"
Panther shook her head. "You know, I always felt there was something off about all this when I saw the one you kept hidden in that room, and now I know why," she said, a scowl of her own forming on her face in disgust. "...If you really treasured that painting, you wouldn't even think about replicating it for profit!" The blonde grit her teeth, glaring hatefully at the Shadow. "You know what I think?! I think you don't really love or even care about art at all!"
"That's right," Mona said with a nod of approval to Panther's statement as he glared at Madarame as well. "You may have a real Treasure, but your true skills are nothing more then those scribbles on that fake over there!" he shouted.
"You're a fraud to the very end, Madarame," Ace stated, gritting her teeth. "And soon the world is going to see it when we take that Treasure, and believe me," she said, stepping forward. "...We'll do it by force if we have to after all you've done."
"So you intend to defy me no matter what?" Madarame asked, his gaze turning towards Fox. "Well, then, Yusuke, since you're my work of art as well, I'm going to reap you for the sake of my future, along with the rest of those insolent friends of yours, there!"
Fox simply looked down at the floor a moment.
"Fox?" Mona asked, concerned.
"..."Work of art", you say," he muttered. "...I've seen how you destroy your "art" once they outlive their usefulness to you..." Fox grit his teeth, slowly looking back up at Madarame, his eyes filled with rage, but also fear of what the answer to what he asked next would be as his voice became weak. "...Did that include my mother as well?"
A horrible thought crossed her mind as Ace, too, looked from Fox to Madarame. "...You wanted that painting for yourself so badly..." Her gaze narrowed, her voice filled with cold disgust as she looked at him accusingly. "...She didn't just die, did she, Madarame?"
A cruel smile spread across Madarame's painted face. "Are you implying I murdered her? On the contrary, she just so happened to suffer a seizure in front of me, and that's when a thought crossed my mind," he explained, "...If I don't call for help and leave her be, I could obtain her painting with no strings attached!"
"You let her die?! Just so you could take that painting?!" Panther cried out, horrified and absolutely disgusted by what Madarame had just revealed.
"Let her die?" Madarame asked in a mocking tone with a laugh. "Don't oversimplify it! She was physically weak, and quite ill! Would anyone be suspicious of the idea of her simply just dropping dead because of a seizure one day?"
"You're completely inhuman, Madarame!" Ace seethed, gritting her teeth and struggling now to keep her emotions in check. "On top of being a plagiarist you're a murderer as well! Would I be right in assessing that you took in Yusuke just to cover it up?"
Madarame cackled in response, "You catching on, after all..." His gold gaze turning towards Fox. "...I don't suppose, Yusuke, you never found it odd that I discovered your talents when you were only three years old? I had to keep you around if I was to prevent you from realizing the truth about "Sayuri"!" he explained. "...Of course, those artistic talents you inherited from your mother were a delightful miscalculation, though!"
"...W-why... h-how could you...?!" Fox stammered, struggling to process all he'd been told. "M-my mother..."
"If I'm to steal ideas, Yusuke, it's so much easier to rob the futures of brats who wouldn't dare talk back, than adults," Madarame continued. "...And it's all thanks to you I came up with the idea! As a sign of my gratitude, should you be willing to give me your silent obedience once more, and continue to serve me as the source of my continued success for the remainder of my days after these other brats are arrested, then perhaps I'd be willing to leave you a little inheritance when they end!" the Shadow grinned widely. "Think about it, Yusuke! Do you really think you'll have any place left to go otherwise?!"
"You really think he'd say yes to that? You're effin' nuts, old man!" Skull protested.
Yusuke only chuckled in response, catching the others' attention immediately as they all looked towards him.
"Yusuke...?" Panther asked, worried.
"...I am truly grateful, Madarame," Fox said softly, a faint smile on his face. "...For helping me see to it that every reason I could have possibly had left to forgive you has vanished without a trace!" he hissed, his smile turning to cold, venomous scowl as he glared at Madarame with pure hatred in his eyes. "...Everything you've done, not just to my mother, but to me as well, you have the audacity to believe you can simply buy me off to become your slave again?! You aren't just some rotten artist, you're a loathsome fiend who wears the skin of an artist!"
Madarame clenched his fists, stomping his foot in a rage. "Foolish, ungrateful little brat! I offer you an easy way out and you throw it back in my face!" he snarled, glaring around lividly at the group before him. "Good-for-nothings, all of you! Barging into my museum and doing whatever the hell you want!"
The two Shadow guards suddenly melted down into red and black ooze that slithered around Madarame's form before swirling up around him like an inky maelstrom, red smoke rising up from him as his gold eyes glowed ever brighter. "Those who have the connections make the rules," he stated, his voice becoming deeper with every word, the Thieves backing away cautiously as the ground began to tremor around Madarame. "...Those who don't, have no choice but to follow them! The value of art is purely subjective. I make the rules in the art scene!"
The tremors grew stronger as Madarame chuckled menacingly.
"...I am the supreme being!" Madarame declared, his voice now booming as he spreading his arms, a maddened grin spreading across his face, far wider then it should have been able to. "I am the god of the art world!"
Mona shouted out a warning to the Thieves to get back as Madarame let out a deep, unearthly laugh, his form suddenly flattening itself as though it were upright paper and his appearance becoming smudged and watery as if it were made of paint that began to distort and mix together, reshaping itself into a rectangular form as his laughter now burbled and reverberated, echoing all around the courtyard when what was left of his grinning face suddenly spread and widened, taking up his entire form before ripping itself apart into four square shapes in a burst of black ink. As the ink dripped away, the square forms revealed themselves to be four huge, hovering gold-framed portraits, each one the size of any one of the four teenagers. The two on top each depicted a large, bulbous eye that darted about before glaring down at the Thieves, the one beneath them containing a large nose that snorted loudly as it hovered in place, and the bottom stretched itself into a rectangular portrait contained a wide, mustached, gaping mouth.
"I'LL PAINT ALL OVER YOU!" the mouth portrait screamed in a deep, inhuman voice as the portraits hovered together to form the features of Madarame's face. Skull summoned his mace, Panther her whip, Fox his katana, Mona his scimitar, and Ace her dagger as they prepared to engage.
"YOU FOOLISH CHILDREN! THE ART WORLD IS A WORLD THE MEDIOCRE CAN NEVER UNDERSTAND!" Madarame's mouth cackled. "...NOW, LET'S BEGIN, YOU VERMIN!"
"You used others for your own despicable desires, Madarame!" Fox hissed lividly, pointing his katana at the monstrosity. "You aren't even worth the art you "create"!"
"Be careful, everyone! There's no telling what he'll try!" Mona warned.
"Captain Kidd!" Skull cried out, summoning his pirate Persona and firing a lightning bolt at the left eye, while Panther called forth Carmen to unleash a blast of flame at the right eye.
The attacks, however, simply seemed to implode and get sucked into the eyes instead of impacting, the disembodied mouth let out an amused cackle as it suddenly shot forward like a torpedo, snapping at them hungrily as Panther and Skull leaped out of the way, narrowly avoiding it.
"So the eyes absorb magic!" Mona declared, "So maybe they're vulnerable to physical attacks! Fox! Ace! Give it a try!"
"On it!" Ace dashed forward, leaping into the air and sliced the left eye as she flew past it, landing on one knee as she looked back, the eye spun about as the mouth suddenly cried out, the portrait containing the former now hovering noticeably lower then it had before.
"It seems to be working!" Fox shouted, summoning his rifle and firing at it. The left eye flew back from the impact of the gunfire before dropping to the ground with a resounding clatter.
"That's one down! Zorro!" Mona cried out, summon his swashbuckling Persona as it conjured a giant boxing glove that socked the remaining eye. The hit was well-placed, sending it falling to the ground instantly.
"Nice! We almost got 'em!" Skull cheered. "CAPTAIN KIDD!"
This time, Skull's Persona charged forward, ramming the nose at full speed and slamming into it, sending it to the ground as well.
Panther was about to attack when she and the others noticed the mouth of what remained of Madarame's portraits did not make any indication of fear. Instead, it just began laughing.
"YOU THINK THE ONE TRUE FACE OF THE ART WORLD WOULD FALL SO EASILY?!" the mouth taunted, laughing even harder as bright green light engulfed it and the area around it. As the light faded, the other paintings suddenly rose back up, hovering back into place. "MY TURN!" Madarame declared as the nose suddenly twitched.
KZAP! A bolt of lightning suddenly shot out of the nose, striking Fox head-on and causing him to cry out in pain.
"MY SIGNATURE "THUNDERCLAP"! NOW YOU SEE WHAT YOUR SENSEI IS CAPABLE OF WHEN YOU DEFY ME, YUSUKE!" Madarame declared.
"Dude! That looked the exact same as my Persona's move ya damn copycat!" Skull protested.
"A plagiarist to the end, indeed," Ace mused. "BERITH!"
The horseman Persona appeared before the young detective before charging forward, striking the mouth with its lance. It didn't seem to work, however, as the portrait simply spun about from the impact but laughed in amusement before turning towards Ace, firing a jet of black ink at her that struck her with a messy splash.
"Ace! Are you alright?" Panther cried out, rushing to her teammate's side.
"Yes, I'm-" Ace suddenly found she could barely stand. "...!" she shuddered, finding she could barely move.
"That ink! It must have immobilized her!" Mona said, rushing over in concern as Skull and Fox continued to try and defend against the portraits that had now turned their attention to them. "Panther, clean her off! Seems the eyes and nose absorb magic and the mouth absorbs conventional attacks. There's gotta be a way to handle this or we're gonna get overwhelmed!"
Ace looked around, straining from the cold sensation from the ink as Panther hastily attempted to brush it off of her with her gloves, wiping it off in chunks as if it were tar while the rest slowly dripped off of her. Her gaze fell on several buckets of black paint near the bushes by a small pond. "Panther, get me over to that pond. Mona, those paint buckets... let's return the favor."
"Oooh, great idea!" Mona said with a wide grin as he noticed the paint buckets while Panther put her arm around Kyoko and walked her towards the pond.
"Fox, Skull! Keep at it!" Mona ordered.
"You betcha!" Skull shouted back, leaping forward and smacking the nose with his mace, sending it hurtling backward.
"GOEMON!" Fox cried out, his robed Persona appearing and unleashing a volley of ice upon the mouth, causing it to droop in the air noticeably.
"YOU'LL PAAAAY FOR YOUR INNNNNSOLENCE, YUSUKE! MAKE NNNNNO MISTAKE!" the mouth slurred as it struggled to stay up before lunging forward at him, snapping its jaws in a rage at him as Fox jumped back.
"2... 1... HA!" Mona shouted, hurling the paint buckets with precise aim one after the other at the various portraits, splashing the eyes, then the nose, then the mouth right as it was rejoining the others and drenching them in black paint.
"BRATS! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?!" the mouth screamed out in a rage as the portraits began to flail about helplessly in an attempt to shake the paint off themselves. "WHERE ARE YOU LITTLE VERMIN?!"
"Now's our chance!" Ace shouted, now cleaned off as she emerged from the pond wet but no worse for wear and looking ready to fight again. "SHIISAA!"
The gold lion-dog Persona suddenly appeared, and with a fearsome growl leaped forward, breathing out a beam of vibrant blue energy at the mouth portrait and blasting it point blank, sending it toppling to the ground where it lay still and motionless, its jaws wide open with its tongue hanging comically out to the side.
"Payback time!" Panther shouted, whipping out her uzi and firing away at the eyes and nose, causing them to recoil before the latter fell to the ground as well.
"Now we're talking! Let's get 'em!" Mona cried out, firing a marble from his slingshot at the left eye while Skull blasted the other with his shotgun, sending them both to the ground as well with wet splats as the paint they'd been covered in spattered about on their impact.
"Aw yeah! Got 'em!" Skull cheered as Panther and Ace ran over to rejoin the group.
The portraits suddenly began to... melt down... forming a single inky black puddle of paint before rising into a humanoid shape and transforming back into Madarame's gold-clad Shadow. Immediately the Thieves pointed their weapons at him as they all stood surrounding him.
Ace narrowed her eyes in disgust. Under all his titles and status in the art world, it seemed even he knew he was nothing but a frail, despicable old man after all.
Now, Madarame looked afraid.
"Damnit!" he protested indignantly as he struggled to stand, looking quite out of breath as he attempted to appear defiant of the Thieves around him. "I'm... the great Madarame! The Madarame who always gathers a full crowd every time he opens an exhibit! I... am NOT someone that worthless brats like you are allowed to oppose!"
"Enough of your egotistic rantings!" Fox snapped furiously. "Taste the wrath of all those whom you preyed upon!"
Immediately, as one, the Phantom Thieves leapt into the air, striking Madarame from all directions in a blur of motion. The Shadow cried out in pain from the blows as he continued to try and keep himself upright, his rage evident on his face as the Thieves landed in front of him.
"How dare you! I am this country's greatest artist!" he cried out. "If you brats can't fathom that, then witness it for yourselves!"
The bottom of Madarame's robes began to turn from gold to an inky black that spread out around him. The black paint suddenly split itself apart, rising and shaping into four replicas of the man, though each had their differences. One on the left wore a faded yellow robe, crackling bolts of electricity dancing across its form. The one standing between it and the real Madarame had a dark red robe, with small flames licking its surface. The one just to the right of where Madarame stood had a blue robe with snow billowing around it and frost hanging off him. The last one on the right sported a green robe, with leaves blowing around it.
"BEHOLD, MY MASTER CRAFT!" the five Madarame's declared in unison as they thrust their hands forward as one.
A blast of ice flew from the blue one's hand forward at Panther.
A gust of swirling winds blew from the green Madarame's palms at Skull.
A bolt of lightning fired from the yellow copy's fingertip at Mona.
A jet of flames shot forth from the red Madarame's mouth at Fox.
None of them fell.
"What's this?! Impossible! I was certain of your weaknesses!" the real, gold-clad Madarame protested, his gold eyes wide with disbelief as he stood behind his copies.
"It seems we have one of your former pupils to thank," Ace said with a small smirk, looking back at her teammates briefly as they each stared in awe from the charms they'd been wearing that Ace had bought from Angie the previous day. "Let's take them out!" she ordered.
Whoosh! Mona darted forward, leaping into the air. "ZORRO!" the catlike thief shouted as the swordsman appeared, swishing its blade and engulfing the yellow-clad double of Madarame in a small tornado. The copy let out a brief cry before it exploded in a spray of yellow paint.
"CARMEN!" Panther cried out, touching her own mask as the elegant dancer Persona appeared behind her, firing a blast of fire of its own at the blue Madarame. It recoiled, letting out a shudder as it melted away into a small mess of blue paint.
"HELL YEAH! CAPTAIN KIDD!" Skull yelled as his pirate Persona once more appeared, unleashing a fierce volley of lightning at the green copy, which screamed before exploding into black flakes of dried paint.
"Madarame, may you spend the rest of your years paying for your heinous crimes!" Fox declared. "GOEMON!" The robed Persona rose behind him once more, blowing into its gigantic pipe and expelling a powerful cold wind at the remaining red copy, encasing it in ice before Fox dashed forward, slicing it in two with his katana. The two halves fell to the ground, shattering apart into chunks of black paint.
"It's over, Madarame!" Ace stated, drawing her pistol and firing at the remaining, original Madarame repeatedly. The Shadow cried out, recoiling from the shots until he was staggering more then before, his painted face twisted into pure rage.
"No! I won't lose! NOT NOW!" Madarame screamed out as he reared back and spread his arms, the black paint rising up around him and transforming into a ball of intense blue and white light that gathered above him.
"Oh no! That's an Almighty spell!" Mona cried out in alarm, "LOOK OUT!"
Before any of the Thieves could move, however, the glowing sphere of light exploded in a brilliant flash. Instead of searing pain, or death, even, the Thieves opened their eyes, noticing the attack had barely harmed them.
"Whoa, that was it?!" Skull asked with an amused laugh, noticing he was alright.
"I shoulda guessed! Madarame's a pathetic fake through and through!" Mona said, chuckling.
"W-wait! Y-you can't do this to me!" Madarame protested pathetically, surrounded by splatters of black paint from the illusionary attack and raising his hands up, backing away as he struggled to stand. "N-no!"
"Let's finish this!" Mona declared, drawing out his scimitar.
"Gladly!" Panther said with a smirk as she called forth her whip.
"Let's take this asshole down!" Skull brought out his mace.
"You ready, Fox?" Ace asked, looking over at him as she summoned her dagger.
"Indeed," Fox replied, drawing his katana once more. "It ends now, Sensei..."
"Y-YUSUKE! W-WAIT...! NO!"
Madarame barely had time to shield himself as the Thieves once more leapt into the air, striking him from all directions in a flurry of attacks. With one final cry, Madarame staggered a moment, before collapsing to the ground, black and red smoke erupting from his form before dissipating along with the black paint around him that reshaped itself into the Treasure, the original "Sayuri" portrait.
Quick as he could, Madarame seized the portrait, backing away in terror as Fox approached him.
"Y-Yusuke! Please! You don't understand!" he pleaded. "No one cares for true art anymore! All those shallow idiots want are easily-recognizable brands! I'm a victim of this, too! Can't you see that?!"
"Seriously, man? Makin' excuses now?!" Skull asked, glaring at the man in annoyance from behind Fox.
"It's true!" Madarame protested, glaring indignantly at Skull. "The art world revolves around money! Without it, you can never rise up in it!" He looked back at Yusuke, who now stood over him as he sat frightened on the ground, clutching the portrait. "Yusuke, you know how truly miserable being a poor artist is! I-I just didn't want to return to that life!"
"...And instead, you subjected others to that life, stealing any hope they ever had of rising up from it like a pathetic con man," Ace hissed, scowling as she approached and stood behind Fox. "...People who looked up to you. Including someone you raised and saw you as a father..."
"She's right!" Fox snapped, grabbing Madarame by the collar of his robes roughly. "...A fiend like yourself has no right to speak about the world of art after what you've done!"
The boy looked his former teacher dead in the eyes through his mask. "You're done for, along with this wretched world your twisted heart created!"
"P-please! D-don't kill me!" Madarame pleaded, struggling in Fox's grip.
Fox shoved him to the ground. "Return to your yourself in reality and confess your crimes! All of them!"
"Y-you're not going to kill me?!" Madarame asked, confused but visibly trembling.
"Swear it!" Fox snapped. "Yonaga, Nakanohara, all of them deserve to have their names cleared of the terrible lies you spread to rob them of their futures! Now SWEAR IT!"
"A-alright! I'll do it!" Madarame whimpered, before looking at the other thieves, a confused look coming back to his face. "W-wait! Where's the other one?! The one with the black mask?!"
Ace blinked in confusion. None of her teammates fit that term, and Mona was still standing right beside her. "Black mask?" she asked.
"What's he talking about?" Panther asked, looking over at her.
"Wait... was there another intruder besides us in this Palace?!" Mona asked, now looking rather anxious.
Ace brought her hand to her chin, but before she could mull it over, tremors suddenly began around them, prompting her to look up, noticing Fox had confiscated the portrait, Madarame's treasure, from him.
"We don't have time! Let's go!" Mona shouted, transforming into a van like he had in Mementos. "Everyone, in, now!"
"Yusuke...?" Madarame stammered, reaching out helplessly to Fox had already begun to walk away. "...What should I do?"
Fox turned, looking down at the man who had lied to him for so long as the tremors grew. For a moment, he wasn't sure what to say, for all his anger, for all the hatred he held earlier, he felt something else, but he wasn't sure what. The boy closed his eyes a moment. "Put an end to all this," he said softly. "...and use your own artwork for once."
Without another word, Fox made his way to the others waiting in the van, ignoring his former teacher's indignant pleas behind him as the gaudy museum began to crumble apart around him.
"The destination has been deleted!" the Meta-Nav stated on Kyoko's phone as she stood alongside the others outside the atelier back in the real world. It was now late in the afternoon, the young detective noticing the sun had now been setting.
"We should leave," Morgana said from Kyoko's school bag. "It'd look suspicious if we're all standing out here!"
"We should head to the hideout, then. It's not too far from here," Kyoko replied. "Let's go."
"Comin' Yusuke?" Ryuji asked, looking over at the other boy, who had all his attention focused on the portrait he was holding in his hands as he looked it over with awe and intrigue.
"Of course," Yusuke replied, giving the atelier one last look before turning to leave with the others.
"...Goodbye, Sensei..."
Moments later, the group had made their way back to the accessway. Ann was resting against the railing by the windows, Ryuji had gotten himself a soda, while Kyoko stood quietly looking deep in thought while Morgana was sitting in her school bag on the floor next to her. Yusuke, meanwhile, continued to look at the painting that they'd brought out of the metaverse, his eyes studying every detail with great care.
"I guess the mission was a success," Ryuji said, breaking the silence as he took a sip of his drink. "I mean, all that's left is to see if he had a change of heart, right?"
The boy grimaced at the drink, nearly spitting it out. "Ugh! It's so bitter! Why'd they make it black?! The hell flavor is this?"
"...The "Sayuri"..." Yusuke continued to remain entirely focused on the portrait in his hands.
"Hey, your not gonna get all teary-eyed and say stuff like "Mom" are ya?" Ryuji asked.
To his surprise, however, Yusuke instead smiled. The boy's smile wasn't bitter at all, however, rather, he looked... content. Flattered, even.
"To think, this painting was the source of Madarame's distorted desires," Yusuke said. "The only saving grace is that my mother won't know of what transpired..."
"The genuine painting at his atelier has been altered by him, after all," Morgana remarked. "Ironic as it may be, this one here, a duplicate created from the metaverse, is her true self-portrait, now."
"It's a wonderful painting," Ann said warmly, smiling as she looked it over. "...And although it took some time, it's finally in your hands, Yusuke, just as she'd wanted."
"I'm very thankful for that," Yusuke replied, nodding. "However, it's unfortunate for this painting to be acknowledged by society anymore..."
"It is," Kyoko said, taking a moment from her thoughts to speak up, closing her eyes. "Your mother's original vision, it's very unfortunate others won't be able to appreciate it, but if it's any consolation, this painting was her gift to you, so you could have something to remember her by, and the love she clearly had for you. Perhaps..." the young detective paused to find the right words as she knew this to not be her strong point, "...perhaps, if that's what it's able to do for you, then that can be enough..."
"Indeed, you're right, Kirigiri," Yusuke replied, his smile returning as he continued to look at the painting. "...For that reason, I must inherit my mother's wishes, and improve myself even further."
"You think Sayuri was her name, by any chance?" Ann asked.
"I doubt that," Yusuke replied. "It'd be difficult for Madarame to have continued the deception were he to give it the name of one of his students."
"So," Yusuke mused, his attention on the painting once more as Ryuji got up and headed over to a nearby vendor for another drink. "...This is really her... my mother. There's no way that I could remember her face that clearly, but... it explains the rush of emotion I'd felt when I saw the painting, like tapping into a memory I was too young to properly recall..."
A loud, heavy belch announced Ryuji's return as he arrived with a large bottle of mango juice. "So, what're you thinkin' of doing now?" he asked. "We're gonna keep targetin' big shots!"
"Ugh! Could you be more gross, Ryuji?" Ann protested, fanning her hand in front of her face. Kyoko gave a disapproving look but said nothing.
"Why is it, exactly, that you do such things?" Yusuke asked.
"He's so vulger, that's why!" Morgana said with an annoyed sigh.
"No, I meant targeting these individuals," Yusuke replied.
"So we can get back at scumbags an' like... this messed-up society in general!" Ryuji explained. "But also, we wanna give courage to the people who're sufferin' like we did because of selfish adults who go around takin' advantage of 'em."
"Courage, hm? What good does that do, exactly?" Yusuke asked, curious, raising an eyebrow. "You mean the courage to stand up for themselves, correct? Will acquiring that make them happy?"
"There's no way of knowing if we can, but I feel like it's worth a try," Ann replied, giving a small sigh. "After what I dealt with, I want to be able to do something that can bring some hope to others."
"...In other words, it all depends on the person?" Yusuke mused to himself before glancing over at Kyoko. "And what of you? What brought you into this?"
Kyoko considered giving the whole story of how she got here, but decided quickly it'd be better off for another time, perhaps after they knew for certain Madarame's heart had been changed. "I was raised to be a detective. I wish to use this opportunity to put the skills I've learned to use, and make criminals face justice for their crimes." she explained, a serious look on her face. "...As a detective, I am aware there are criminals who have great power and influence that allows them to bury truth and silence it entirely, but this method allows us to, even if it means acting outside the law, ensure they pay for their crimes and no more victims are made."
"Hm... I see," Yusuke replied, tucking the painting under his arm. "I believe I can say I am also someone who suffered under a selfish adult's manipulations. For that reason, I would like to remain with you. Perhaps even exploring these "Palaces" may improve my artistic repertoire..."
"You really only think about art, huh?" Ryuji asked with an amused grin. "You're impressive."
"Well, I won't take part in any inelegant plans, understand?" Yusuke asked in response.
"No worries, I've got us covered!" Ann replied with a playful wink, before noticing the confused looks from everyone else, including Morgana. "...Plus, we got a rule that says we always decide on a target unanimously!"
"So, what do you think, Kyoko?" Morgana asked. "Yusuke really proved himself back there, I think, plus our calling cards are sure to have a lot more "oomph" to them with him on the team!"
"I believe you've given all the reasons to say yes," Kyoko said with a small smile, her expression, however, grew serious after. "...That aside, something else has been on my mind ever since defeating Madarame's Shadow. He mentioned someone in a black mask... to which you proposed the notion of another individual having infiltrated the Palace..."
"The only clue he gave was exactly that, though. A black mask," Ann replied. "That wouldn't necessarily mean it's just one person, right?"
"The Palace is gone, so we can't exactly go back an' ask," Ryuji said.
"Still," Kyoko said, her hand at her chin as she mulled over this and what Morgana had discussed with her and Ryuji before their first heist.
"I could try probing Madarame, perhaps I can learn something from him," Yusuke said.
"Are you sure you're okay with that?" Ann asked.
"I'm sure it will be fine. I'll contact you if anything turns up," Yusuke replied with an assuring smile. "I must say, though, an artist and a phantom thief, it seems I'll be engaging in two trades from here on!"
"I can certainly relate," Kyoko replied. "I find it helps to incorporate one with the other."
"You may be right," Yusuke replied with a slight chuckle. "Very well, I will do so. You only live once, after all..."
"We look forward to continuing to work with you, Yusuke!" Ann said with a smile.
"Yeah, nice to have another guy on the team!" Ryuji said, taking a gulp from his drink.
"Hey! What about me?" Morgana protested. "I'm a guy, too, you know!"
"Pfft, you're a cat, Mona-mona," Ryuji replied dismissively, gulping down more of his drink.
"I'M! A! HUMAN!" the cat snapped angrily.
Kyoko sighed from the cacophony of arguing that followed before Yusuke spoke up.
"At any rate," he said. "I should be getting back. I don't think there's anything to worry about until the exhibit ends. I'll let you know of any changes in his behavior as well."
"Please do," Kyoko replied, scooping up her school bag with Morgana in it, prompting a yelp from the cat as she did so. "...We should be heading back as well. I'll see you tomorrow..."
"Our second big target's been defeated, and we got Yusuke on the team for real, now!" Morgana cheered from Kyoko's bed as she changed. "Things are going so well, now, I'd say!"
"Hm," Kyoko muttered in response as she slid on her sleeping shirt, and began peeling off her leather gloves. The young detective's mind was elsewhere while she listened to the cat talk.
"You're really something else, Kyoko!" Morgana said. "If only that lunkhead Ryuji could learn more from you! That said this is our fifth Persona user, which means we can broaden our battle strategies!"
Kyoko remained silent as she slipped on a pair of cloth gloves for bed, letting her hair down as well.
"...And I gotta say, having an eye for beauty is a must for phantom thieves! We're lucky to have Yusuke now," Morgana continued. "An artist is a talent you rarely come across, sure he's a bit strange, but still... you listening?"
"I am," Kyoko replied, as she finished getting ready and plugged in her phone. "Just other thoughts on my mind..."
"Oh? Are you thinking about what Madarame said?" the cat asked, concerned. "I guess it is pretty worrying..."
"You told us about how the destruction of a person's desires, the loss of a Shadow, would leave a person completely without desire, and shut down completely," Kyoko explained. "The mental shutdown incidents that have been affecting Tokyo for two years, now we learn there is another... or others... capable of entering the metaverse as we are able to. Madarame's Shadow seemed terrified of whoever this intruder in a black mask was..."
Morgana stood, his concern growing. "Wait, so you think..."
"There's a connection? Possibly," Kyoko said. "If there is, that'd mean this intruder or intruders are aware of the effects you told us about and inflicting them intentionally," she explained. "What if peoples' Shadows are being targeted by this person or people in the metaverse? This would mean the possibility these incidents aren't mere incidents, but premediated assassinations."
"Who would do that, though... and why?" Morgana wondered, managing a look of worry on his feline features.
"That's still the real mystery," Kyoko replied, sitting down on her bed. "These mental shutdowns have no consistent connection to them. There's no pattern, no singular beneficiary I can place," she brought her hand to her chin once more. "...It's possible that it's meant to conceal a true motive by making them appear to be random... or multiple parties are selecting their victims for unrelated goals. If so, then the question comes to who. Does our assassin or assassins have motive, or exist as only the weapon of someone else?"
Kyoko sighed. There were still far too many questions that needed answers to discern anything concrete. "...It also leads to the question of how this person or persons came to learn of the metaverse and how it works, particularly if they have been active for two years..."
"What kind of person would do something like this, though?" Morgana asked. "...I wonder what kind of person I was... there's no way I'd turn out to be a bad person like that, right? I mean, getting so engrossed in the embodiment of human desires over and over again, plus I'm the only one who can transform into a car. I'm special... but still odd... I don't get it... who could I actually be?"
"I couldn't say," Kyoko replied, unsure what else to say regarding the existential rantings of the cat seated next to her.
"That's not exactly what I was hoping to hear, but... I guess I can't expect you to know, can I?" Morgana asked, his ears drooping. "I'm sorry I kind of turned this all on to being about me. I'm probably overthinking it, I mean no way a dashing and honorable rogue like me could be evil!"
"A man who saves those in trouble in the west, while punishing evildoers in the east, a man who chastises people who smoke in the south while saving bullied cats in the north! A man who has a sturdy body and vows to always do a good deed a day, be it rain or shine! That's the kind of ideal hero I am... or so I hope," Morgana narrated, looking down at the bedcovers before glancing up at Kyoko. "...What do you think? Surely she'll take notice of me when I turn back to a human, then, right?"
"Shall I deduce you're referring to Ann?" Kyoko asked, raising an eyebrow as she stared down at the cat.
"W-what?! I-it's no one in particular!" Morgana stammered. "I mean, people chase after me when it comes to love! ...But I wonder where I should go when I become human again, and where she'd like to go?" he asked with a swoon. "...Maybe an amusement park, a fancy café, or a movie theater, or maybe shopping? What do you think?"
"You're asking someone whose never gone on a date before?" Kyoko asked, a hint of very dry sarcasm in her tone. "My grandfather would never allow such a thing."
"Well, you're not living with him, now, are you?" Morgana asked innocently. "Maybe now you'll find someone you can connect with, someday ...Then maybe you'd get it!"
Kyoko was at a brief loss of words, but she did feel she could empathize with the cat a little more, even if she wasn't sure how to show it without coming off wrong. As those thoughts crossed her mind, however, the young detective heard a chain break within her mind.
The cat let out a yawn. "...Well, I'm exhausted after all we got done today!" Morgana said, as if sensing changing or dropping the subject was probably the solution to break the silence. "Think I'm ready to sleep, now!"
"If you say so," Kyoko replied with a faint smile as she got up to switch off the lights before climbing into bed, feeling exhausted herself... both from the recent heist and the many, many new questions that were floating around in her mind she hoped would not keep her up. Madarame's words had potentially led her one step closer in solving the mystery, but also many back if so. A lot of questions needed solving, and if it were as she wondered, this was someone only she could stop.
Was this why Igor had chosen her? Was it part of her rehabilitation to solve what was looking more and more like a murder mystery behind the Phantom Thieves' activities of changing the hearts of dangerous criminals society ignored or were submissive to? This was unlike anything she'd done before.
Morgana, who had already nodded off, what he'd said also remained present in her mind, the others are pointed it out in one way or another as well. She was on probation, but she was also away from her grandfather, away from his guidance... away from his decisions... including the ones she didn't agree with.
The freedom and the power she felt as a Phantom Thief in the ability to stop criminals who under conventional means could not be stopped, rendering them powerless to the truth being exposed, she couldn't help but appreciate, yet at the same time, it traced back to Igor's role in all this.
...Was she on a path to freedom and new power, or was she a puppet, dancing in the palm of something bigger then herself? More questions to a mystery she swore to solve no matter what.
0 - The Fool: Rank 3
I - The Magician: Rank 3
V - The Hierophant: Rank 3
VI - The Lovers: Rank 3
VII - The Chariot: Rank 4
XI - The Strength: Rank 2
XII - The Hanged Man: Rank 2
XIII - Death: Rank 3
XVIII - The Moon: Rank 2
XIX - The Sun: Rank 1
1 - The Councillor: Rank 3
Kyoko's Personas: Berith, Shiisaa, Kusi Mitama, Kodama, Jack Frost, Ame-No-Uzume