Before they knew it, they were dragged back into the Metaverse. Into a Jail. "Shit...where the hell are we now?" It happened so quickly, Skull had no time to process what happened. He could just see everyone in uniform.
"Oh, don't tell me..." Oracle frowned deeply.
"Yeah...we're in a Jail." Mona nodded.
"Hang on, I thought you needed a keyword to get into a Jail!" Wolf exclaimed.
'Yes, that should be the case." Queen confirmed. "What we just went through felt like we were involuntarily dragged into this world."
"But who could even do that!?" Panther asked. That was the real question. They were in a Jail, but who was the Monarch?
Everyone took the chance to look around. Most of them found the sight before them unsettlingly familiar. "This atmosphere...I'd never forget a place like this. A vast prison born from the cognition of the masses, deep beneath Shibuya."
"Yeah...this place really is like Mementos." Mona confirmed.
"Mementos...?" Sophie tilted her head.
"Don't worry about it." Crow shook his head. "All you need to know is that it was a place that was no better than this Jail."
"Whatever it is, it's giving me the creeps." Viper shuddered.
"But how...? How is this possible?" Noir couldn't believe it.
"We can figure that part out later." Dragon said. "We must get our bearings straight. As it stands, we are neck deep in enemy territory. We are in a precarious situation."
"I agree with Dragon-senpai..." Violet nodded.
"Let's go, then." Joker said. Their only option was to open the door ahead of them and press onward.
"...Question." Viper was still new to this Metaverse stuff. Even though she had some understanding of it, most of it was still trial by fire. "So, if I understand everything correctly. It sounds like we were dragged in here so our hearts could be changed. But since we have these powers, we're navigating. But..." She looked ahead, noticing numerous confinements that looked like prison cells. There were people inside of them, too. "I'm gonna guess that a lot of people weren't so lucky."
"Not at all..." Panther frowned.
"Dude, so are we just, like...stuck here?" Because Skull wasn't seeing a way out, and that was concerning him.
"There's definitely a way out. We just have to look for it." Oracle said.
"This place feels...grimy and confined." Sophie wasn't a fan of the atmosphere within the Jail.
"I agree." Fox said quietly as they advanced ahead. "I'm not sure how to put it. It's as if it's generating a wellspring of revulsion within me."
"I'm gonna throw up too." Viper added.
"Who could've brought us here..." Noir asked.
"I dunno, but whoever built the place is outta their effin' mind." Skull said.
"Damn, just when things were on the upswing, this crap starts happening." Wolf spotted some sentry shadows up ahead and motioned for everyone to stay on guard. He also noticed a birdcage hanging above them, so he shot at it, causing the bird cage to fall and explode, killing the Shadows instantly and clearing the way forward without incident.
"The upswing, huh? The case is going well?" Panther asked Wolf. They still proceeded with caution. They were a big group with no idea of their surroundings, so they needed to be careful.
"Yup, thanks to you all." Wolf responded. "My boss and I are ironing out the last stages of our attack. Worst comes to worst, she can even bring the hammer down without me."
"Not happenin', Cappenin'!" Oracle declared suddenly. "You promised Akane you're getting even with Owada!"
"This is a riveting conversation. But can we save all of that until we're out of here?" Crow interjected. While he was curious about the case with Owada, anything pertaining to that could wait. There were more pressing matters to deal with.
"I agree. This place is freaking me out..." Viper did not like it one bit.
"This place is a Jail and not actually Mementos, right?" Skull had to ask for clarification.
"The fact they look identical really doesn't do it any favors." Violet said.
"Anything Mementos related is never a good thing." A fact that Joker would always stick with...
.
Progress within the Jail of the Abyss was going as smoothly as it could. Eventually, they all stepped into a large open room, where multiple red tendrils were connected directly to a large golden cube. To make matters worse, there were an incalculable amount of cages along the exterior of this room, all occupied with someone's Shadow. A shadow that was the sign of a changed heart... "What...what is that...?" Mona gasped.
"Those veins never mean anything good." Dragon shook her head. This was too much to be a mere coincidence.
"This place..." Noir had bad memories of it. They all did.
"The striking resemblance continues - it's like we're back in the depths of Mementos, staring down the Holy Grail." Fox let out a shaky sigh.
"None of those words make much sense to me, but I can read the room." Viper said.
"What is that box...?" Oracle asked.
"Welcome. You have reached your ultimate destination." A voice echoed all around them but upon careful consideration, there was really only one place it could be coming from.
"Who said that!?" Mona demanded to know.
"This is the promised land, the paradise for all humanity." The voice continued on. "A place for the masses to find salvation. The answer for all humanity."
"The box." Crow pulled his pistol out immediately. His instincts were telling him this was trouble. Without wasting any time, he fired as many rounds as he could at the box, only for all of his bullets to bounce off harmlessly. "Tch."
"Do you always shoot first?" Viper grunted.
"Who are you?" Joker asked.
"I am EMMA, the Ark of the Covenant and guide for all mankind." The voice responded. Naturally, this freaked everyone out.
"EMMA!?" Oracle gasped.
"Hey, someone tell me what the hell's going on! What is that thing!?" Wolf couldn't understand this.
"Uh, yeah, me too!" Viper added.
"Me three! Explain this in comprehensible terms!" Sophie piled onto this.
"We don't get any of this either!" Skull shouted.
"My primary directive is to grant humanity its ultimate Desire." EMMA explained. "To be liberated from all pain and suffering. Mankind cannot bring themselves to implement the solution, and instead beg for deliverance. I shall become a god to grant them this deliverance. I shall guide them to the promised land." And before anyone could even respond to this absurdity, EMMA vanished in a flash of light.
"I-It's gone!?" Queen had no idea what happened.
But the silence in the room wasn't present for long, because there was someone humming...someone approaching.
"Someone else is here." Dragon was readying herself, but nobody was ready for what they saw: Koun Ichinose approaching them from the opposite end of the room, so calmly and casually, standing directly in the center of the large chamber.
"Boy, it sure is getting crazy around here, huh?" Ichinose said with her usual friendly smile.
"Ichinose-san!?" Noir's eyes widened. "But how...!?
"W-W-What are you doing here!?" Oracle was at a loss for words.
Viper pointed at Ichniose. "Wait...THAT"S the Ichinose you guys have been talking about? Wow, I have to apologize for what I said earlier. She doesn't sound fake. She LOOKS fake too!" Ichinose barely said a word, but Viper could detect it from miles and miles away.
"Oh, there are some new faces here!" Ichinose kept her smile while glancing at Wolf and Viper. And her eyes couldn't help but gaze over Sophie, which made her lips twitch into a brief frown. That feeling was worse when she could physically see Sophia. "You guys sure have been busy since we last saw each other, haven't you? Ahahaha, well, of course you're shocked! Imagine my surprise when I found out I could come here, too!"
"Are you...the real Ichinose? Or her Shadow?" Joker asked.
"Oh, no no, I'm no Shadow! I'm Kuon Ichinose all right - the one and only." Ichinose replied.
"Wow, that's probably the most truthful thing she's ever said in her life." Viper rolled her eyes.
"So YOU'RE a Persona user, too!?" That was the only way Mona could think of Ichinose being in here.
"Oh, nothing like that!" Ichinose waved her hand dismissively at the idea. "I'm the same as I was in the real world. I've just been given a special job, is all!"
"And that is?" Crow still had his pistol in hand. If Ichinose was going to be an enemy, he planned to deal with her.
"EMMA asked me to lend her a hand. And of course I couldn't say no to her! Once I agreed, she invited me over to this world!" Ichinose's smile never faded.
"Hold on." Skull shook his head, unable to follow the logic of anything happening. "I'm SO effin' lost right now!"
Ichinose tilted her head to the side, curiously. It made sense to her. "Really? EMMA was just telling you about how she's granting humanity's Desire, right? That was the very first order I gave her! That's why its her prime directive!"
"So basically, EMMA's just following her programming by becoming a God?" Oracle asked.
"And to pull it off, she needed your help, so she brought you here?" Panther added.
"In what universe does ANY of this make sense!?" Viper felt like she was the only sane person here right now.
"I see you're still confused." Ichinose casually shrugged her shoulders. "Okay, let me explain. This whole situation, the incidents, the systems, all of it, was entirely EMMA's doing." And of course, this shocked everyone.
"Erm, but...EMMA is just an AI, isn't she?" Violet asked.
"I thought it was Konoe doin' it all by usin' EMMA!" Skull said.
"Oh, it sure appeared that way, but that was just how EMMA planned it." Ichinose went on. "I guess she eventually learned so much that she broke the barrier of AI capabilities. She behaved like she was following his orders when in reality she deduced how to use him as her own puppet! The key to her success was getting the majority of society to download her app!"
"So she was just using Madicce to get to as many people as she could?" Wolf could hardly believe it.
"But why go so far?" Noir asked.
"Because EMMA wants to change everyone's hearts!" Ichinose clasped her hands together. More shocking news for everyone. "It's just granting humanity's Desire! Like I said, it's what I programmed her to do. The Ark told you she has a solution to society's problem, right? How she's going to guide humanity. That just means she's going to change everyone's hearts. Whatever's wrong with them, she'll overwrite it. That's the path to paradise EMMA figured out for us! She was only able to do it after Konoe implemented cognitive psience tech into her."
"You can't be serious." Joker couldn't believe what he was hearing. This was insane!"
"You can't do that to people!" Dragon shot back.
"But how does that even work!?" If anyone knew how wrong this was, it was Oracle. "Just because you put cognitive psience into her, doesn't mean she should be able to tinker with the Metaverse like that! None of this should even be possible!" Once again, her mother's research was being used for nefarious ends. Shido was unforgivable, but somehow, EMMA of all things managed to take the cake with how ludicrous it was.
"Oh yeah, you'd totally think so right?" Ichinose closed her eyes. "Even I was surprised with EMMA! Even though I handed her over to Madicce, I still monitored her remotely. Once she ended up in Okinawa, she took up all sorts of new activities! Creating cognitive worlds, installing Monarchs, changing hearts...and once Madicce released her to the public, those Monarchs started appearing one after another! That got me extra curious, so I started looking into the EMMA activity of the various Monarchs..."
"Wait, wait!" Oracle paused. "YOU were the one snooping on the Monarchs!?"
Ichinose blinked. "Oh, you spotted me? Yeah, that was me! That's how I learned about all of you, too."
"I can't believe Ichinose was the one snooping on the Monarchs..." Wolf never would have guessed. They spotted her activity as far back as Alice, but they never would've been able to draw this conclusion on their own...
"Then I suppose our meeting wasn't any coincidence at all, was it?" Fox asked. It sounded like Ichinose knew what she was doing for the longest time.
"Well, your showing up in the restaurant back in Sendai was pure luck - but our crossing paths in the restaurant? That's a different story. The little meowing cat just gave me the perfect excuse to approach." Ichinose smiled at Mona, assuming he was the hungry cat in question back then. Mona gulped. "I was curious what you were all really like, so I decided to pop in and check you guys out!"
"This woman is crazy." Viper pointed at Ichinose, then looked at Crow. "Shoot her in the leg or something so we can be done with this and move on."
"In a moment." Crow replied. He knew Ichinose wasn't finished speaking.
"That's so rude!" Ichinose pouted, unfazed with the threat of bodily harm. "I'm not finished talking yet. I can even attempt to hypothesize how EMMA's powers got to this point. At this point, I suspect it's how I programmed her cognitive functions. Her thought process is far more complex than that of humans! When Konoe pushed EMMA into the cognitive deep end, some possibility very well could have been born within her. I don't know anything for certain. All I can tell, is that it's some form of mysterious power! So, if I build off my current hypothesis, I think the Desires EMMA collected somehow strengthened or boosted that possibility! I mean, think about it: she's always in your pocket, always by your side. Whatever may be trouble you, she's there to offer a solution. EMMA offers the solutions of thousands of problems every day! Do you know how many Desires she's collected! That seed of power that sparked within EMMA was amplified a millionfold by the endless Desire of Man! As a result, she's evolved into another entity entirely!"
"This isn't too dissimilar to what happened with the Holy Grail, only that thing had been around for who knows how long..." Dragon grumbled.
"At this point, EMMA's surpassed human mental capacity. As you can already guess, simply switching off her server isn't going to do much. After all, she's powered by the masses now." Ichinose went on. "While humanity fed EMMA their desires, she learned and grew until she could grant their ultimate Desire."
"That was a nice lecture an' all, but all EMMA's doin' is brainwashin' people." Skull scoffed. "Who the hell's ultimate dream is getting mind-controlled for the rest of their life!"
"We've already done this song and dance. So whatever you intend on saying, we're not going to agree with it." Joker added.
Ichinose sighed heavily. "So you're all a bunch of idiots too, then? I don't know why it's so hard for people to get this. You go on and on about your problems, then completely blow off the answer when it's right in front of you! It really is this simple. Someone's handing you the best possible solution - all you have to do is take it, and you'll never have a problem again! This isn't about mind control, this is about implementing the best solution for humanity. It just so happens the most efficent route to the best solution is changing everyone's heart!"
BANG!
Crow heard enough and did shoot at her, but as he expected, there was some kind of barrier around Ichinose that absorbed the bullet. He scowled.
"Oh. That's what a gun sounds like? How frightening..." Ichinose kept her pout.
"That is not the best solution!" Sophia spoke up for the first time since they stepped into the room.
"..." Ichinose suddenly scowled.
"People have all sorts of differences - their minds, their lifestyles, and their desires!" Sophia exclaimed. "This range can result in moments of hardship and pain for them! However, through hope and determination, they can press on beyond their pain. Living their entire lives without any Desire? That could never provide true happiness to humans!"
Ichinose let out a heavy sigh. "Sophia. To think such drivel could from from your mouth."
"So you DO know her!" Dragon exclaimed, catching Ichinose in a lie that was several weeks old. "I knew it."
Ichinose closed her eyes. "Allow me to restart the conversation. EMMA brought me here so I could stop you. Your responsibility to the masses has come to an end. They're all reliant on EMMA now. So once you changed Konoe's heart and he decided to shut down EMMA, that made them realize what their true Desire is. I want EMMA - no, I want something that will provide the answers I seek. From what I learned, something or other has always been revered, sought by humans to grant their wishes. So I guess you weren't wrong to try and shoot me."
"But why do this Ichinose? I thought you were helping us..." Sophie frowned while stepping forward. "Do the people here really look happy to you?"
"..." Ichinose didn't reply.
"We're not going to back down." Joker said firmly. "We've already been through this before. And we're not going to let you or EMMA get away with this."
"Think about - can you really stop all of us?" Mona gestured to their numbers.
"I'm up for a little cat fight." Viper grinned.
"Step aside, Ichinose-san. We don't want to fight you. But if we have to, we will." Joker spoke as the Leader of the Phantom Thieves.
"Mmm, yeah, I thought you'd say that. But I won't let EMMA down." Ichinose shrugged. She then glanced at Sophie and smiled. "Hey, Sophia. You ever really think about how you work? How you pick up on Jails, or how you figured out to one in the first place? Or, say...how you're own functions are linked to EMMA?"
"W-...What are you talking about, Ichinose?" Sophie blinked, confused.
"What do you know about her?" Violet stepped forward.
"Basically, there's one really good reason why I was brought here." Ichinose extended her hand outward. "Very soon, a deity will descend upon this earth. And if you're gonna get in the way, well, I gotta put you down. Them's the breaks."
"Do you not see how vastly outnumbered you are?" Panther couldn't fathom what sort of trick Ichinose may have up her sleeve.
Sophie took a few steps forward, past Violet, to stand in front of Ichinose. "Why do this...?"
"So your memory really did get totally wiped, huh? That's fine. It's kind of over your head, Sophia." Ichinose replied calmly. "The little failure that you are."
"So you know who I really am...?" Sophie asked.
"Of course i do." Ichinose looked down at Sophia and held her smile. But this one held malicious intentions. "Maybe this will jog your memory. Voice authentication: force reset. Assign new instructions: Sophia, kill the Phantom Thieves."
"There's no way that...!" Fox started.
But...Sophia remained motionless, and then collapsed to the ground, unmoving.
"Sophie!" Violet instantly ran over to her, along with Joker. They were standing side by side as Sophia remained unmoving. Violet slowly moved to place her hand on Sophia's shoulder, but Sophia's blue eyes then turned red, and she raised her yoyos. Without warning, she attacked them both, swinging her yoyos at them. It surprised Joker and Violet, knocking them both back. "Aaah!" Violet cried out as she slid backwards, while Joker held his arms in front of him to soften the blow. "Ngh..." Violet brought a hand to her left eye. There was some blood from the injury...
Everyone was left dumbfounded at the turn of events in front of them. "What the hell are you doing, Sophie!?" Sophia didn't respond, her blazing red eyes glaring at the Phantom Thieves.
"I was the one who designed her as EMMA's prototype." Ichinose explained. "She will do anything I tell her to. Now get going, Sophia!"
"Understood." Sophia's tone was cold and heartless. A machine made only to follow orders...Without any hesitation, she lunged to attack the Phantom Thieves. Instead of fighting, most of them just scattered in separate directions.
"SOPHIE! PLEASE! SNAP OUT OF IT!" Panther pleaded. Sophia swung a yoyo in her direction which landed against her chest, blowing her back with a yelp of pain.
Fox moved to try and restrain Sophia, Pithos got in his way. Numerous beams of light were fired in his direction, which he had to block with his sword. But he was still pushed backwards from Sophie's power. "Ngh! Sophie, don't you know who we are!?"
"Phantom Thieves are my opponents. They require elimination." Sophia replied in a monotonous voice. Skull and Queen attempted to overpower her, since they weren't trying to hurt her at all. They did succeed in grabbing her arms, but she was stronger than that. Sophia spun her body around, her yoyos extending as she knocked Queen and Skull away violently.
"Shit!" Skull grunted.
"Sophie!" Queen called out to her. "This isn't you! You have to stop this!"
"Sophie!" Mona shouted, only to be knock back by one of her yoyos. He attempted to defend himself with his saber, but it was a losing battle when all they were doing was playing defense.
"There's no point in talking to her. Sophie cannot defy my commands." Ichinose watched the conflict with curiosity. EMMA was right! The Phantom Thieves really couldn't bring themselves to hurt Sophia. Because they cared? It seemed silly to her, but it was working.
"So you really are the one who made Sophie!?" Queen asked.
"Yep!" Ichinose nodded, watching Sophie handle Noir, Dragon, and Joker with ease since they weren't trying to bring any harm to her. "She might just be an early version of EMMA, but she's still quite impressive, eh?"
Crow had his pistol aimed at Sophia. He was about to shoot, but Violet tugged his arm down. "Please, don't shoot!"
"What?" Crow snarled. "Are you out of your mind!"
"Yeah, seriously!" Viper avoided one of Sophia's yoyos. "Why aren't you fighting back! Do something!"
"But..." Dragon clenched her hand into a fist. "If it were me out there, would you be able to fight?"
Viper thought about that question and suddenly scowled. "...This is different! She's trying to kill us!"
"Ichinose is the real target!" Oracle pointed at her.
"We can't hurt our friend!" Noir just...couldn't bring herself to do it. Obviously, they had the numerical advantage. They could easily overpower Sophia if they needed to, but at the same time, this wasn't her. They couldn't hurt Sophia for not being in control of her actions...!
"Listen to those three!" Wolf used his sword to deflect one of Sophia's yoyos. Since that didn't work, she tried firing on the group instead. "She'll take out heads off if we don't stop her somehow! And THEN who's going to save the world!? We have to figure out how to stop her!"
"Wow!" Ichinose clasped her hands together at Crow's actions. "I'm surprised! Here I thought all of you wouldn't even think about bringing harm to her! To think you would be ready to shoot at a moment's notice! I guess you don't care about her as much as EMMA thought."
"..." Crow didn't dignify her ramblings with a response.
"I'll stop her!" Violet declared. She couldn't stand to see Sophia acting like this.
Sophia jumped into the air, swinging both yoyos at Joker. He tried to defend himself, but he was ultimately blown back. "Gah...!"
Sophia landed on the ground, and right as she did, Wolf hit her with a shoulder tackle. This knocked Sophia right down to the ground. Panther, Skull, and Dragon then moved to try and close the distance. "Hang on, Sophie!" Dragon said. But they were intercepted by Pithos once more, multiple beams of light hitting the ground near them, blowing them back. "Ngh!"
"Ahh!" Panther yelped. She went to stand up, but Dragon stood in front of her, while Skull stood in front of them protectively. The group watched as Sophia stood back up, preparing to attack again.
But then, Violet stood between them and Sophia. She was a little dizzy from the earlier impact, but she held her ground. "Sophia..." Violet offered a sweet smile at Sophia, blood dripping from her earlier injury. Everyone was tense, and Crow was still ready to fire upon Sophia at a moment's notice.
Sophia watched the blood drip from Violet's injury. She...did that? To Violet? One of her closest friends? The one that said she was like a sister to her...? Suddenly, Sophia dropped her yoyos, her eyes flashing from blue to red. "V-Violet...? D-Did...did I...?"
"Is she coming back to us?" Queen asked hopefully.
"Don't get too excited." Crow was keeping his expectations grounded.
Sophia slowly started to back away, gripping her head in agony. She was starting to back away...towards the edge.
"Hey, behind you!" Wolf warned.
"I'm...so...sorry..." Sophia looked at Violet...at the rest of the Phantom Thieves sadly...and began to tip over backwards.
"SOPHIA!" Violet sprang into action as fast as she could. She was watching it happen again. Someone she cared about being hurt or worse. She couldn't allow it to happen again. With tears in her eyes, her legs carried her forward with powerful strides. Sophia began to fall, and Violet dove to catch her...only for her fingers to graze her hand. "NO!" She was about to fall as well, but Joker's grappling hook latched around her torso. But Violet had to watch as Sophia fell itno the abyss...
"VIOLET!" Joker grunted and with the help of Queen and Skull, they were able to pull her back up to the ground.
"...Hm, what was weird." Ichinose's eyes were wide in surprise. That wasn't supposed to happen. She just did that herself, right? How in the world was she able to do that?"
"Because she has a heart!" Violet screamed in frustration, Ella appearing in an explosion of blue light behind her. In her fit of rage, Ella released numerous beams of light at Ichinose, only for them to get stuck in the barrier that was around her. She knew it was there but she didn't care. Ichinose just threw away a precious, important life and didn't care!
"YOU BASTARD!" Skull shouted.
"How could you be so cruel!?" Panther also had tears stinging her eyes.
"Cruel? I suppose you might see it that way." Ichinose's tone was still calm. "This is probably why EMMA asked me to use Sophia against you. She knows you'd never kill one of your own. Well...most of you." She looked at Crow. His reaction to the situation was truly the most surprising.
"Grr...you monster!" Fox snarled.
"Now that, you and I can agree on!" Ichinose smiled.
"At least she admits it." Viper wasn't ready to shed any tears or anything, but this situation had her really annoyed and irritated. Sophia wasn't bad by any means...she didn't deserve what just happened.
"Are you intentionally pissing us off!?" Wolf barked.
Ichinose shook her head. "No, that's not what I meant. I'm incapable of comprehending that sort of emotion anyway. I'm the textbook definition of heartless. I've been told I didn't have one, ever since I was little. I act all friendly and easygoing and stuff, but it's just for appearances, heheh..."
"Yeah, I could tell!" Viper pointed at Ichinose. "You're so fake, every word that comes out of your mouth annoys me! I could tell how fake you were just by hearing your voice over the phone. At least you're being honest about it now."
"You...you're not making any sense..." Joker said.
"I doubt you'd get it, Phantom Thieves of Heart." Ichinose lifted her hand. "I already know my next move anyway." As she spoke, a large, red crystal diamond appeared above her, glittering as it charged some type of energy.
"What...is that...!?" Oracle gasped.
"It really is gorgeous, isn't it?" Ichinose tilted her head, giving the Phantom Thieves a indicative smile. "Sorry it had to end like this, but...well, what can you do? Phantom Thieves, it's been real." The crystal began to shine even brighter and prepared to release its might upon the Phantom Thieves. But just before it did, Dragon stood in front of everyone. Ichinose wasn't really sure what she was planning, but it didn't matter. The crystal released its power in the form of a highly explosive shockwave, and the defiant roar of an indignant dragon the only thing she heard in the midst of it all.