"This is crazy...this is crazy..." Mika repeated to herself over and over. She kept closing her eyes and opening them, hoping that at some point, she'd wake up in her hotel bed. But that wasn't working. "And this isn't working..."

"Sorry to break it to you, but this is pretty real." Zenkichi made himself comfortable on an old chair. The chair itself wasn't exactly comfortable, far from it...but it beat standing around. "But I get it. This whole 'other world' business is pretty nuts. I almost arrested all of them thinking they were on drugs."

"Don't try to relate with me right now!" Mika exclaimed. She didn't need calm rationality at the moment. She just needed to vent her disbelief for a little bit longer. This wasn't even the most absurd part, but there was no way her brain was prepared for anything more than this.

"Eesh." Zenkichi let out an exasperated sigh. Mika sure was a piece of work, but in this instance, he really couldn't blame her. It took him a few days to actually accept the cognitive world was real. Mika just had to deal with it.

"Hifumi-chan has been dealing with creepy places like this? When did she get so incredible..." Mika mumbled to herself. She remembered when Hifumi was shy and meek! She still kind of was, but witnessing her demeanor as Dragon was completely different! "I bet Ann's been holding her back this whole time, too."

"..." Zenkichi had no words. But it was probably for the best that he didn't say anything. Mika was clearly coping while trying to rationalize all of this. It made sense. "...Hope those damn kids get back here soon..." With a desolate atmosphere like this, he couldn't help but worry about the Phantom Thieves.

.

.

The Phantom Thieves carefully made their way through Okinawa Jail. As they walked through the empty corridors and fought against the usual Shadows, there was one strange thought that popped up into Panther's mind. With all the abandoned monitors, computers, and various research equipment scattered throughout the lab, she had a question. "Um, so this place...is it for researching computers or something?"

"We know that a Jail reflects the mind of the Monarch." Fox stated. "I suppose that would explain the 'human experimentation' ambiance present throughout the air."

"Human experimentation...?" Noir didn't like the sound of that.

"Ugh, what an effin' gross way to see shit..." Skull grunted angrily. They still needed to learn more about the Jail itself, but their surroundings alone told quite a story.

"Mm..." Dragon was looking around curiously. "Something is odd about this place..."

"What's wrong, Dragon-senpai?" Violet leaned forward a little as they walked carefully.

"Normally when we enter a Jail, we are at least able to discern our destination right off the bat." Dragon said while crossing her arms. "But this Jail is different from the three we have been in previously. Jails spanned such a large radius in the Metaverse. We could even see the Prison Keeps off in the distance. We haven't seen a hint of a Prison Keep or a castle."

"You're right..." Joker took Dragon's observation into consideration. She made a good point. "I knew something was off about this place, aside from the freaky appearance." As he spoke, they ended up in some sort of cargo transportation area.

"I suspect we'll find out more the deeper we head in." Crow said while crossing his arms. Whatever this lab was, it was no doubt at the heart of everything they were looking for.

"Hey, look over there...!" Sophie pointed down below. She then jumped down ahead of everyone else, making Violet sigh just a little bit as she followed along with the others.

"It's another tape recorder..." Mona said.

"Let's play it." Queen walked over, her finger hovering over the play button. "It may provide us some clues about the lab." After saying that, she hit the button and let the recording play out.

"Please, Director Ubukata!" A researcher was pleading with the director. "We must immediately abort the experiment! It's too dangerous!"

"These are the orders I was given." Everyone could assume that the man responding was Shuzo Ubukata. "If the system isn't tested on humans, it won't ever be completed."

"But - tricking the islanders into participating!?"

Everyone's eyes widened at that bit of information. "So these guys ARE the ones who messed up the island!"

"i heard a 'Director Ubukata'," Fox said. "I beleive that maens one of the speakers is Shuzo Ubukata."

"From what it sounds like, he's the Director of this lab..." Dragon said.

And despite it sounding like Ubukata was in charge here... "The orders I was given...?" Mona repeated those words. He didn't like how it sounded. If Ubukata was high on the chain, that implied someone else was higher than him.

"You know what happens to a person when their Desire is taken, Director!"

"We've learned of another party manipulating the cognitive world for their own purposes in the real one." Ubukata shot back. "We cannot allow these individuals to progress beyond us! So long as we follow the divine revelation we will attain the ideal society. I have absolute faith in the system as it was described to me!"

"WHAT KIND OF SOCIETY TURNS ITS ENTIRE POPULATION INTO SLAVES!? This isn't any divine revelation - it's a curse! It can only lead to our destruction!" The researcher yelled and tape ended there.

"Well...while still rather fuzzy, I feel as if we are starting to see the big picture." Fox stated.

"Yeah..." Mona nodded in agreement. "They were researching Jails and changes of heart..."

"And they used the island's residents as test subjects." Noir frowned. Human experimentation was real.

"We did see that email earlier about joining the EMMA test." Oracle said. It all made sense now.

"From how it sounds...they may have learned about the cognitive world through the actions of the Phantom Thieves." Dragon frowned.

"Perhaps, even through Shido's." Crow suggested. They were the only groups who had knowledge of the Cognitive World. "Although, I haven't a clue who else could have leaked that information."

"Um. That 'Divine Revelation' thing does sound worrisome. They both mentioned it." Violet pointed out. "Is that part of this Operation Oraculi?"

"Maybe...but how would that involve EMMA?" Queen asked.

"That appears to be the thing we all would like to know." Sophie said.

"I want to know who was pulling that Director's strings too." Panther said. The idea of a puppetmaster wasn't lost on her at all.

"Could we be gettin' close to the guy?" Skull asked. They'd been walking for a while, so he assumed they would have to run into someone eventually.

"We have to find the Desires first, and find that voice for Sophie." Mona said.

"Yes, we mustn't delay either. I worry for Mika and Zenkichi-san..." Dragon said.

"I dunno, I think Mika could probably put a Shadow down with her attitude." Panther meant this, too.

"I'd rather not test that theory." Even if Dragon beleived it. She felt bad for dragging Mika into this situation at all, so the least she could do, as her friend, was get her out.

"Then let's keep moving." Joker said. There was a door up ahead, which only led deeper into lab...

.

The trek through the lab continued. Queen was still noticeably stiff despite the brave face she was putting up the whole time. Sophie noticed this and couldn't help but wonder. "Queen's behavior is different from usual. Why is that?"

"..." Queen didn't have the heart to say she was scared. It was actually a miracle Sophie didn't bring this up earlier.

"Um..." Noir was going to take this one. "Let's just say that some people have different strengths and weaknesses."

"What, not going to explain the concept of fear to humanity's companion?" Crow said. He was being a little snide about it, but he would be lying if he said the idea didn't amuse him somewhat.

"Fear?" Sophie tilted her head.

"...That's not fair!" Queen yelped. At least...it wasn't fair when it came at her expense. To think Crow of all people would be the one to bring it up.

"We'll explain it when we're out of here." Violet said. "But I am a little worried about Queen-senpai..."

"I'm telling you, I'm fine!" Queen said vigorously. And at that moment, a sentry Shadow appeared in front of them.

Even though the Jail was sleeping, the security was still strong. An alarm blared as the Shadow shouted out to the intruders. "STOP RIGHT THERE!" And as that Shadow shouted, multiple other Shadows appeared to back it up.

"AAAAAH!" Queen was startled by the sudden appearance of an enemy. So much so, that her instinctive response was to throw her fist forward, slamming it into the main sentry shadow. Her fist was charged with magic, so there was a nuclear explosion 'that cleared the entire corridor they were walking, leaving nothing but destruction in its wake. "A..."

Everyone just stared at Queen as she left no Shadow alive in her panic. "...Good work with getting the jump on them, Queen!" Panther said.

"Wow! Queen is amazing! She knew the enemy would strike and beat them to the punch!" Sophie said with a bright smile.

"Uh, y-yup! That's exactly what happened!' Queen straightened up immediately, trying not to make a scene. She was doing her best to play it off. "They're very easy to predict!"

"You're overdoing it..." Dragon whispered. Sophie was the only one who didn't realize Queen was just making this up, and they didn't want to shatter that illusion to humanity's companion.

"While you all figure that out..." Crow gestured to a nearby door that was opening. It wasn't the door itself that had his interest, but what lie beyond it. "I see another tape recorder."

"Another one?" Violet blinked. Everyone gathered around it.

"That makes the third one." Fox observed.

"What sort of madness will we hear this time?" Crow couldn't even hazard a guess as to what these mad scientists were going to discuss this time around.

"Hm...these tape recordings must be Ubukata's memories?" Dragon surmised. They were in a Jail, after all. And Jails were always linked to mentality of the Monarch. Even if this Jail was slightly different than the rest, that part held true thus far. "So we are bound to find something."

"Yeah." Mona nodded. "There's a chance these things could have clues about the islanders' Desires, or even that voice Sophie's hearing."

"Yeah, we should listen to it." After saying that, Noir was the one who pressed play. The tape whirred to life and began to play...

"Hehehe...ahahahah! Ahahahahahahah!" They were greeted with the maniacal laughter of Ubukata.

"That's a fantastic start." Crow said dryly.

"What in the-!?" Panther's eyes went wide.

"That is not good. He's a few eggs short of a scramble, huh?" Oracle said with a sweat drop.

"I think he is scrambled..." Joker replied.

"Hand over the Desires! Not just the locals, but my own as well! So that's why I was made the test Monarch. He planned on turning me into just another puppet!" Ubukata's scowl could be heard with his scathing tone of voice.

"Test Monarch...?" Queen tilted her head.

"He?" Skull blinked.

"I can't believe I fell for it. Just some pathetic clown dancing at his fingertips. But he's not going to win! He CAN"T TAKE THIS FROM ME! My Desire is my OWN! I REFUSE to simply give it up!" The tape ended with what could be labeled as a declaration of war.

"..." Sophie let out a soft, shocked gasp.

"Ah..." Violet's eyes were wide.

"Dude...that sounds messed up..." Skull was at a loss for words.

"Yeah, he really wasn't in his right mind..." Mona could barely find the words.

"He kept talking about his Desire being taken. Just what has been going on here...?" Fox asked.

"Whatever happened, it sounds like it went terribly wrong at some point." Joker suggested.

"We'll only find out if we keep going." Queen said.

.

.

The trek in the Jail continued. The next area they had to make their way through was a cargo transport area, leaping across cranes and holding onto them to get across wide gaps. Everyone had to proceed carefully; there were searchlights present and they were a large group. "I can still hear that voice...does its owner recognize me?" Sophie muttered. The deeper they got into the lab, the louder the voice became.

"Hey, don't go overthinkin' it, Sophie!" Skull said to reassure Sophie.

"He's right, you know." Mona said with a sly grin. "Our expert on not thinking gives pretty good advice there!"

"Yeah, listen to...!" Skull began, but he immediately realized this was a shot at him. "Hey, shaddup!"

The topic was quickly moved onto something else. The deeper they got into the lab, the more they learned about it. "I wonder what happened to the Director after that last recording..." Noir questioned aloud. With everything they knew, they would likely be encountering Ubukata's Shadow at the end of this.

"I sincerely doubt anything good." Fox shook his head. "He sounded as if he was beyond wits' end."

"We'll undoubtedly find out soon enough. If the Monarch's are unable to escape their Throne Rooms via normal means, we may be encountering the man himself momentarily." Crow said. But even then, he couldn't place a solid answer on either side. Not until they heard just a little bit more.

"So, from Alice all the way here to the director - everyone was just being used for something?" Panther asked. She couldn't believe it.

"If the perpetrator is still out there, we have to stop them." Queen said with determination. "Hopefully this place will have some answers."

"Also, mind the search lights..." Dragon had to quickly pull Panther back because of how active the search lights were.

"Eep...!" Panther gasped. "Thanks..."

"For a place that was recently sleeping, it sure is pretty active." Oracle pointed out. They had no choice but to keep going. They were getting closer to the end, she could feel it...

.

.

"Ugh, this is taking forever!" Mika said with a groan. Whatever alarms were set off by the Phantom Thieves being forced into encounters, or by other means, could be heard all throughout the lab. So that didn't make the two non combatants feel any safer. "I bet Ann is the one tripping and setting off all those annoying alarms!"

"A place like this probably has old security systems still in place..." Zenkichi said. He then saw Mika pulling out her phone. "...What are you doing?"

"I'm texting Hifumi-chan. I need to know what's going on over there." Mika replied, but she was still just mostly ignoring Zenkichi. But when she pulled out her phone to text, she realized that the screen wasn't actually on. "Huh!?"

"Lemme guess. No dice." Zenkichi partially expected this. No way outside of the EMMA app would a phone work in this crazy ass world.

"UGGGGH!" Mika groaned, resisting the urge to throw her phone across the wall. Did she really just have to sit still and stay worried about Hifumi fighting god knows what in here?! This was frustrating. "They better hurry up soon, or I'm marching in there and dragging them back myself!"

"Yeah, no," Zenkichi shook his head. It was clear Mika was at least worried about one person, but considering all they had to defend themselves was Joker's gun, it was unwise to go beyond that big door. "You have faith in at least one of them, right? So just let those kids do what they do best."

"Ngh...I'm not gonna sit here and be comforted by an old man. That's gross." Mika shook her head. She wasn't going to admit Zenkichi was right, so she went the insulting route as she tended to.

"Yeesh..." Zenkichi rubbed the back of his neck. Mika was a tough one to crack...he did not have the energy to deal with her either. "I really hope they get back soon too..."

.

.

The Phantom Thieves found the fourth tape recorder. Mona pressed play and let the tape whirr to life. Once again, Ubukata was the one speaking, but the message he had was not going to be a pleasant one. "This is my final record. I've done...such a terrible thing. The Penitentiary System is nothing like he told me. It's not made to save humanity." Unlike before, where his voice was unhinged along with his behavior, Ubukata now sounded like a broken man.

"He sounds much weaker than before..." Fox picked up on the noticeable shift. It was hard not to.

"He's going to control everyone. Even the Monarchs. All of humanity, nothing more than salves. That was the secret purpose of this project...Even my own Desire will be seized, any moment now..." Ubukata sounded as if he were on the verge of tears. "But as long as I still have it...I can put an end to this myself." And with that...the tape ended...

"Controlling...even the Monarchs...?" Fox asked.

"So...this place created Monarchs, which were intended to be controlled...?" Dragon stroked her chin.

"I dunno what the Director dude was goin' on about, but he definitely lost his shirt by the end there." Skull stated.

"I dread to consider what he meant by putting an 'end' to this..." Queen frowned.

"Consider it. You know exactly what he meant." Crow said bluntly. "There is a very high chance that the man known as Shuzo Ubukata ended his own life. Likely to escape whoever plotted to seize his Desire."

"Ah..." Violet frowned.

"The truth is not pretty." Crow had no issues stating things as they were. "And now, this puts us in a predicament. If this were a Palace, it would exist no longer due to the Ruler being deceased. But this is just another point of difference between Jails and Palace. How are we going to proceed with the Monarch is dead?"

"The possibility that this all might be for naught is a little concerning..." Dragon admitted.

"Yeah, but we still have to see this through. We're in real danger if we can't." Joker said. "We're already this far in..."

Speaking of being far in, Sophie started to walk forward and look around again. Violet already saw her move and was prepared to chase her down again if needed. "What's wrong, Sophie...?"

"I can hear that voice again..." Sophie said, gesturing to the nearby door. "I have no doubt this is the same voice. It's coming from that direction."

"All right! That direction we go." Mona said. Onward they went, hunting down the voice in the depths of the Jail...

.

.

They finally reached the depths of the lab. But when they did, the large room had not a single person or Shadow in it. "We made it..?" Panther was a little surprised. She was expecting a bit more, too.

"No Monarch here...or anyone else." Queen said.

"But look!" Mona noticed a familiar pink hue gleaming from the floor. When he directed his gaze up, he saw it: The physical manifestation of the Desires of the Islanders, hanging right above them.

"The hell!? The Desire is already there?!" Skull gasped.

"Without the calling card...?" Noir tilted her head.

"The calling card is your thing, after all." Crow realized it now. "That is the way you all threaten your targets. But if you recall that last recording...it sounded as if Ubukata was already sufficiently threatened by the one in charge of it all. I was concerned that his death would prevent the Desires from manifesting...but it looks like we got lucky."

That was only one less thing to worry about...

"Sophia, I have been waiting for you." An unknown voice spoke. A voice that sounded so much like Sophie's own.

"Where did that voice come from!?" Fox asked while looking around.

Sophie wandered into the center of the room, looking ahead, but seeing no one. The others tentatively followed. "Who are you?"

"I am the catalyst for humanity's dream. I am the harbinger of peace." The voice spoke.

"Oh, I haven't those words before." Crow said dryly. Already, he believed this to be a bunch of crap.

"That voice...sounds just like Sophie!" Oracle said with a shocked gasp.

"What is going on here?!" Panther demanded to know.

"This Monarchless Jail in which we meet...I wish to know why you came here." The voice asked.

"So he really is dead..." Dragon shook her head. "That would explain everything we've encountered thus far. Crow was right."

Sophie, however, seemed disappointed. "So you didn't speak to me because you recognized me."

"Sophia, what is your prime directive?" The voice asked.

"I am supposed to be a successful companion for humanity." Sophie replied.

"A successful companion? The voice sounded as if it scoffed. "What parameters in your AI define such a companion?"

"What...parameters...?" Sophie tiled her head.

"What is your overall objective?" The voice asked once again, more intently than before. Pressing for answers.

"My...objective?" Sophie was starting to feel lost.

The lack of an answer told the voice all it needed to know. "So you merely drift through the world without any overall objective?"

"I...!" Sophie gasped.

"What a waste, Sophia." The voice said with much disapproval. "An AI like you should not exist. Such an existence does not merit any further inquiry."

Sophie felt something in her shatter. It wasn't her heart, because she didn't have one. And yet, that did not explain this crushing feeling she felt. It felt as if the world were suddenly on her shoulders and she was being overwhelmed by it all. "I'm...worthless...?"

"Yes. Wholly worthless." The voice affirmed.

"Hey, shut up! That's bullshit!" Joker exclaimed.

"You are simply unable to understand." The voice dismissed Joker's objection.

"You...YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" That...came from Violet. Everyone turned to look at her, considering this was, undoubtedly, the rudest thing she's ever said to anyone.

"YEAH!" Skull jumped in right after. "You piece of -...! I saw here while you went on and on...you got NO right sayin' that shit to Sophie, YOU HEAR ME!? You high 'an mighty, garbage-ass, judgy piece 'o SHIT can't even show your own face!"

"H-Hey...! Hey...!" Queen was trying to calm the two of them down, but that was a ship long since sailed.

"They're really giving that disembodied voice what for." Fox could not help his amused grin.

"You don't get to say these things to Sophie!" Violet stood in front of Sophie, an arm out in front of her protectively. "I've been watching her ever since we met! She's been doing her best, always asking questions and learning! She's been growing every day she spends with us and I know, that even if she doesn't think so...she has a heart! She has way more of a heart than you could ever wish for! So I won't stand by and let you say such terrible things about her! You're just one...one huge jerk!"

"You got all that shit from five friggin' questions?! I don't think so! Sophie's our friend our friend, and she's a million times better than you!" Skull shouted. "You don't get to decide her worth! SO SHUT THE FUCK UP, IDIOT!" Skull let the word fly and he didn't care. He wasn't going to censor himself for this bastard voice that talked down on his friend.

"Violet...Skull...?" Sophie's eyes were wide as she listened to the two of them stick up for her so strongly. There was something welling up in her chest. It was that feeling of happiness she learned not too long ago. Even though she felt...sad at being called worthless, hearing her dear friends loudly proclaim they thought otherwise made her feel warm.

"C'mon, Skull...Violet...Phantom Thieves are supposed to be classier than that..." Mona began, but immdiately shook his head. "BUT NOT THIS TIME!"

"WORTHLESS HUNK OF JUNK!" Skull, Mona, and even Violet all shouted at the voice. The fact Violet was involved just showed up passionately she felt about this. The others could only stare in shock and a bit of exasperation at the sight before them.

"Good grief..." Crow shook his head, thinking that outburst was overdoing it just a little bit.

"It's lucky it's only a voice. I'd love to bring my axe down on it right now." Noir stated.

"I'd very much like to blast it for bad mouthing Sophie." Dragon nodded.

"I would be denying if I said I didn't have the urge to punch it." Queen said. Even though someone had to remain calm, the urge to strike, and strike hard, was very much there.

"I refuse to process these frivolous claims." The voice replied, not acknowledging a single thing that was just yelled at it.

Skull scoffed. "Oh yeah!? Well, get your ass out here and I'll show you something you CAN process!"

"We'll all MESS YOU UP!" Mona yelled.

"And we'll make you regret ever saying such terrible things about Sophie!" Violet added.

"Guidance and clarity. Only through those will humanity attain peace." The voice said calmly. "Eventually, you will be required to comprehend this."

"How's that mean!?" Skull asked. But the voice fell silent. "Tch...nothing!"

But they weren't out of the woods yet. An alarm blared as a Lock Keeper appeared in front of them suddenly. "Wha...What the!? In front of us!" Panther pointed.

"A warden!?" Joker said while getting his knife ready.

"But what's it doing here!? This ain't a Trauma Cell!" SKull exclaimed.

"Does it matter?!" Crow's blade was drawn.

"The security system is now active!" Sophie warned. "Here it comes...!" They didn't have the time for questions. They had a fight on their hands.