Chapter XIV: The Angel of Control
Distorted Osaka/Distorted Umeda Sky Building/Top Floor
As the elevator made it to the top floor, the Phantom Thieves, Tennyo, Sion, the Spiritual Gamblers, Mina, and Kyosuke exited and scoured the posh hallways. The tile floors, cream-colored and made of marble, are clean. The corporate environment has windows fashioned and built like the Osaka Aquarium glass.
As the group continued their way, they felt a preternatural calmness.
Perhaps, too calm.
Clenching his fists, Sion abruptly paused. "This doesn't feel right."
"Sion?" Tennyo turned to him with concern.
"Guys, look over there!" Oracle called out, pointing toward an obscured figure standing on the dark end of an office.
"Who the hell is that?" Skull suspiciously eyed the figure.
"The guy we're looking for!" Joker exclaimed as Sion ran over to confront the individual.
"Wait, Sion!" Tennyo called out as she and the others followed him.
As the group approached the office, a tall, slender man in a black posh suit walked out from the corner of the area. His complexion appears olive from a glance. He has a thin-framed face, long limbs, and a rather long neck. Slicking back is his black hair, matching the etiquette of his wardrobe. His amber eyes locked onto the Thieves and the others as a composed smile graced his face. From a glance, his professional appearance was suited for this corporate environment.
"At last. Welcome, Phantom Thieves of Hearts and your new companions," the posh-suited man formally greeted them. "I am Kanashī Seishin. Or, if you prefer, you may call me Datenshi."
"He doesn't appear threatening," Presto remarked, not put off by the man's formal appearance.
"Don't be fooled. He's keeping his power in check since we haven't attacked yet," Mina warned him and the others.
"Your place looks cozy," Joker sardonically remarked toward Datenshi, who smiled.
"And you've got quite a mouth on you, Phantom Thief leader," Datenshi calmly addressed Joker.
"So, are you him?! The one who's been causing these distortions and sending all the monsters?!" Sion angrily called him out. "And are you the one who sent me here?!"
Before Datenshi could answer, Joker raised his dagger in his direction.
As he and the Thieves sensed the familiar energy resonating from the man, Joker growled. "Are you the one with his essence?"
Then, as he demonstrated his abilities, he used his reality warping powers and materialized a dining table with fancy and well-prepared food and drinks, purposefully ignoring Joker's inquiry.
"Do you all want something to eat first while we are getting acquainted?" Datenshi asked.
"We don't want any offerings," Noir politely declined.
"Yeah, we'll take a hard pass," Brave bluntly stated.
"Enough! Quit playing around and tell us who you are!" Sion angrily exclaimed, baring his vampiric fangs at Datenshi.
Then, Datenshi willfully made the dinner table disappear and replied. "As you all wish, especially you, Sion."
Upon hearing his name coming from this man's mouth, Sion's eyes flared red. "You know my name. Then, you're the bastard we're looking for!"
"Then, our search is over," Tennyo said, fully convinced.
"You're going to tell me why you brought me here and what your angle is!" Sion demanded as Datenshi stepped back a little and allowed the light in the room to reveal his shadow, which enlarged into the familiar shape of Yaldabaoth.
Recognizing the shape of the God of Control's shadow, the Thieves' minds were filled with horror. The shadow of the god's wings spread through the wall corridors as if he had the Phantom Thieves trapped. A golden white radiance shined through, filling the Phantom Thieves and their allies with dread.
"No…! It can't be!" Joker yelled.
"So it's true! This person has his power!" Mona cried out.
"I've never felt anything this terrifying before!" Tamamo exclaimed in shock, getting a first feel of a god's power.
Nekomata quickly appeared, warning the group. "Our assumptions have been verified! He is the one responsible for the events that have been unfolding!"
"Ugh, but how does this guy have his power?!" Skull yelled.
"Holy fucking hell!" Panther gritted.
"This guy isn't even from our world though!" Oracle cried out as a hypothesis.
"If you wield the powers of the god we defeated, how did you come into existence?!" Queen yelled at the slender figure man.
As the bright aura dissipated, Datensh's Yaldabaoth shadow is retained. The posh-garbed man gave a subtly calm smile to his guests. "I am sorry for startling you all but fine. I shall tell all about my backstory, which I warn you will come off like a fairy tale." He turned and opened the blinds of his office window.
"A fairy tale?! Quit playing with us we're freakin' little kids!" Skull growled.
"Don't provoke him, Ryuji!" Queen warned him. "We don't know what he's capable of!"
"Yes, let's hear what he has to say," Tennyo urged her friends.
"Why should we?" Sion scoffed, resisting the urge to tear into Datenshi with his readily armed Ogre-Type Blood Veil. He felt Tennyo holding his demonic-hand, calming his frenzied state of mind.
"Please, Sion. Perhaps we'll learn something of our enemy we're not aware of. Now's not the time to play our next hand," Tennyo said, reminding Sion. "We must plan our new move if we want to capture the opposing king."
As he was reminded of their Shogi games, Sion took a deep breath. The red glow in his eyes faded as his state of being relaxed.
The group kept their composers as the enemy pivoted and faced their direction.
Datenshi began with dialogue as his window glass showed flashback scenes from an old period in his past life. "Once upon a time, there was an irrelevant soldier who lived in Osaka. That soldier had comrades alongside a wife that valued honor and kindness. Once an idealistic individual, he shared the dream of a united country. Then, the Siege of Osaka occurred and changed that man. His fellow comrades died and his wife perished as well in a crossfire. That man became consumed with hatred and vengeance. Then, Lady Chacha used Amrita with the assistance from the woman from Spain, warping the darkness and hatred inside their soldiers, including this man. The nameless soldier was one of the unfortunate victims of the experiment, being converted into a Magatsu Warrior Yokai. The Yokai soldier was then slain by the Anjin they called William. However, the soldier's indomitable willpower separated his Amrita-like soul and corrupted body. That soul became a Yūrei. By becoming a Yūrei, the Amrita energies that resonated with him protected him from being detected by Onmyo mages and Guardian Spirits."
During Datenshi's dialogue, the window glasses showed images of the Osakan soldier's past life. A close up of the soldier was shown to them. The Osakan soldier has a fair complexion and long, black back-length hair. The man's face has bristles of black and grey hair covering parts of his face. He has a thick black mustache and beard. He has on a black and white Shogun body armor and thick, black legwear. Golden shoulder armor, with signs of wear and tear, framed his upper body. Black open-toed sandals cover his feet. In contrast to Datenshi's usually calm and confident exterior, this Osakan soldier has a crestfallen look. He has the look of someone who lost everyone and everything in his life.
"This is the man who'd eventually become Kanashī Seishin, but let's have a look at his life when he was an irrelevant man from a period long ago."
The images alternated, displaying the soldier's time with his comrades and his wife. Then, grisly death scenes from the battles of Osaka were shown. The soldier was shown with his body contorting and mutating into a Magatsu Warrior, who went on a berserk rampage until William stepped in and slew the Yokai. After being slain, the soldier's spirit ejected out of the Yokai body and wandered the earth for ages.
Needless to say, the group was surprised by his origins and having survived for centuries since the Siege of Osaka.
"That woman from Spain you mentioned was that Maria woman we fought!" Violet exclaimed.
"I can't believe how old this man is. He's likely seen how much Japan has changed since then," Crow added with intrigue about Datenshi.
"I did not even realize in all honesty. When I was with William fighting that Yokai, I did not even sense your soul anywhere! How is it possible?! It must be something to do with that indomitable will that resisted!"Nekomata conferred with Datenshi.
"How astute of you, Nekomata, but there's more to this than I've yet to show," Datenshi responded to the spirit's musing dialogue.
"And having fought Maria ourselves, she proved enough of a challenge for us!" Queen censured.
"We should've guessed you're an Osakan native," Tennyo stated.
"Some of us have met Yukimura and Lady Chacha's spirits to better understand the history of this land and our Guardian Spirits," Brave said.
"Shall I continue weaving my tale?" Datenshi insisted, silencing the crowd as he went into the next part of his backstory. "After that soldier became a Yūrei, he was never to pass into the afterlife. Because of that he wandered the living realm and endured the passage of time for centuries. Now a spirit, he did not need to eat, drink, or fatigue, all he needed was the Amrita energy instilled in him to maintain his immortality. With time, human society changed with many historical events and conflicts. He was a witness to crucial events such as the Meiji Restoration and World War II.
What he realized as times changed, humans never rid themselves of their moral natures. They are either altruistic in changing their civilization or become selfish, causing endless bloodshed. However, for every darkness that shrouds a human's soul, there was light to give those seeking for enlightenment and entertainment. That entertainment was the creation of popular culture.
Creators expanded fictional imagination in the hearts of humans and the innocence of children. I admire most of them, even some I must separate from those despicable humans who've committed heinous acts. Their love for fantasy helped those who abhor the horrors of reality to escape that reality. As I speak to you now, you could say I am an angel of imagination."
During Datenshi's discussion, the window glasses then showed the Yūrei of the Osakan soldier observing Osaka's growth. A time lapse moved quickly, showing Osaka growing from a feudal kingdom to being industrialized and eventually becoming one of Japan's biggest cities. Between these still images, it showed the era of World War II as heavy bombers ravaged Osaka at nightfall. The Yūrei witnessed the devastating horrors of the fallout and the destruction left behind from the attacks. Then, the sequence changed to a scene of him in 1954 watching a movie with the living audience. Then, the passage of time in the images fast forward into the 1980s and straight into the year 2016. The soldier's spirit observed the growth of literature, family homes with televisions, the expansion of movie theaters & video game consoles, and other entertainment venues to watch and play with fictional creations.
"Now, it's becoming clear how you're even still among us," Queen muttered
"Man, is he seriously that old?" Skull was flabbergasted. "You're just another pain in the ass old man'."
"So that's why while we explored your realm, we encountered that T. rex from the Jurassic Park movie! You really love pop culture that much!" Oracle pointed out.
"You must have been bored spending a lot of quality time observing human history and their fictional works?" Fox surmised about Datenshi's curiosity.
"That is correct," Datenshi calmly answered. "How they are so innocent. So innocent that they are both abused and benefited by humans to spread greed and imagination."
There was a brief moment of silence in a few seconds.
"And then, 2016 happened," Datenshi announced in an ominous tone. He then levitated to mid-air and calmly walked onto thin air like footsteps. Ripples of the footsteps are heard like water drops. "That eventful year marked the advent of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts."
"Yeah, that year was when we wanted an ideal society free of corrupted adults. And then after defeating Yaldabaoth, we wanted a return to our normal lives," Joker recollected, not intimidated by Datenshi's air walking.
"Ah, Amamiya Ren, but life didn't return to normal since after Yaldabaoth's defeat, that therapist warped your reality to create his idealized world." He then turned toward Violet. "And this woman ultimately joined you, Phantom Thieves." Shaking his head, he pivoted toward Joker again and continued walking on thin air. "You are The One, the true Trickster that desires change from the shackles. I can relate to you and your friends' desire for a society free of corruption. Even I despise rapists and a lot of politicians. I am sure these sexual groomers remind you of certain individuals you knew…"
"I already know! You don't need to remind me of that bastard!" Panther angrily interjected and struggled to lash out, defending her boyfriend.
"Easy, Ann," Joker calmed his girlfriend before turning toward Datenshi. "What do you know about us from that year?"
Datenshi instantly phased behind Joker to the Thief's surprise and reminded the Phantom Thief leader. "I was thinking of asking this question about you, Amamiya. Do you recall Yaldabaoth's past attempted deal for you to accept the offer for the Phantom Thieves to keep their roles in changing society?"
"I do, but I immediately rejected his offer," Joker calmly stated, resolute with his rightful decision.
"However, what if you accepted the offer?" Datenshi speculated before phasing away and walking around in mid-air again. "There was an alternate timeline that shows that. A world where the Phantom Thieves became authoritarian enforcers of Tokyo while spreading fear and control among the populace. Their original free will and personalities were wiped out of existence by Yaldabaoth, and replaced with autocratic personas. It's the world where I came from."
As soon as Datenshi revealed this bewildering outcome out of the blue, the heroes were overwhelmed with shock and disbelief.
"Judging by the silence, you want some time to take this all in?" Datenshi smirked, patiently waiting for a response.
"How do you expect us to respond to that?!" Panther exclaimed.
"Let me make sure we're clear. There was an alternate timeline where these versions of us accepted the deal of Yaldabaoth and became shadowed dictators in enforcing their law?" Queen gasped and realized the change from that specific dimension.
"What the eff! We may change people's hearts, but we wouldn't go too far for that dictator bullshit!" Skull yelled at Datenshi.
"An alternate dimension caused by another outcome?" Oracle groaned in relating to her interest in science fiction.
"What more can you tell us?" Crow asked.
"And you were originally from that world? How did this happen?" Fox questioned the anomalous man.
"I'm pleased with the amount of feedback. After you accepted the deal with Yaldabaoth, crime rates declined at record numbers, but that quickly threw off the balance," Datenshi explained about the societal order being thrown off. "During the Phantom Thieves' reign, the remaining Conspiracy members relocated to Osaka to continue their nefarious deeds and abuse the Metaverse for their greedy goals. Seeing how he played chess on both sides, Yaldabaoth ordered the Phantom Thieves to go after the Conspiracy here as their next targets."
"Osaka?! Wow, what a coincidence since we're in Osaka!" Tamamo squealed with joy.
Quickly grabbing Tamamo's ear, Brave scowled irritably by her friend's awkward enthusiasm. "No duh! This isn't time to get all excited!"
"The events are playing out differently compared to ours," Fox muttered by this hypothesis.
"He's right. In our reality, we stopped Shido and the Conspiracy in Tokyo," Noir said.
As he stopped walking and floated down to face his guests, Datenshi then continued to explain. "When the Phantom Thieves arrived in Osaka and committed to their heist, I was drawn forth to the Velvet Room thanks to a side effect from the Amrita within me. My Amrita's power conflicted with the Metaverse's presence once the Thieves entered Mementos. It was then I met the disguised Yaldabaoth sitting comfortably next to his desk. The Holy Grail demanded my presence and attempted to erase my spirit, but my Amrita and human willpower resisted his force. Then, a power struggle occurred between us. His existence became molded into becoming my Persona, and as a result, I was reincarnated into his human successor. I became Datenshi, the Angel of Control."
"Wait, you and Yaldabaoth merged?!" Joker yelled out in bewilderment.
"But, how can you just merge with him?!" Mona cried out. "That shouldn't even be possible!"
"Yeah, that's like hijacking the final boss and making him your playable character!" Oracle exclaimed.
"I find his baffling to believe," Panther remarked.
"But, I doubt this is where it all ends. Am I right to assume, Datenshi?" Queen asked the anomalous man.
"Excellent deduction, Nijiima Makoto. Yes, my story doesn't end there. Not long after your alternate selves sought the God of Control. Rather than find him, they found me in his place and now wielding their master's power at my command," Datenshi replied, turning and facing the windows, which displayed Seishin with Yaldabaoth's shadow behind him.
The next scene showed the reborn Angel of Control challenging the Phantom Thieves, who were effortlessly defeated. Forced to retreat, the Thieves met with Maruki Takuto, the therapist that most of them knew from Shujin Academy. As Maruki revealed his Metaverse abilities, he conjured a Cognitive Akechi and explained he intended to challenge them if they defeat Yaldabaoth. However, since Ren chose to accept the God of Control's deal, events have taken a drastic turn for the worst.
"When your alternate selves couldn't defeat me, Maruki Takuto answered your distress and put aside any plans he may have had for you. He convinced your alternate counterparts to unite against me. A Cognitive Akechi was created and Yoshizawa Sumire was dragged into an inevitable battle. Ultimately, more recruits were brought in. Phantom Thieves of Hearts, I'm sure you'll recognize these people.
As more images popped up on the window screens, Crow and Violet saw their alternate selves standing united with the alternate Phantom Thieves. Then, the faces of Sophia, Zenkichi, Ichinose, and EMMA were shown.
"But, that's...!" Panther gasped.
"Sophia!" Noir cried out.
"Zenkichi-san!" Queen shouted.
"And Ichinose and EMMA!" Oracle yelled in shock.
"Maruki and all of them got involved?! No, I don't like where this is leading," Fox exclaimed.
"Not just them I'm afraid," Datenshi said, shifting toward the Spiritual Gamblers. With a finger snap, another screen showed the alternate Tamamo, Brave, and Presto joining the alternate Phantom Thieves.
"That's us!" Brave exclaimed. "But, that means…!"
"Did our connections with the Guardian Spirits get activated early on?" Presto inquired.
"Correct. Perhaps too early, but the spirits from the past knew my presence was too dangerous so all decks were at hand. You three's recruitment was rushed but deemed necessary for the greater good. Ultimately, you three do meet with the Phantom Thieves."
The next scene showed the Phantom Thieves, the Spiritual Gamblers, Maruki, Sophia, Zenkichi, Ichinose, and EMMA facing off with Datenshi. The battle commenced in the heart of Osaka.
Then, in the blink of an eye, blood splattered the screens. Bodies fell. Banshee screams of terror tore through the screens. The screams of the slain gripped the hearts of everyone watching. Their faces became pale. Most couldn't even say a word.
Panther broke the brief silence. "...please don't tell me that…"
Most of the other Thieves, namely the ladies like Noir, Oracle, and Violet, either turned away or covered their mouths to try to hide their horrified reactions.
Skull stammered. "...shit, that sounded just like…"
Datenshi answered. "Yes, it was your alternate selves. On that tragic day, I swiftly slew the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, ending their lives as former vigilantes and oppressors to society. What hope did they have against an angel sent to punish them for their sins? I did them a great favor. I ended their suffering."
"That was us you killed, you bastard!" Skull snarled. Clenching a fist, he rushed to attack Datenshi, but Joker pulled him back.
"Yeah, get a grip, idiot! I know it's hard to take in, but you want us to get killed in the present, too?!" Mona chastised the frantic-minded Thief.
"That's enough, Skull!" Queen chided him to not step out of line.
"Go on. What else happened?" Sion addressed Datenshi.
"Shortly after I ended the Phantom Thieves, your new friends, Sophia, Zenkichi, Ichinose, and EMMA, tried to avenge your deaths. They, too, met their end."
"Bastard," muttered Skull.
"Wait, but what about us? You never mentioned what happened to Ryōta, Mary, and I," Tamamo reminded him.
"I'll get to you three in a minute. Now, we get to Maruki," Datenshi then unveiled his epic battle against Maruki and his Persona Adam Kadmon.
On the window screen, an epic scene between mythological figures from ancient times commenced. Commanding Yaldabaoth, Datenshi sent him to attack Maruki and Adam Kadmon. The two powerful Personas collided as their powers drastically altered the shape of their surroundings. The two titans were briefly equally matched. Datenshi and Maruki both exerted their powers draining themselves to keep their Personas active.
"Maruki was a very powerful Persona user. One that day, none came close to the resolve he exhibited against me," Datenshi described his intense battle with the Phantom Thieves' therapist friend. "Just when it appeared he'd seal my fate, I reached deep and delivered the finishing blow to Maruki."
The screen showed Datenshi shoving a glowing arrow through Maruki's chest. In the background, Adam Kadmon collapsed as Yaldabaoth was on his last legs.
"No, Maruki!" Joker yelled out at the screen.
"Heh, but imagine my surprise when he didn't go that easily," Datenshi smirked. "I let down my own guard."
At the last moment, Maruki recouped enough strength and blasted through Datenshi's torso. Similarly, Adam Kadmon punched through Yaldabaoth, breaking the God of Control in two.
"Maruki's Persona was too powerful even for Yaldabaoth. And by sacrificing himself, Maruki made sure I'd met my end. Or, so he thought. Using the last of my newfound powers, I relocated and placed myself in hibernation while in suspended animation for decades. My whereabouts became unknown for an undetermined amount of time."
Then, the screens went dark and the last scenes showed the day of mourning. With scenes colored dim gray, hundreds arrived at a funeral. Pictures of the deceased were shown. Much to the Thieves' horror, they saw their own faces as well as Maruki, Sophia, Zenkichi, and Ichinose.
"Oh god, our… funerals…" Queen gasped as Noir grabbed hold of her.
"Yes, it was a day of mourning. On that day, your identities were at last revealed to the world. Thousands showed up to pay their respects to the famed Phantom Thieves of Hearts," Datenshi said, clasping his hands as he bowed his head as if paying respects to the alternate Thieves he murdered.
The screens alternated to various shots of saddened crying individuals, including but not limited to the Thieves' confidants. Sojiro, Sae, Kawakami, Takemi, Ohya, Yoshida, Shiho, Mishima, Iwai, and countless others.
Then, Tennyo saw her alternate self on a screen crying over Ren's framed photo. After mourning the late-Amamiya Ren, alternate Hifumi placed a Shogi piece, marked 'King', next to his photo.
"Look, it's us!" Presto pointed to a screen showing the Spiritual Gamblers.
"So, we lived," Tamamo was perplexed.
"Why let us live?" Brave asked Datenshi.
"I let you three live to tell the spectacle of my battle against the famed Phantom Thieves of Hearts. Needless to say, I saw no reason to take your lives," Datenshi plainly said.
"That does explain why you sent Yokai after us in this reality," Brave inferred.
As the Spiritual Gambler trio mourned for the Thieves, a pre-teenage girl crying over Zenkichi's framed photo and the Thieves' photos. It especially hurt the child knowing her heroes were swiftly taken from her in one tragic encounter.
"That's Akane!" Panther recognized the girl.
"God, I feel for her. It's bad enough she lost our alternate selves, but her father, too," Queen sympathized with Zenkichi's daughter. "I know that feeling too well."
"Turn it off," Joker gritted as he quickly aimed his pistol for Datenshi. "I said, turn it off!"
"As you wish," Datenshi snapped his fingers as the screens went dark. "How does it feel knowing your alternate selves failed to defeat me? They threw their lives away for nothing."
"No! It wasn't meaningless, asshole!" Skull vehemently bellowed. "Because we're still here!"
"Just because you ended our alternate selves, doesn't mean your war with us is over!" Fox exclaimed.
"That's right. And unlike that other reality, they have me, Hifumi and others backing them up. I won't let that reality occur here as well!" Sion openly vowed to prevent a similar outcome.
"That's right, Datenshi. Now that we're aware that your powers are derived from Yaldabaoth and have become aware of your backstory, we know how to defeat you," Tennyo firmly stated.
Shaking his head, Datenshi responded with a finger wave. "Tsk, tsk, I didn't finish my story."
"Screw your story! I say we kick your ass now!" Skull pulled put and slammed his mace against Datenshi's desk.
Unfazed, the Angel of Control snapped his fingers, showing images of an arid land devoid of human activity. When he saw these images, Sion's mind was reminded of his home dimension.
"Isn't that your home, Sion?" Joker asked him.
"Yeah, we saw these scenes from that Memory Echo thing!" Panther recalled Sion explaining his entire backstory.
"What you see is my reality roughly four decades removed from your deaths, Phantom Thieves of Hearts. To be precise, time progressed uninterrupted. Following your deaths, life became uneventful for the better part of the next few decades. Then as Sion might've already told you, but the event known as the Great Collapse occurred," Datenshi explained as the post-apocalyptic scenery changed to someone rising from the ground. It was Datenshi coming out of the ground, waking up from his hibernation. "When I awoke from my decades' long sleep, I awoke to the post-2050s. What I saw was a world devoid of most of human civilization, reduced to a handful in isolated pockets. The world I woke up to was overrun by monsters and humans. From a glance, they seemed human, but Sion we know them as Revenants."
The window screens then showed mask-wearing Revenants scouring the arid land and defending their turfs from the malformed Lost creatures.
"Whatever human societies I could find changed. What a shame. A once dominant species have been reduced to being prey items for monsters. Then again, I could see this as karma for the human race. The hunters had now become the hunted. My original reality had changed so much. It became an apocalyptic travesty. I used my power to rewrite that dimension's reality, calling it: Akane-no-Mai-Vein. It was too late to do anything for my old reality."
"What happened next?" Joker asked Datenshi.
"Still, despite this massive setback, I planned my next move," Datenshi said, maintaining eye contact with Sion while telling his story. "I planned to go to a timeline where you, Phantom Thieves, were still alive. From there, I'd fight to defeat you all, destroy the universe, and ultimately end my own existence. In doing so, I'd end the suffering of human society."
"And how did you and I end up here?" Sion demanded the crucial answer to his question.
"Well, for starters I grew bored during my secluded time. As time went on, I observed the Revenants of my dimension. Revenants are quite interesting. They require blood to sustain their thirst and keep themselves from going into a frenzy. Yet they're not like the traditional vampires we're accustomed to," Datenshi stated, eyeing Sion as the window screens showed the Angel of Control, concealed in cloak and hood, watching the unnamed Revenant conversing with Louis and Yakumo.
"You were hiding out and watching Sion?" Tennyo asked.
"Slight correction, but I was watching the unnamed Revenant, whose DNA samples I collected. Allow me to explain how this Revenant's DNA was the catalyst to Sion's creation," Datenshi clapped his hands as the screens displayed a new scene of the Revenants having just recruited Mia. "Thanks to Yaldabaoth's power, I was freely able to spy on these Revenants undetected. As I followed their group, I used my concealed power to retrieve the unnamed Revenant's DNA samples. Now, you probably thought I used an insect to collect his blood? Quite the contrary. I utilized my divine touch and extracted DNA samples from the blood spilled from the unnamed Revenant's skirmishes against the Lost."
The next scenes showed the unnamed Revenant assisting Louis, Yakumo, and Mia against countless Lost throughout their journey. Unbeknownst to them, Datenshi collected and amassed the unnamed Revenant's blood samples.
"After these Revenants slew their remaining enemies, the Revenant named Io sacrificed herself to become the Weeping Tree. This was a source ripe with the rich energy I required for your creation, Sion. No, it became the catalyst to giving you life," Datenshi said.
The next scene showed Datenshi, undetected by anyone, extracting DNA from the Weeping Tree. Having collected some of the Weeping Tree's energy, the Angel of Control vanished into his underground sanctuary. Standing in front of a container, Datenshi mixed the Weeping Tree's essence with something resembling a human body. As the Weeping Tree's power resonated with this body, an intense reaction occurred.
"Much to my satisfaction, the cloning process was successful. After many failed tries creating my own perfect Revenant, you, Sion, became my greatest achievement," Datenshi said as the next scenes showed the cloned Revenant breaking out of the container and roaring with anger. "Perhaps, I spoke too soon. Though while you awoke, you went on a rampage inside my sanctuary. You even tried to attack me, your creator."
More scenes played out in real time on the window screens. One image showed Datenshi trying to subdue a frantic Sion. Sion was seen going on a rampage, destroying anything in his way. Finally, with Yaldabaoth's power, the Angel of Control subdued Sion. During their struggle, the side effects of their clash caused a rift to open up. Seeing no other choice, Datenshi tossed Sion into the wormhole.
"The wormhole was my overall intention despite the accident. Having decided that this world is no use to me, I followed Sion to your reality, Phantom Thieves, where I would set up my distorted realm in Osaka, the location of my birthplace."
The last scene showed Sion falling from the wormhole and landing outside Hifumi's home.
Upon hearing this, Sion was nearly beside himself. Tennyo and the others were taken aback by what they've heard from the Angel of Control's testimony.
"I can't believe this," Joker muttered, eyeing the Revenant.
"Sion, listen…" Tennyo reached for him. She flinched as Sion berated the Angel of Control.
"So, what you're telling me is I'm not even real?! I'm not a genuine person?!" Sion protested in shock, being reminded of his apparent creation being shown to him. The Revenant couldn't come to grips with Datenshi's meddling being the reason why he ended up in this dimension. Everything that Datenshi showed him came crashing down on him.
"Is this true? It can't be!" Tennyo gasped, having realized she had fallen for and helped a clone this entire time.
"No way, man! That can't be right!" Skull muttered about his new friend's origins.
"Sion…" Panther muttered in sympathy as well.
"If this is true, this is the complete opposite of the real Igor creating me with the sole purpose of interacting with you guys as a real person," Mona reminded the Phantom Thieves. "In this case, Datenshi created a fake Sion to meet with and bring us Thieves back together?!"
"And then bring us together, too," Brave realized.
"Datenshi intended for Sion to unite us for the sole purpose to bring us to him and tell us about this alternate reality?!" Presto exclaimed.
Upon warming up to the Revenant after their initial antagonism, Queen nodded in disbelief. "I just… I just don't know how I process this."
"Me neither," Joker mulled, having learned about Sion's revelations. He then glared at Datenshi upon learning about the enemy's intentions. "Now we know how you came to our world in the first place."
"And that is where the stage is set for my plans as well," Datenshi replied to Joker.
Quickly drawing out her katana, Mina pointed it at Datenshi. "Whether this is true or not, you're reaching far to tell us all this! What is your goal in the grand scheme?!"
Datenshi roughly explained. "With my reality warping powers and Sion waking up near Hifumi's home, I brought the Lost and Yokai into your reality, leading to the return of the Phantom Thieves and forcing the old spirits to seek new Guardian Spirit wielders. I manipulated the monsters to not harm any civilians, instead of having them target you, Phantom Thieves and your new allies. Now that I'm here, I have a chance to challenge the Phantom Thieves at their prime."
He slowly pivoted toward Sion, who was being consoled by Tennyo. "My creation needed human companionship to adapt to this era. Togo Hifumi, I foresee you are destined for greater things."
"What? Me?" Tennyo asked in bewilderment.
"Even my reality warping existence quelled the general public's active role in not interfering with the Phantom Thieves' mission and also preventing law enforcement from interrogating Amamiya Ren again. Then, I set up the meeting of the united group formed in Shinjuku, and this convinced you all to head to my location in Osaka. After all these bumps in the road, here we are."
"So that's the reason why the Yokai and Lost are being unleashed on modern society. That answers our question of their alignment," Fox verified the connection.
"You ruined our summer plans, you jerk!" Panther screamed at Datenshi.
"I'm with you, Lady Ann! But, we shouldn't underestimate his power!" Mona added.
"But, we should thank you for using your powers to keep the police off our backs. I speak from experience with how troublesome they can be," Crow stated, expressing his gratitude.
"They can be a pain in the butt," Oracle remarked while Queen was there listening. "Hey, sorry. No offense, Queen."
"And after all that crap you put us through, we came all this way to fight yah?!" Skull exclaimed, speaking on behalf of the other Thieves about their grievances with fighting real monsters and their venture into Distorted Osaka.
"We would've had a normal life if you hadn't arrived in our world!" Noir protested against Datenshi's interventions.
"Yeah, Yumeko, Mary, and I would still be enjoying our time together if you didn't start messing around with us!" Presto rebuked.
"But, without Datenshi's involvement, we would've never gotten Guardian Spirits," Tamamo reminded Presto. "Am I right to think that?"
Mina sighed. "It's true. Kyosuke and I would've never met any of you either."
"And seeing how you affected society within your ideals and caused us to be aware of the collateral damage, you forced our hand," Queen acknowledged Datenshi's intentions to lure them to him.
"You are planning to fight us, but at the same time help us to reach you," Joker stated, finding a difference between Datenshi and the past Palace Rulers. "In some twisted way, you're like Maruki, but the difference is, I can't show you the same mercy I gave him."
"I wouldn't hold it against you if you choose to end my life, Amamiya Ren. After all, I've merged with the God of Control. That's more reason for you to end my existence. Phantom Thieves, you and your allies are now about to face me, a being who represents humanity's past, present, and future," Datenshi explained to the Phantom Thieves about the meaning of his existence. "The past represents Japanese history and mythologies, the present represents the Persona users and gamblers, and the future represents the Revenants. Eras that are meant to be separated. Yet, a centuries year old man like me housing a god's essence has united them together into this historical moment."
The Angel of Control concluded his acquaintance with his guests.
"And now, storytime is over."
Suddenly, the ceiling of the skyscraper's top floor began collapsing. As a result, the area became merged with the outside skies. As a result of his reality warping, Datenshi's posh black suit began altering. His suit became undone and unbuttoned, revealing his chest. His top became an unbuttoned black shirt and a white fur coat. His dark dress pants altered into black leather pants and black shoes.
Datenshi's shadow then morphed into his Persona: Yaldabaoth himself. Upon seeing their enemy's shadowed form, the Phantom Thieves were aghast, thinking they'd never see him again in their lifetimes. As Datenshi altered their surroundings, the office environment altered, changing into the familiar settings of Yaldabaoth's realm. The luxurious scene changed into the hot, damp, and macabre realm where the Holy Grail manifested. Out of the group, the Thieves were the most familiar with the morbid dimension.
"That's the Yaldabaoth from his dimension," Joker glared at the sight of the angelic, mechanical god.
"Only that he is subjected to Datenshi's will," Mona warned, cautioning the others.
"I don't like this feeling…" Presto shuddered, almost collapsing after being exposed to this horrific reality. Tamamo and Brave quickly tended to their friend.
"This is unlike anything I've seen before," Kyosuke muttered, frantically scanning their new surroundings.
"Even our spirits are becoming frantic," Mina noted the Guardian Spirits materialize as they acted anxiously with their new environment.
As Tennyo scanned the macabre realm, she started to see clearly the hell that the Phantom Thieves experienced firsthand. She was then cut off from Sion's heavy pants.
"Sion! Please, get a grip!" Tennyo pleaded, grabbing Sion's arm.
"Like what you see here?" Datenshi politely asked them.
Joker then called forth Satanael and retorted. "No, because I'm here to shoot this whole thing down."
Then, Joker ordered his Persona to fire Sinful Shell, as the demonic bullet went sailing for Yaldabaoth. However, to everyone's shock, Datenshi deflected and instantly dissolved the Sinful Shell with a reflective barrier while protecting himself and his Persona.
"You got to be effing kidding!" Skull yelled in disbelief.
"Not even that monumental technique could pierce through his defenses!" Queen exclaimed in shock.
"Senpai, how could he do that?!" Violet called out to Joker, who stared at his pistol in bafflement.
"Now that is just rude. Anyway, since you're all here, why don't I introduce my subjects?" Datenshi calmly offered.
Then, Datenshi summoned ten figures behind him that were initially unseen behind veils of black flames. The flames then disappeared and revealed these figures to the heroes. The Phantom Thieves and their allies are met with shock with who's facing them.
Datenshi introduced his subjects one by one, starting with the first figure of the ten. "Joker, meet the subject based on you."
Facing Joker is a medium-sized humanoid figure covered in robust bodied armor with broad shoulders. His facial structure is shaped like a cross of Arsène and Raoul's features, with the blue-flamed hairstyle shaped like Joker's. The body and legs are shaped like Satanael's. His left arm is shaped like Lucifer's and equipped with a sword. His right arm is shaped like Satan, which is equipped with a cannon. He also wore a black-winged cape.
"Representing the sin of Pride, meet the Knight of Control variation of you, Amamiya Ren: Superbia Joker."
Then, a medium-sized female figure that looked like Panther walked forward, except her outfit and mask are meshed together with her body. Her hair is wild and untamed, perfectly capturing her beastly nature. Her outfit is torn and revealing, showing off her feline spots. Quills are seen covering her back, arms, and legs. She also has a prehensile tail with spikes at the end, making her almost like a gijinka Manticore.
"Representing the sin of Lust, the Knight of Control version of Takamaki Ann: Luxuria Panther."
A large King Kong-like monster whose armor is meshed with his upper body pounds his chest. The large, robust ape's maw is elongated like a monkey and has red eyes. Making up the crown of his head is wild, orange hair.
"Representing the sin of Wrath, the Knight of Control version of Sakamoto Ryuji: Ira Skull."
A large black feline monster with sharp quills on his back, an elongated jaw full of sharp teeth, and two tails emerged growling at his adversaries.
"Representing the sin of Greed, the Knight of Control version of Morgana: Avaritia Mona."
A medium-sized humanoid figure with a thin limber form and thin limbs. Her face is thinly framed with golden horns of Anat growing out of her head. She has on a mouthguard mask. She has the bodily textures of a Queen's chess piece.
"Representing the sin of Envy, the Knight of Control version of Niijima Makoto: Invidia Queen."
A medium-sized humanoid figure with long, back-length black hair, black fox ears, and garbed in an inverted colored variation of Fox's outfit appeared.
"Representing the sin of Vanity, the Knight of Control version of Kitagawa Yusuke: Irritum Fox."
A large Nomura's jellyfish with its body shaped and decorated like Prometheus and orbs shaped like Oracle's red goggles materialized.
"Representing the sin of Sloth, the Knight of Control version of Sakura Futaba: Acedia Oracle."
A huge crustacean monster with the lower body of a Japanese spider crab, and a shadowed woman similar to Astarte as the top half appeared.
"Representing the sin of Gluttony, the Knight of Control version of Okumura Haru: Gula Noir."
A large black crow-like wyvern with feathered wings, Lich-like horns, three beaks with the main beak shaped like a crow's beak equipped with sharp teeth & the other two beaks are his eyes, and three talons appeared.
"Representing the sin of Emptiness, the Knight of Control version of Akechi Goro: Cavum Crow."
Joining her nine Knights of Control compatriots, a limber-bodied, pale-skinned humanoid garbed in a black ballet garb, silver dancer's shoes, and a silver crown with rose's thorns appeared to perform a brief ballet performance much to Violet's dismay.
"Representing the sin of Sorrow, the Knight of Control version of Yoshizawa Sumire: Tristitia Violet."
The ten figures quickly assembled behind Datenshi, who gazed upon the dismayed reactions from the Thieves and their allies. A composed smile smeared over Datenshi's face.
"Now, let me clarify these are not the Thieves from the alternate timeline. They're gone. These are separate things I created based on your attributes and Metaverse abilities. Then, after adding my twist to them, I've engineered them to become my Knights of Control. Even an Angel of Control, such as I, needs his own band of mercenaries to carry out my will," Datenshi calmly explained.
"No way…" Brave was almost a loss for words.
"You've perverted the images of the Phantom Thieves!" Mina berated him.
"Holy crap, dudes! I can't believe what I'm seeing!" Skull exclaimed in shock.
"That's supposed to be my counterpart?" Queen grimaced at her thin-framed Knight of Control version.
"Ok, I wasn't expecting this! Oh man!" Mona's eyes widened at the sight of his Knights of Control counterpart.
"This is seriously god awful!" Panther retorted.
"You said it, how can he do this?!" Noir was flabbergasted.
"You may bring a dark army based on our existence, but we're not going down without a fight!" Joker declared while shooting off an intense glare at Datenshi.
"We will see how you fare, Amamiya Ren. Now, how about my Knights of Control give you a brilliant performance?" Datenshi calmly declared. Clapping his hands, he beckoned his Knights to engage the Thieves and their allies.
As the Angel and Knights of Control charged at their oppositions, the Phantom Thieves and their allies did the same.
Meeting Superbia Joker in a duel, Joker and his opponent clashed with their dagger and sword respectively, to which they clashed and moved across the spacious realm. Superbia Joker raised his cannon and fired a beam at Joker, but Joker evaded and shot the Knight a few times. However, the pistol's rounds did little to no damage to Superbia Joker. Suddenly, Superbia Joker let out a banshee-like scream, sending haunting sonic waves at the Phantom Thief. As he got swept away by the Knight's attack, Joker got blown away from Superbia Joker's sonic waves. Taking advantage of the situation, Superbia Joker phased behind Joker and slashed him in the back, sending him to the ground. After a few moments of lying prone, Joker recovered despite his injury and glared at his Knight of Control counterpart.
Panther is seen fighting Luxuria Panther. As she evaded Panther's whip, Luxuria Panther hastened her speed and ran around Panther, striking her with her claws. Panther tried evading and putting her guard as fast as she could. Attempting to use her whip on her Knight counterpart, Panther's whip couldn't land a blow on Luxuria Panther. Luxuria Panther jumped many times, evaded Panther's whip, and delivered a preemptive slash at Panther's left shoulder. Panther cried out in pain and gave the Knight of Control a fierce glare.
"Just seeing you is enough to piss me the fuck off!" Panther yelled, gripping and imbuing her whip with flames.
Taking out her frustrations, the Phantom Thief cast Blazing Hell at the Knight of Control. In retaliation, Luxuria Panther cast Controlling Blazing Hell. Both powerful firestorms collided and created a fiery explosion upon contact. Panther attempted to recover, but to her dismay, Luxuria Panther took little to no damage from the collision.
Skull squared off with Ira Skull. Raising his arms, Ira Skull attempted to smash Skull, but Skull barrel rolled away and launched a God's Hand at the Knight of Control. Ira Skull easily grabbed the golden metallic gauntlet and crushed Skull's attack like a pulp. Skull used Ziodyne on the gorilla monster, but Ira Skull absorbed the electricity to boost himself. Pummeling his chest and roaring, Ira Skull pummelled Skull to the ground.
"What the fuck is up with this bastard…?! He's like me but not really!" Skull angrily commented as he got up.
Mona faced off against Avaritia Mona.
"You know, I could tell that you're not even human, but some cat who needs to be put on a litter box!" Mona taunted his counterpart.
Avaritia Mona let out a screech as he ran towards Mona on all four legs. The Knight of Control attempted to swipe at Mona a few times, but the Phantom Thief mascot jumped back and unleashed a Garudyne, delivering heavy wind damage. Avaritia Mona endured the wind and delivered a tail slap, injuring Mona. The Knight of Control lunged and prepared to clamp down his jaws on the cat, but Mona used his Miracle Punch to punch the Knight of Control's face. Backing off, the Knight of Control version of Mona took little damage and growled at Mona, who held his scimitar to defend himself.
Queen challenged Invidia Queen to a duel. Both delivered countless punches and kicks on each other. Then, Invidia Queen grabbed Queen's right arm and tossed her to the ground. The Knight of Control rushed and stomped her in the stomach, but to free herself Queen grabbed Invidia Queen's leg and threw the Knight of Control away. Upon recovery, Queen fired Atomic Flare at Invidia Queen, but to the Phantom Thief's shock, Invidia Queen easily dissolved the Nuclear attack.
"Damn it!" Queen angrily muttered.
Fox is seen holding off Irritum Fox. Irritum Fox manifested a paintbrush from his hand and conjured painting-like bombs from mid-air. As the bombs instantly exploded and attempted to hit Fox, he evaded them. As this went on, Irritum Fox appeared beside Fox and readily swung his brush katana over him. Fox swiftly blocked the coming attack with his katana. Fox struck his opponent with Myriad Slashes, but Irritum Fox countered by conjuring a canvas-like shield.
While riding inside Al Azif, Oracle held off Acedia Oracle's electric blasts from the Knight of Control's tentacles, but the fewest of stings managed to wear down the Persona's defenses. Acedia Oracle began to latch onto Al Azif, as she used her tentacles to absorb the Persona's energy.
"Oh HELL NO!" Oracle angrily shouted.
Yelling out with hostility, Oracle used her skills for her Persona to manifest defense mechanisms, sending an explosive wave that knocked away Acedia Oracle. The Knight of Control took no damage from the assault, much to Oracle's annoyance.
Noir is seen evading Gula Noir as the Knight of Control stomped around the Phantom Thief. Noir took a few steps back and fired her grenade launcher at Gula Noir's body, but it did no damage to the Knight of Control. Gula Noir fired a Controlling Psiodyne, which struck Noir as Noir cried out in pain. Gula Noir grabbed Noir with her pincers, but Noir used Psiodyne to destroy the pincers to free herself. Noir then used a Bead to fully heal herself. Then, much to Noir's dismay, the Knight of Control regenerated her pincers and let out a bellow.
Crow and Tamamo are seen facing Cavum Crow. Flying over his opponents, Caven Crow blew fire from his main mouth while his other two mouths spewed ember projectiles at Tamamo, but the Compulsive Gambler pranced around, evading the flames. Tamamo fired a volley of flaming dices and coins at the Knight of Control. Cavum Crow evaded her flaming projectiles and shot black feathers from his body, easily destroying Tamamo's attacks. Letting out a loud cawing roar, Cavum Crow flew down and smacked her away with his talons. Then, the eldritch-like crow pinned Tamamo down, preparing to peck and bite her, only for the Compulsive Gambler to unleash fiery blasts from her foxtails, which slapped into Cavum Crow's beak. Being forced to withdraw from pursuing Tamamo, Cavum Crow set his sights on Crow. As Cavum Crow dove toward him, Crow swiftly dodged and slashed him with his serrated swords.
"Can you still fight?" Crow asked Tamamo, who stood up with all nine of her tails brightly lit with fire.
"But of course!" Tamamo proudly announced.
Brave and Presto assisted Violet against Tristitia Violet. As the Knight of Control bowed, she began her ballet performance, dancing around Violet and the Spiritual Gamblers. As her dancer shoes slid across the floor, Tristitia Violet unleashed a stream of powerful light from her ballet dance. Violet raced over, cutting through the light with her Sword Dance. Violet and Tristitia Violet danced around each other, attempting to outmaneuver the other. As the dancers swiftly moved around, Brave manifested her Living Weapon, drawing out Janomecho's wind power. At the same time, Presto's Living Weapon came from Genbu's water power. As Brave and Presto sent wind and water attacks at Tristitia Violet, the Knight of Control swiftly evaded, outpacing the Spiritual Gamblers' attacks. Tristitia Violet then kicked Brave and Presto away, sending them flying back. As Violet ran over to save them, Tristitia Violet stepped in her way. As Violet went for a counterattack, Tristitia Violet put her down with a Controlling Sword Dance.
As Sion came to his senses, he and Tennyo fought Datenshi together. For a moment, Sion and Tennyo seemed to have an upper hand. Between Sion alternating his Blood Veils and Tennyo's ko-naginata, they had Datenshi on the run, but it was becoming painfully clear the Angel of Control toyed with them.
"Why aren't you taking us seriously, you bastard?!" Sion angrily yelled at the Angel of Control.
"Don't let him get in your head, Sion!" Tennyo called out as Datenshi flew right into her and attacked her. As she swung her ko-naginata, Datenshi effortlessly evaded her swift slashes and strikes.
"Mind if we cut in?!" Mina called out as she dove in and swung her katana at Datenshi. Then, as she summoned Saoirse, Mina imbued her Guardian Spirit's water element with her katana.
Glancing over to his left side, Datenshi saw Kyosuke taking out his ōdachi. When Kyosuke rushed and attacked him with his ōdachi, Datenshi dodged and jumped high into the air. Calling upon his Guardian Spirit, Makami, Kyosuke infused his spirit with himself and turned on his Yokai Shift.
"Oh, you're going to use your Yokai Shift on me? How cute," Datenshi smirked as Kyosuke jumped up and attacked him with his glowing ōdachi. The Angel of Control easily parried Kyosuke's blows and repelled him with a projectile resembling an arrow of light.
"Kyosuke!" Mina called out as she hurried over to her friend. However, Datenshi phased in front of her and calmly gazed at her with intrigue.
"Ah, so you're the current wielder of the same man who slew me during the Siege of Osaka," Datenshi said, scanning Saoirse's presence near Mina. For a moment, he briefly reminisced about William ending his life when he was a Magatsu Warrior. "You have that man's resolve and your strength is comparable to his, but my power is greater now than it was then."
"Away with you!" Mina shouted, mightily swinging her katana as she invoked her Living Weapon. Unleashing a powerful tidal wave, Mina almost swept Datenshi away, but the Angel of Control pushed back with shining arrows of light.
After bringing down her tidal wave with his Arrows of Light, Datenshi swooped down and kicked Mina back, who fended him off with her katana. After catching her blade with two fingers, he disarmed Mina. However, the Amazonian-like warrior didn't stop there and infused her Guardian Spirit's power with her fists, unleashing a flurry of water-powered punches into Datenshi.
"Clever. You certainly can improvise better than he can, but your strength still pales in comparison to an Angel of Control!" Datenshi boasted, catching both of Mina's fists. As he prepared to shoot her with his arrows, Sion blasted him back with Frenzied Fire.
Evading the Revenant's fiery blast, Datenshi watched Sion charging with his Queenslayer and Hanemukuro. Datenshi quickly defended and parried the dual blade wielder's strikes. As Datenshi threw his Arrows of Light, Sion narrowly jumped out of the way and landed on a barricade. Launching straight into the air and into Datenshi, the Revenant gave him an upward slash with his Queenslayer.
"Tell me if that hurt! Go ahead! TELL ME IF I'M NOT REAL NOW?!" Sion roared defiantly in Datenshi's face. Preparing to stab him with his Hanemukuro, the Revenant was ready to skewer the Angel of Control in half. "TELL ME IF I'M A FUCKING FAKE RIGHT NOW!"
Suddenly, Datenshi vanished out of thin air, leaving Sion to cut through an after image made of light.
"As I said, you're just a clone," Datenshi firmly stated, phasing behind Sion. As the Revenant turned around, Datenshi shot him down with a barrage of light arrows.
As arrows ripped through his body, Sion watched his right arm being torn off. Utilizing his BOR Parasite's influence, he regrew another right arm. When he crashed on top of some debris, the Revenant used Cleansing Light Gift to absorb all the damage Datenshi gave him and instantaneously healed himself.
As Datenshi swooped down to attack Sion with his Arrows of Light, Tennyo tossed her Divine Thorn at him. When both attacks collided, they nullified each other. Taken in by Tennyo's power, Datenshi grew intrigued.
Grabbing Sion's arm, Tennyo pulled the Revenant. "We have to get out of here now, Sion."
"No! Not yet!" Sion jerked his arm away, shooting a hateful glare at the Angel of Control. "I'm not done until he gives me a straight answer!"
"Why would I lie to you, Sion? You are what I say you are. You're my experiment. A counterfeit based on that unnamed Revenant who shares your face. Sion is the name I gave you!"
"YOU FUCKING LIAR! I WAS NAMED SION SINCE BIRTH!"
Datenshi chuckled. "You fool. You're in such denial. Don't worry, the stages of grievance and acceptance will come. And understand if you kill me, you will cease to exist. Do you want to do that and break Hifumi's heart in the process?"
Hearing this, Sion turned to Tennyo, who tugged on his arm and nodded in sadness. Gritting his teeth, Sion turned away. Datenshi descended near them and walked over to them.
"Face facts, Sion. We cannot live without the other," Datenshi stated, watching Sion preparing to activate an Ogre-Type Blood Veil. "Still defiant to the end, I see." When Tennyo stood ready to face Datenshi, the Angel of Control conjured a new set of Arrows of Light. "Don't do it, Togo Hifumi, not unless you value Sion."
Resisting the urge to attack knowing about Sion's connection with Datenshi, Tennyo held her ground and guarded Sion.
Suddenly, the Distorted Osaka realm began to implode. Backing off from his fight with Sion and Tennyo, Datenshi flew upward to the sky. The Knights of Control stopped their fight against the Phantom Thieves and their allies. The Knights of Control returned to Datenshi's side as the ten figures circled the Angel of Control.
"Do not worry, children. We shall fight again in Tokyo," Datenshi announced. "There, the very existence of everything and everyone, including myself, will come to an end."
With that, Datenshi and the Knights of Control departed from the already collapsing realm. Though frustrated that their adversaries got away, the Phantom Thieves and allies have no choice but to retreat.
"We need to make a clean break out of this place now! Joker, over there!" Mona pointed toward a broken window, revealing an escape route out of the collapsing dimension.
"I'm on it! Everyone this way!" Joker called out, pointing and shooting his grappling hook through the window. Mona and Panther were the first ones to grab onto him.
"Wait for us!" Panther cried out, folding her arms around her boyfriend's neck. She screamed as Joker swung out of the window and far away from the collapsing building.
"We're coming, Ren-senpai!" Violet called out, jumping out behind Joker, Mona, and Panther.
"Wait up, dude!" Skull roared.
Falling to a state of depression, Sion spaced out as everyone else was leaving. His mind wandered off, mulling whether his entire existence had been a lie and he was simply Datenshi's tool to lure the Phantom Thieves to the Angel of Control. Then, Sion felt someone tightly grabbing his arms. He turned as Tennyo pulled on him.
"Sion, we have to go!" Tennyo pleaded.
Sion blinked in briefly snapping out of his depressive state and nodded.
Then, the heroes flung towards the portal and safely escaped the collapsing realm. A bright light flashed towards their eyes as they landed and appeared in the real world again.
Chapter Soundtrack
Shin Megami Tensei IV OST -Main Theme- - Kanashī Seishin/Datenshi's introduction to the protagonists.
Nioh OST - Urgency - Seishin's past as an Osakan soldier in a war is hell setting.
Nioh 2 OST - Dawn - Seishin as a Yūrei experiences and witnesses the flows of time moving forward of human history such as World War II and up to the present day.
Shin Megami Tensei IV FINAL OST - CD 2 Track 13 (Main Theme) - Seishin mentions the alternate ending in his dimension of Ren made the deal with Yaldabaoth, and that the alternate Phantom Thieves continue to change people's hearts as extremists while the alternate Yaldabaoth is around.
Shin Megami Tensei IV OST - Reverse Hills - As the alternate Phantom Thieves venture to Osaka, their Metaverse presence causes Seishin to meet Yaldabaoth in the Velvet Room. Seishin's spirit vs. Yaldabaoth before the god is assimilated to the soldier and the soldier is reincarnated as the Angel of Control, Datenshi.
Shin Megami Tensei IV OST - Lucifer Palace - Alternate Phantom Thieves, Maruki, and other allies vs. Datenshi, ending with Datenshi winning yet goes on hibernation for decades until by the time the events of Code Vein ended.
Shin Megami Tensei IV OST - Self - - Sion's true origins and how he and Datenshi traversed to the Akane-no-Mai dimension.
Shin Megami Tensei IV OST - Battle B2 - (Boss Battle Theme) - vs. Datenshi and the Knights of Control.
A/N: At long last, the gang meets the one responsible for the Yokai & Lost attacks, and the man who dropped Sion into the Phantom Thieves' reality. More importantly, we learn Sion isn't really the Code Vein Protagonist, but the clone of that Revenant. Who would've seen that coming?
But it has to be quite a surprise to learn Kanashī Seishin/Datenshi was a soldier from the old Osakan days. Growing up and dying a tragic figure, he was left a wandering spirit and witnessed humanity's progression up until modern times. It wouldn't be until the events of Persona 5's bad ending when he got into contact with Yaldabaoth. Who would've guessed the God of Control becomes someone's Persona? From this merger, Seishin was revived and Datenshi was born.
Yes, it's official. Datenshi's timeline is the Persona 5 bad ending continuity. It's a good enough place to set off the downfall of the Phantom Thieves & their allies and establish the events leading to Code Vein, which just happens to be the future and not some typical post-apocalyptic AU world. It sucks to be the Thieves in this timeline. Datenshi being able to fight Maruki and Adam Kadmon illustrates just how OP the guy is. So much so, Datenshi was knocked into hibernation for several decades.
Poor Sion didn't take the news of being a clone too well. And judging by his reaction, it's gotten personal. This same clone ends up traversing back to Ren and company's present time, kicking off the events of Akane No Mai Book I. So, what about the beginning where Sion fell into the wormhole after he and his friends were attacked? That was a red herring and that wasn't 'Sion'. It was the Unnamed Revenant Protagonist, who's base Datenshi used to create Sion. But, I can leave that up to your own interpretation.
Finally, the Knights of Control (who are not the dead Thieves from Datenshi's time) appear and they're a proven challenge for the Thieves and company. Maybe the Thieves are in need of a level-up soon?
With that, our heroes retreat from the Distorted Osaka. How are they going to recover from this fallout and the revelations told to them?
Well, that was an eventful chapter, but the long wait is over and this novelization's first Big Bad is revealed. From here on out, we're now heading toward the climax of Book I. So far, this was probably the hardest chapter to write. I wanted to ensure everything was just right.
That is all for this climactic chapter. Leave a comment and review!