Akane no Mai

by Kanius

A man from the world of Vein drops into a world of Thieves. He meets a pragmatic woman. She greets him with a calm smile. "My name is Togo Hifumi." Following the fateful encounter, a host of monsters arrive, disrupting the peace. The Thieves return to confront these entities outside their realm and ultimately cross paths with the Revenant man.

41. Crimson World

Chapter XIX: Crimson World

---

Dimension: Akane-no-Mai/The Velvet Room (ベルベット・ルーム)

"Welcome back, Trickster," Igor acknowledged Ren, who appeared in his presence. The ridiculous-looking eyes scanned the Phantom Thief and turned his head to the left. "What have you come here for?"

"You've seen what's happening lately, right?" Ren flat out told him. "The unexplained and sudden rise of supernatural entities in Tokyo. Two boys revealed to be monsters were nearly killed by mental shutdowns. Thankfully, they were spared. The Yami Matter has been toying with us because it's been months since the last major Yami Matter incursion."

"Yes, I believe it happened when those four human creature hybrids died due to mental shutdowns," a voice belonging to Lavenza chimed in, catching Ren's attention.

The bespectacled young man turned an eye toward Lavenza. She walked in and bowed.

"The Yami Matter has been very meticulous with its approach toward you and your friends."

Igor added. "Indeed. I did warn you to be wary of your surroundings, Phantom Thief. The Yami Matter's influence has gotten to the point where it has allowed for spirits, with good and malignant intentions, to cross over into your physical world."

"We have yet to run into any kindred spirits. They've all been troublesome."

A soft smile adorned Lavenza's youthful features. "Just because you haven't seen the kindred ones, does not mean they are not present. You helped purify one malevolent spirit." She reminded Ren of the Kuchisake-onna, who he helped stop to make her reflect on her actions.

"But, that's not all you want to ask. Is it?" Igor pressed both hands together and tilted his head to the other side.

Ren grinned. "You know me too well." He pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose. "I know you both have been looking into the source behind these Yami Matter."

Igor vaguely nodded. "Individuals are meddling with an ancient source beyond their control. The Yami Matter will continue to placate anyone with dark desires in their hearts. It may even come after you or those you hold dear."

Clenching his fist, Ren's grin faded. "That's not what I want to hear."

"Understand this. The Yami Matter will not show any loyalty to any one party or individual. It will choose who it wants to manipulate." Lavenza sagely lectured Ren.

"Right. We have no way of knowing where it'll strike next. This isn't like entering Mementos and trying to track Shadows. After all, Mementos is gone now."

Igor and Lavenza stayed silent.

"Well, that sure helped me a lot. Guess we'll just continue searching on our own."

"One more thing," Igor stopped him.

Ren paused.

"The Yami Matter will act very soon. In fact, it has infiltrated a reality parallel to this, has taken root in it and begun to influence it."

"A world like ours? What do you mean?" Ren glanced over his shoulder.

"Just as I said. Be cautious of your surroundings. You and your colleagues will notice a discrepancy affecting your world."

"This would be worth investigating," Lavenza stressed to Ren. "You and the Phantom Thieves may look into this."

"Two worlds, two very different sides of the same coin, will crossover soon." Igor subtly informed Ren.

This warning became instilled in the Phantom Thief's mind.

"Would you like to know more about this other dimension?" Lavenza asked Ren.

---

Dimension: Akane-no-Mai/Odaiba Seaside Park/Odaiba (お台場)/August 1, 2019 (2019年8月1日) (Reality: August 1, 2021)/10:00 PM (JST)

The day of the Third Yami Matter event was realized. The discrepancies Igor alluded to came in the form of dimensional cracks that no one except the Thieves and those closest to them could see. The source causing these dimensional fissures was traced in the Odaiba Prefecture, but most specifically in Odaiba Seaside Park. The essence of the Yami Matter came directly from this malignant source.

Ren, Ann, Ryuji, Morgana, Yusuke, Makoto, Haru, Futaba, Akechi, and Sumire convened at their chosen meeting place: Odaiba Seaside Park. Hifumi also came to meet with them. It was nighttime in the park and there were no other people besides them. The group couldn't have picked a better time to investigate this latest Yami Matter presence.

The group faced a dark distortion. Waves of crimson light permeated from this hole and filled the area with a dreadful aura.

"Look. That appears to be the insufferable source," Yusuke pointed to the malignant wormhole.

"Man, talk about creepy vibes. It feels like Mementos," Ryuji remarked.

Suddenly, the hole quickly closed up as if the Yami Matter was already aware of the Phantom Thieves' presence.

"That went well. The Yami Matter wasn't overly thrilled to see us," Akechi remarked.

"Yes, it looks like it knows we're onto it," Haru acknowledged the Yami Matter's awareness of their presence.

"Is that where the Yami Matter is? In this another dimension?" Ann asked Ren.

"Here's what Ren told me," Morgana quickly chimed, informing the Phantom Thieves based on Ren's recollections from his talk with Igor.

Based on images and knowledge Ren learned from Igor, this dimension was given the dimensional code: P5-Crimson. This parallel dimension is darker and more maladjusted than theirs.

Ryuji was baffled as to what's been described in this parallel dimension. "Sheesh, just how fucked up can this world be?!"

"It gets better," Ren plainly said. "My counterpart's name is Kurusu Akira."

Kurusu Akira is Ren's P5-Crimson counterpart. Whereas Ren was a pretty level-headed young man but had a snarky and playful side to him he exhibits in given situations. Kurusu Akira was shown to be prone to anxiety and episodic levels of PTSD. Akira also had anger issues as well as suffering bouts of paranoia and depression. He's also shown to have constant arguments with his friends and is prone to suffering anxiety attacks when situations become too overwhelming for him.

The other Phantom Thieves each wondered if this Akira's anxiety levels would increase so much it'd create a Palace.

"This other version of you sounds like he could use some help from you, senpai. I do feel sorry for him," Sumire said with genuine concern for Akira.

"Geez, this other you sounds like a total nervous wreck, man. Sorry to hear," Ryuji said with a concerned look written on his face.

"I've managed to come through just fine, but I can't say the same for Akira," Ren added with a reserved glare. "By the way, Ann, while we're a married couple here, Akira's love interest…"

Ann anxiously waited for a response. "...yeah?"

"Who is it?" Haru queried.

As Ren looked at each girl present, his glare shifted directly towards Makoto's way. Realizing he was looking at her, Makoto wasn't sure what to say about this.

"What? You mean Akira and… me?" Makoto poked a finger to her chest.

Ren smirked. "They're currently not dating or anything, but you're a potential love interest of Akira's. He does think of your counterpart's well-being."

Makoto shook her head. "I...I don't even know what to say." She felt a hand on her shoulder and glanced over to see it was Haru.

"It's ok. And I find it comforting to know you and I are best friends in that other world. That doesn't change our love for each other here."

"You're right about that, Haru-chan."

As soon as Kamoshida of P5-Crimson was mentioned, the blood in Ann's body grew cold like ice. Just the mere mention of his name made her skin crawl out of disgust. However, what they learned turned everyone's stomachs. This Kamoshida outright raped Shiho and not simply implied what happened with their Shiho. Makoto was shocked to learn Makoto (P5-Crimson) had gotten involved in the situation and almost became Kamoshida's next victim, leading to Akira taking a beating for her sake. Moreover, they, especially Ann, were horrified when P5-Crimson's Phantom Thieves encountered a Cognitive Shiho just like they did in Shadow Kamoshida's Palace.

"That's horrible! I can't believe that happened! Shiho…!" Ann growled, prompting Ren and Ryuji to calm their friend down.

"I know, but that's what happened to that dimension's Ann. It's just like how we faced a Cognitive Shiho," Ren reminded her of their first Palace missions.

Unlike their world's Justine and Caroline, P5-Crimson's were described like Lovecraftian horrors rather than prison guard attendants.

If Ann hadn't heard enough, she learned Ann (P5-Crimson) exhibited greater emotional outbursts towards others who caused her and her friends problems. There was an incident when Makoto (P5-Crimson) came to visit Shiho (P5-Crimson) at the hospital purely to ask her questions about the identity of the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson). However, Makoto (P5-Crimson) came without a need to question Shiho (P5-Crimson), initially lied about her reasons for visiting, and went interrogated a sexual assault victim who's trying to recover. Makoto (P5-Crimson) even knew this was wrong. Having learned her friend, Ann (P5-Crimson), is a Phantom Thief, Shiho (P5-Crimson) refused and lashed out at Makoto (P5-Crimson) for not doing anything to stop her from jumping off the school's roof. This triggered Shiho (P5-Crimson)'s PTSD, eventually leading Ann (P5-Crimson) to learn Makoto (P5-Crimson) came to see her friend without consent. Feeling guilt over this, Makoto (P5-Crimson) asked to see Akira, but she ended up meeting him and Ann (P5-Crimson). Ann (P5-Crimson) slapped her and lashed out at Makoto (P5-Crimson) and walked away claiming Akira to be her boyfriend, which was all a front just to get Makoto (P5-Crimson) to stop investigating them. And this as a result drove a wedge between Akira and Makoto (P5-Crimson), causing the former to feel terrible for this happening.

"So, the other me slapped this Makoto and gave Akira the ultimatum to choose between her or us the Phantom Thieves," Ann was taken aback to find this out. She exchanged looks with Ren and Makoto. "I just want you to know…"

"It's ok. Remember, we're not them." Makoto smiled and nodded, swiveling her head back and forth.

"And our hearts are tied together, Ann. Makoto is our friend we can depend on," Ren said, sliding an arm over Ann's back shoulders.

"Thanks, Ren," she gently patted his hand.

"Hey, get this. The other me sounds like a much nicer cat than me," Morgana noted.

Ryuji flapped his lips. "Pffft, yeah. You don't sound that different to me."

"That's not true! The other Morgana is nicer!"

"By how much, cat?"

"Um… a little?"

"Not much of a difference. Hey if that's true, maybe we should trade Morganas!"

Haru frowned. "Ryuji, that's not right. Our Mona-chan stays."

Ann frowned. "Yeah, no one replaces our Morgana!"

"I was only joking."

Morgana hissed at him. "Doesn't sound like that to me!"

Futaba twiddled her thumbs. "Ooo, all this talk about parallel dimensions and some alternate doppelgangers of ours. This sounds like something straight out of a sci-fi novel or flick!" As she adjusted her glasses, the rays from a light post gleamed off her lens, giving her a mad scientist look. "Muahahaha, this has my speculative nerves tingling!"

"So, elaborate what you think about this other dimension?" Yusuke curiously asked her.

"Let's recap, my deductive Inari. My counterpart goes by the name of Ali Baba, who sounds just slightly close to Alibaba. Just separate and put a space between the 'i' and 'b'. That makes all the difference in the world. She also has a connection to this group called Tatterdemalion. Isn't that right, Ren?"

Ren nodded. "Yeah, that's right."

Futaba pressed and folded her hands together. "So, not only do I have a connection with another group, but I still make anime pop culture references. But, the way the other me contacts the Phantom Thieves is done differently, too. Ali Baba mails a package to LeBlanc for Akira, contacts him, and already knows the names of the Phantom Thieves, minus Morgana. Then, Ali Baba plants a bug in the same package where Akira needed Iwai to track it down. Mmmhmm, genius move on the other me's part if it weren't for Akira's paranoia."

"So, what about the pop culture stuff you cling to so much?" Yusuke asked Futaba.

"Well, in P5-Crimson, a theme park named Destinyland exists whereas here we have Tokyo Disneyland, but we often call it 'destinyland', so real no differences there. Let's see… I don't hear a lot or anything about Kamen Rider or Super Sentai, but Phoenix Ranger Featherman R still exists and is the sole Japanese superhero franchise!"

"Does that make you happy?"

"Sure, I guess, Inari, but I like other stuff, too. I wonder if the other me has collectibles that I don't even have?"

Haru was quite surprised to learn Haru (P5-Crimson) was involved with Morgana much earlier. In fact, Haru (P5-Crimson) first met Akira at the same workplace before getting involved with Phantom Thief business. Moreover, Haru (P5-Crimson) was still set to be engaged to her fiancé Rin Sugimura. Yes, Rin Sugimura. The Sugimura that Haru was arranged to marry didn't have Rin for a given name. Haru (P5-Crimson) became Makoto (P5-Crimson)'s friend all while they were trying to identify the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson), which built their friendship. Before becoming a Thief, she accidentally traversed to Mementos.

Haru (P5-Crimson)'s codename was initially Rose until she changed it to Noir once she fully committed to work with the Thieves.

Yusuke learned Madarame (P5-Crimson) was not only worse off, but his Shadow was a businessman and his Palace ended up being a factory instead of a museum. After confessing, Madarame (P5-Crimson) ended up dying after a former student of his stabbed him. Yusuke also found out Yusuke (P5-Crimson)'s mother's name was Chisako.

The group also learned other useful tidbits: Principal Kobayakawa (P5-Crimson) died earlier than in their world. Akechi (P5-Crimson) has a third Persona named Fenris. Akechi became utterly disgusted when he learned Akechi (P5-Crimson) got along with Shido (P5-Crimson) like father and son.

Sugimura (P5-Crimson) was initially involved with Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson)'s gang. Much to the Thieves' surprise, they learned Sugimura (P5-Crimson) has a Palace, which ended up being his car. Haru was not pleased to find out Sugimura (P5-Crimson) had a sad backstory as a child when he first met Haru (P5-Crimson). Haru even felt sorry for him, although Sugimura (P5-Crimson) was far more possessive and unhinged as an individual than the Sugimura she's used to know. Shadow Sugimura (P5-Crimson) turned into a werewolf during his fight with the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson). He ended up dying after Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson) ordered a hit on Sugimura (P5-Crimson)'s limo driver, who under the influence of a mental shutdown drove the car off into Tokyo Bay.

Speaking of Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson), he was a far more imposing and different kind of monster than the Thieves were led to believe. While their Kaneshiro Junya was a short and rotund crime lord, Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson) was a muscular, taller, and far more competent criminal who dubbed himself the 'Dragon' looking to overthrow his 'Boss' and take over Shibuya. As of now, Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson) remains a threat and has taken Akira under his wing.

"As if I'd ever associate with Shido ever again. Unlike my other self, I've since moved on from that man. Now, I find out the other Kaneshiro's Shadow managed to intimidate my counterpart," Akechi said with disbelief. "I wouldn't let myself get pushed around like him."

"But, you don't even know what this Kaneshiro's Shadow even looks like, Akechi," Sumire said.

"Maybe, but I don't care what his Shadow looks like. I wouldn't let this other Kaneshiro boss me around."

Events that haven't happened and don't exist in the P5-Crimson dimension: the third-semester event with Maruki, Sumire becoming an official Phantom Thief, the Thieves meeting Zenkichi, Akane, Ichinose, and Sophia, and the battle against the Jail Kings never happened. Moreover, Sumire, Maruki, Jose, Zenkichi, Sophia, Akane, and other related individuals from these events don't exist.

"I don't know how I feel about not existing in this parallel world, much less Maruki and others we've met," Sumire nodded.

"I wouldn't think too much of it, Sumire," Ren reassured her.

Beyond her counterpart's relationship with Akira, Makoto learned Makoto (P5-Crimson) and Sae (P5-Crimson)'s father was named Akihiko, who was a victim of Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson).

Most importantly, as it relates to Ren, he learned one distinct difference between him and Akira. When discussing the foundation of the Phantom Thieves, Ren had no objections to helping his friends reform society from the 'shitty adults' who've corrupted their city. Whereas when this was discussed with Akira, Akira wasn't sure and ended up traumatized when he witnessed a mental shutdown firsthand in a restroom at that same hotel. This horrific event had Akira regret his decision despite the team's goals to change society. Also, Akira never bumped into Shido near the elevator during the Thieves' buffet.

"So, even though our worlds are the same, they couldn't be any more different," Ren told them all he could share. He pushed the glasses up and sighed. "So, any more thoughts?"

There was silence until Ryuji broke that minute of tranquility.

"Dude, I have so many other questions…"

"We don't want to know too much about what happens in this dimension beyond all we've come to learn," Morgana plainly said. "We're going there to find and destroy the Yami Matter that's taken root there."

"Right, we go in there and swiftly destroy the Yami Matter above all else," Makoto informed everyone.

"But, what if we bump into our Crimson selves?" Ann wondered.

"Well, for one thing, it could stir confusion. Certainly for them." Yusuke pointed out.

"Yeah, and we might like y'know mess up their timeline or something rather," Ryuji said.

"Nah, that's time travel. This would be dimensional traveling," Futaba corrected him.

"What's the difference?"

"We're going into a completely different world from ours. It's not our world's past or future. Whatever we do there won't have any effect here. You follow?" Futaba waited for an answer.

"Yeah, I think I am. It's not time travel. Our world should be ok."

"Yeah, but we should try and be mindful. We don't want them to know too much of our world," Ren suggested.

"If that's the case, I don't think all of us should go," Makoto said.

"Why shouldn't we, Mako-chan?" Haru turned to her girlfriend in question.

"To avoid confusion, I suggest myself, Futaba, Akechi, and Sumire stay behind. From what we know, the other me and Futaba's counterpart haven't become Phantom Thieves yet. Yes, they know about the Phantom Thieves' identities, but the other me has only started working closely with Akira and his crew. The other Futaba still hasn't met the Thieves in person."

"I'm fine staying behind. Besides, I want to save myself the disgust of seeing my other self being all chummy with Shido," Akechi muttered with transparent disgust.

"And since I don't exist in this other world, I don't want to confuse these other Phantom Thieves with my presence," Sumire concurred.

"That's a good idea," Hifumi finally spoke up.

"You think so, Hifumi?" Ren asked her.

"If the other world's Makoto and Futaba saw Queen, Oracle, and most of all Sumire, they would certainly ask a ton of questions. We want to avoid such an inconvenience as much as we can."

"Which we won't have the time to sit down and explain to our counterparts. while the Yami Matter is still at large. Good thinking you two," Morgana nodded to Makoto and Hifumi.

"Better to be inconspicuous," Makoto said as she turned to Futaba.

"I'll stay behind, too, for the team."

Ren glanced at each Phantom Thief and nodded. "Alright, it's decided then. We make a quick trip into this dimension, locate, and destroy the Yami Matter. We may meet our counterparts. If we do, we don't hesitate to ask them for help."

The Thieves nodded in unison.

"Hifumi, you know what to do," Morgana asked the Shogi woman.

"Of course."

The Phantom Thief leader approached the spot where the Yami Matter presence closed. He reached over to touch, but nothing happened. Hifumi walked over and put her hand out to probe the Yami Matter's shadowy essence.

"I can feel it. It's slipping away, but it's there and has taken root in this parallel dimension," Hifumi informed them.

"Ryuji's also right. I can sense the presence of Mementos on the other side," Morgana referenced Ryuji's statement. "If this world is like ours, then Mementos still exists for them."

"Which means our counterparts, if they even exist, haven't beaten Yaldabaoth yet," Yusuke stated.

"Well, that's more the reason why we should go," Haru insisted they leave as quickly as possible.

"I want to see what it wants from this parallel dimension," Morgana poked his paw through the spot where the distortion used to be.

Ann took a glance at her husband. "Ren. Sweetie, let's go and investigate. Once we beat it, we can come right back home."

"Yeah. Ok, Hifumi. Go ahead and open a path for us."

"Are you sure your mind is made up, Ren?" Hifumi inquired.

"Yeah. We're set."

"Of course," the Shogi woman softly smiled. As white light formed in her hands, Hifumi focused hard. She ran her hands through the space where the distortion was before it closed. She conjured a new dimensional portal. She and the others felt a warm and rancid scent from the space coming out of the portal.

The Thieves recognized this strange but otherworldly realm they were about to enter.

"Oh yeah. That's Mementos alright!" Morgana cried out. "Let's get on with this!"

"Be careful, everyone!" Makoto called out to them. "Haru!" She waved to her curly-haired girlfriend.

"Tell us all about P5-Crimson when you get back! I'll be dying to know! That goes double for you, Inari!" Futaba hollered.

Without hesitation, Morgana hopped through the portal first. The other Thieves were taken aback by Morgana's bold and daring move. They exchanged nods and resolved as well. Yusuke and Haru went in next. Ren, Ann, and Ryuji were the last three to jump through the portal.

"Be careful out there, you all, especially you, Ren-senpai," Sumire muttered, watching her friends leave.

"They'll be fine, Sumire. As long as they find and destroy the Yami Matter, they can get out of there quickly," Akechi reassured her.

Withdrawing her hands, Hifumi let out a deep breath and fell to her knees. "Good luck, my friends. And be careful out there."

---

Dimension: P5-Crimson/Mementos

When the group passed through Hifumi's portal, they scanned their surroundings. It was indeed the Mementos they remembered from several years back. They remembered the hellish underground cityscape. Seeing the twisted version of the underground Tokyo subway system connected by a series of other subway tunnels brought back horrific memories. There was not a single Shadow around to be seen. They counted their blessings and hoped they didn't run into any.

Now that they're in Mementos, the group was in their Phantom Thief guises. Ren became Joker. Ann became Panther. Ryuji became Skull. Morgana became Mona. Yusuke became Fox. Haru became Noir.

"I know we've been Phantom Thieves again, but man being back in freakin' Mementos takes me back," Skull scanned the crimson-filled atmosphere.

"I hope you don't mean good memories, because I hoped we'd never see Mementos again," Panther remarked.

"Yes, I must concur," Noir nodded with the only other female teammate present.

"So, the Yami Matter is hiding out somewhere. Where do we even look?" Fox wondered.

"Let's try something. Everyone, take out your phones," Joker instructed.

"Ooo, good thinking, Joker!" Mona approved.

As the Thieves whipped out their phones, they saw the Metaverse Navigator apps flashing on their phones.

"Holy shit! The apps are on our phones!" Skull exclaimed.

"Perhaps now we can use it to track the last place the Yami Matter manifested in this dimension," Fox suggested.

"Right," Joker nodded as he prepared to finger tap the crimson Metaverse Navigator app. "Let's get moving. I know it's been a while since we last explored Mementos."

"No sweat, it'll be as simple as learning to ride a bike again," Panther replied with confidence.

"Yes, but I suggest we stay as a group. For all we know, this dimension's Mementos might play by different rules than the one we're used to," Noir pointed out a likely possibility.

"Fair point. Joker, we should still use precaution," Mona reminded him.

With that, Joker took these concerns with serious consideration and led his Phantom Thieves into Mementos. They utilized their navigators to search for the nearest Yami Matter activity. The further they explored P5-Crimson's Mementos, the more it reminded them of the one from back home. There were no real differences. The creepy and otherworldly atmosphere was still the same.

Just then, the Thieves noticed some activity in the form of red glowing beacons on their navigators. However, it was a bunch of signals coming from various otherworldly entities. Creatures they had fought before.

"Yo, check it out!" Skull pointed to the glowing energy beacons on his navigator.

"Know what this means?" Panther turned to Joker, who responded with a sly grin.

"Shadows. And why am I getting the feeling our counterparts are there fighting them?" the Phantom Thief leader smirked. "Let's check this out."

"Right, but let's advise caution," Noir suggested.

"Let's catch them by surprise," Fox stated.

"Then, it's decided. Surprise ambush coming up," Mona nodded.

Without hesitation, the Phantom Thieves headed for the fray where Shadows were in the middle of an all-out brawl with another party. The group took cover and watched as several Shadows quivered and collapsed. The slain Shadows dissolved into black dust.

Several large humanoids wearing bird masks were confronted and stopped by another group that looked just like the Phantom Thieves. No, they just didn't look like the Thieves. They are the Phantom Thieves of P5-Crimson.

Joker (P5-Crimson) was seen somersaulting over a bird-masked humanoid. He yanked the mask of this creature, causing it to explode into a formless blob of black mass before shapeshifting into an anthropomorphic bull with odd-shaped shoulder guards and a lower half entirely made of green metal. The Moloch emerged and snorted angrily, ready to attack the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson).

Joker (P5-Crimson) wasted no time ripping the mask off the others, revealing their 'true forms'. In a similar fashion to The Moloch, an attractive blonde-haired elf woman wearing a long, sleek black dress and no footwear materialized. This was Leanan Sidhe. The third was a purple-skinned humanoid garbed in a red cloak and armed with a long sickle. This was Chernobog.

"Let's take them out!" Joker (P5-Crimson) declared as he and the Thieves (P5-Crimson) engaged the three Shadows.

Joker (P5-Crimson) and Mona (P5-Crimson) rushed to head off The Moloch. Panther (P5-Crimson) and Skull (P5-Crimson) took on Leanan Sidhe. Fox (P5-Crimson) and Noir (P5-Crimson) engaged Chernobog.

The Thieves quietly watched their P5-Crimson counterparts take on the Shadows.

"Wow… so freakin' cool. I can't believe we're watching us," Skull couldn't help himself. He got giddy with excitement as old memories of him and his friends taking on Shadows in Mementos played out like a movie in his mind.

"Hey, look. My counter's still using Zorro! That takes me back!" Mona gloated upon seeing his counterpart summoning his Persona.

Mona (P5-Crimson)'s Zorro slashed at The Moloch with a few rapier strikes. Joker (P5-Crimson) then slowed it down with a few pistol shots. Ultimately, the Phantom Thief leader (P5-Crimson) took it down with a headshot. The Moloch bellowed its last roars as it collapsed and dissolved into black dust.

"Looking cool, Joker!" Mona (P5-Crimson) praised his partner.

"Thanks. Now, let's see you try to look as cool as me," Joker (P5-Crimson) sardonically remarked.

Upon hearing this, Joker dipped his head and sighed.

"Hey, you were cocky as he was then," Mona reminded him.

"That takes me back," Panther giggled as she watched Panther (P5-Crimson) brandish her whip and ensnare Leanan Sidhe.

The elf woman tried fighting back with a Psio attack. Panther (P5-Crimson) evaded. Skull (P5-Crimson) then charged and smacked the elf woman in the face with an iron pipe. Knocked off to the side, Leanan Sidhe tried to fight back, but Panther (P5-Crimson) smothered her with flames from her summoned Carmen. After being hit by Agidyne, the Shadow screamed in horrific pain as she was reduced to dust.

"Wow, Carmen really brings back memories," Panther's cheeks blushed with jubilation. "The other me uses her almost flawlessly!"

Chernobog was quickly finished off by Fox (P5-Crimson) and Noir (P5-Crimson)'s tandem attacks. Noir took her axe and hacked Chernobog into pieces.

"So, how did I do, Fox?" Noir (P5-Crimson) turned to her teammate, who nervously tried to put on the biggest smile to convey how proud he was, but just remembered Noir (P5-Crimson) just hacked the Shadows into bits before they finished him off.

"Um, splendid work! That was what I call… a work of art."

Ignoring the fact she was wiping a Shadow's dust off her cheek, Noir (P5-Crimson) genuinely smiled. "Thank you."

Noir and Fox both turned to each other.

"So, I'm here much earlier than what happened in our dimension," Noir murmured.

"It would appear that way according to what we've learned," Fox said.

The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) gathered to take a breather after what seemed like a cakewalk for them. However, celebrations were cut short when more black masses appeared near them. From these black masses came more Shadows.

"Damn! We're surrounded! More than three enemies!" Mona (P5-Crimson) warned the group.

The Shadows that appeared were Lilith, Melchizedek, Ose, Baphomet, Pisaca, Mara, and Abaddon.

"Oh great! More of them?!" Panther (P5-Crimson) cried out.

"Sheesh, I know they usually come in packs, but this is ridiculous!" Skull (P5-Crimson) exclaimed.

Just then, the Phantom Thieves noticed these Shadows bore reddish glows in their eyes. Each one was enveloped in black auras. They recognized these similar black anomalous energies that took over the four cryptids from Akihabara and the Yokai that attacked Meiji Shrine.

"Check it out! It's that damned black matter we've seen before!" Mona pointed out.

"Oh crap! The other Phantom Thieves don't even know about the Yami Matter!" Panther cried out.

"They're gonna get their asses kicked badly if we don't get in there!" Skull exclaimed.

"Joker, we need to get in there and…!" Mona turned and saw Joker no longer sitting by him. "Um, Joker?"

As Joker (P5-Crimson) blasted Baphomet with his gun, the rounds barely fazed the black-furred and winged demonic goat. Baphomet went on the attack and unleashed Agnidyne. In response, Joker (P5-Crimson) summoned a bright crimson and black demonic-looking humanoid with a black tophat, black waistcoat, a black and red demonic visage with bent horns pointing the frontal direction, and massive 15-foot long, 12-foot high black, feathered wings. He summoned Arsène into battle and sent it to attack Baphomet. Arsène went for a Cleave attack, but Baphomet quickly dodged the Persona's attack and went straight for Joker (P5-Crimson) instead.

"Shit…!" Joker (P5-Crimson) cursed as he became gripped with fear as the Shadow came straight for him.

"JOKER!" The other Thieves (P5-Crimson) yelled and tried intervening, but the other Shadows, powered by the black matter, swiftly stopped them.

Joker (P5-Crimson) saw his own fate about to be written before his eyes. Rather than anticipating the next day spent with his friends or getting to the bottom of the next Palace case involving Kaneshiro, he was about to die at the hands of a mere Shadow!

Then, that was quickly prevented in the blink of an eye. Joker (P5-Crimson) saw another Joker standing in front of him and summoning a Persona he had never seen before.

"I'll handle this with style, Joker," the Phantom Thief reassured him as he invoked Raoul into battle.

The other Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) were quickly taken aback by this newcomer who looked like their leader. Joker commanded Raoul to strike down Baphomet in short order. Raoul obliterated the Shadow with Maeigaon. The other Shadows converged their attacks on Raoul. This desperate action prompted the Phantom Thieves to come out of hiding, further baffling the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson).

"Take them down, Thieves!" Mona beckoned the group to counterstrike the Shadows.

Readying her whip, Panther attacked Lilith. The empowered Shadow gracefully moved away and dove in for an attack. A smirk formed on Panther's lips.

Panther (P5-Crimson)'s jaw dropped when Panther summoned Celestine, a Persona that the former had never seen before.

Celestine blasted and obliterated Lilith with Maragidyne.

"No freaking way! The other me has a different Persona than mine and it completely wiped a Shadow we were having trouble with!" Panther (P5-Crimson) exclaimed.

"Well, Mona-chan. Are they really us or is this some trick the Shadows are using to throw us off?" Noir (P5-Crimson) queried the concerned feline.

"It would seem unlikely they are Shadow creations meant to deceive us, but there is that possibility. That's a wise assessment, Noir," Fox (P5-Crimson) added.

"Are you kidding?! Just look at them go to town on these fucking Shadows!" Skull (P5-Crimson) cheered as he watched Skull blast away Ose with shotgun blasts.

As Joker fired with his pistol at Baphomet, it distracted the Shadow long enough for Raoul to blast it away with Eigaon.

One of the Shadows, Mara, melted into the ground and resurfaced behind Joker. The green smeg-faced, tentacled blob tried to grab Joker.

"Hey! Behind you!" Joker (P5-Crimson) called out to his counterpart and sent Arsène to intercept the Shadow.

When Joker turned to face the creature, he prepared to fire with his pistol. Raoul readied to defend the Thief, but Arsène intervened and cleaved the Shadow in two. Mara's body pulsated and melted into goop as it dissolved.

"Thanks," Joker turned to acknowledge his P5-Crimson counterpart's aid. The two Jokers then briefly glanced at each other. "Wow, I haven't changed much."

Joker (P5-Crimson) queried, equally curious. "You're really me?"

"It's…"

"...complicated? Yeah, I say that a lot to people here," Joker (P5-Crimson) remarked.

Meanwhile, Skull, Fox, and Noir helped their P5-Crimson counterparts finish off the remaining Shadows until Pisaca remained. The Shadow attempted to flee but was ultimately stopped dead in its tracks by the two Skulls. Skull blasted a hole through it with his shotgun while Skull (P5-Crimson) bludgeoned it with his iron pipe.

After finishing the Shadow, the Skulls exchanged curious glances and rubbed their chins at the same time.

"Damn, you even got a mad goatee going," Skull (P5-Crimson) fancied his counterpart's chin beard. "Looks like I get better with age."

Skull chuckled as he pointed to the other Skull. "Isn't this guy just great?"

The Panthers groaned. "You haven't changed, Skull."

Then, the Panthers took a look at each other.

"Wow, and speaking of age, I get even sexier!" Panther (P5-Crimson) gleefully squeed. "My figure gets curvier, my ass shows more, and god that hair! It looks a lot prettier when I let it down." She poked at her bushy pigtails. "Hmm, maybe I should let it down? What do you think, other me?"

Panther just stands there letting her alternate, younger self heap her with praise and ask for hair tips. "Ummm, that's up to you, but I'd keep it like that until you graduate. Just stay cute until you get my age." She couldn't believe she was advising herself.

The Noirs checked each other out and nodded.

"Well, it appears I haven't changed much either," Noir (P5-Crimson) assessed her alternate, older self. "I'm quite ok with that."

Noir bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet myself."

Noir (P5-Crimson) did the same. "Yes, same to you."

The Foxs examined one another as if they were living works of art. Fox (P5-Crimson) meticulously noted the ponytail the other one wore.

"Hmm, so I allow my hair to grow out as I age. Interesting, but not so surprising. Artists tend to do that to change their image," Fox (P5-Crimson) analyzed his counterpart.

"And I take it that my taste for beautiful and exquisite art hasn't changed?" Fox queried, to which Fox (P5-Crimson) merely smiled and let a simple nod answer his inquiry. "That's good to know."

Finally, the Monas faced each other like they were opposite ends of a mirror. They matched each other's movements and facial expressions.

"So, you guys aren't Shadows. That much we now know," Joker (P5-Crimson) addressed the Phantom Thieves. "But, where did you come from?"

"Would you believe a parallel dimension from yours?" Joker answered.

"Yes!" Mona (P5-Crimson) shouted, garnering the attention from his group. "What? It sounds believable enough!"

"Wow, so there's a whole other world where we exist and we're older?" Noir (P5-Crimson) wondered about the possibility of a parallel world of their own.

"And that we're still doing the Phantom Thief thing?" Panther (P5-Crimson) added.

"Not to mention you seem to be using different Personas," Fox (P5-Crimson) noted the presence of Raoul and Celestine.

"So, are Shadows still running loose and we're still kicking ass and taking names?" Skull (P5-Crimson) inserted another barrage of questions that the Phantom Thieves would have to explain.

Joker wondered how much of their future they should tell their P5-Crimson counterparts. On the plus side, no matter what they reveal won't affect their world since they're not from an alternate timeline, but rather a separate alternate dimension. On the downside, they didn't want to muddle the P5-Crimson dimension and lead it astray from its originally intended path.

"Let's just say our conflicts with Shadows were resolved years ago. We're fighting something else entirely these days," Joker said without revealing too much.

Joker (P5-Crimson) nodded. "Right, well either way thanks for helping us there."

"By the way, those Shadows were giving off an unusual dark glow and somehow they got tougher to beat," Panther (P5-Crimson) pointed out the dark auras that took over the Shadows.

"It's an unusual energy I've never seen before," Mona (P5-Crimson) tried to discern the Yami Matter energy that influenced the Shadows. "They did suddenly get more aggressive."

"More than they usually do? I thought we just caught them on a shitty day or somethin'," Skull (P5-Crimson) said.

Joker (P5-Crimson) approached Joker and eyed Raoul. "Is that a Persona I'm going to have one day?"

"Maybe. I can't say considering this is a different dimension."

Likewise, Panther (P5-Crimson) eyed Celestine with curiosity like a cat.

"Seeing Carmen again takes me back," Panther glanced over her old Persona.

"Your Persona's name… I couldn't quite get it when you called her out."

"Her name is Celestine."

Panther (P5-Crimson) clasped her hands and smiled. "Wow."

"Hey, I saw you use my old Persona Zorro," Mona mentioned this to his counterpart.

"Yeah, so what's yours?" Mona (P5-Crimson) asked, which he was then caught off guard by Mona's Diego. "Whoa! So cool!"

"Mind showing me yours, old dude me?" Skull (P5-Crimson) asked Skull.

"Uh, sure… but don't call me old, dumbass! I'm not that much older than you!" Skull berated his P5-Crimson self. He summoned William, which caught Skull (P5-Crimson) off guard. "Well?"

"Holy shit! Did you level up Captain Kidd or something?!"

"You still using Captain Kidd?"

"Yep. Here." With that, Skull (P5-Crimson) summoned Captain Kidd, which brought a ray of nostalgia to the older Phantom Thief.

"Man, it's so good to see you, Captain Kidd."

The Noirs summoned their Personas. Noir (P5-Crimson) showed off Milady.

"Yes, Milady takes me back."

"But, your Persona is magnificent, other me."

Noir showed off Lucy. "Thank you. Hopefully, she'll one day be yours."

Last but not least, Fox (P5-Crimson) conjured Goemon. Fox then surprised him and summoned Gorokichi.

"What an exquisite Persona you have, other Fox," Fox (P5-Crimson) acknowledged his counterpart's evolved Persona. "It's a natural progression from Goemon. Almost like a reinvention of its previous self, just like art."

"Yes, and art cannot stagnate with time," Fox nodded.

"We may be from different dimensions, but our artistic views and tastes can't be any more different!" They proudly boasted together.

Everyone else quietly glanced toward the artistic Phantom Thieves and turned away not paying them any mind.

"I do know our names are different," Joker addressed Joker (P5-Crimson).

"What do you mean? Isn't your name Kurusu Akira?"

"No, I'm Amamiya Ren."

"What? But, I-I don't understand."

Joker noticed his counterpart starting to sweat. "Hey, relax. Listen, why don't we talk about it outside Mementos?"

"Oh, sure," Joker (P5-Crimson) took out his cell and prepared to shift out of Mementos.

---

Dimension: P5-Crimson/Shibuya, Tokyo (渋谷区, 東京)/Underground Mall/11:43 AM (JST)

Both sets of Phantom Thieves were back in the Underground Mall. The Phantom Thieves quickly scanned an ever-so-familiar location they've been into many times.

"Whoa, we're totally under Shibuya right now?" Ryuji asked the P5-Crimson!Thieves.

"Yep! Where else would we be, old dude me?" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) chuckled.

"Hey, man. Lay off the old man crap, ok?"

"This is the Underground Mall. It looks the same as it is back home," Haru eyed the underground crowd.

"Yes, Akira and I work in a flower shop called the Rafflesia," Haru (P5-Crimson) revealed this to the Thieves.

"Whoa, hold on! You and Akira work at the same place?!" Ann was taken aback.

"That's right. And even Mona-chan hangs around in the back while we're working," she went on.

"Interesting. That would've been nice to learn about that tidbit," Ann remarked as she glared toward Ren, who simply shook his head as if to say 'I didn't know'.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask where your Makoto is," Haru (P5-Crimson) asked the Thieves. "She probably knows you six are Phantom Thieves and assists when you need investigation done."

The Thieves all glanced toward the other and chuckled.

"Hmm? Is there something I said that was funny?"

"Oh, no! Don't mind us. Yes, that's exactly what our Makoto does, too," Haru said without giving away the fact that their Makoto has been a Phantom Thief member for several years.

"Did she in any way give you guys problems?" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) queried. "'Cause she's cool now, but man she and later Haru were riding our asses trying to find out if we were Phantom Thieves."

"Damn. That sucks. Well, our Makoto can be scary stern, but she didn't go that far as to chase us around," Ryuji said.

"Mako-chan can be stubborn sometimes…" Haru (P5-Crimson) nearly finished before Ryuji (P5-Crimson) was heard laughing out loud. "Anyway, like I was saying, she can be stubborn, but Mako-chan is a very well-meaning friend. My best friend I've ever had."

"You have a bond with Mako-chan, too?" Haru asked her counterpart.

"In a close friendship way. Why? Are you and your Mako-chan close?"

Hearing this, Haru's smirk spread over her face and her cheeks blushed. "You could say that. I'd say our relationship even goes beyond friendship. I love her dearly."

As the Thieves (P5-Crimson) heard this, they were taken aback. Even Haru (P5-Crimson) was at a loss for words, but she smiled and couldn't be happier to see her counterpart in an intimate relationship with another Makoto.

"Heh, want to hear something crazy? Our Akira here has a thing for our Makoto!" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) patted his best friend's shoulder and smiled a big goofy grin.

"Alright, that's enough. It's not like that!" Akira scoffed with annoyance in his tone.

"Heheh, can't fool me, dude."

"Ok, since your Makoto is in a relationship with this Haru," Ann (P5-Crimson) pointed to Haru and then turned over toward Ren. "Who are you with? Or, are you single?"

"Are you kidding? Ren is my husband!" Ann openly and proudly announced, folding her arm over Ren's right bicep. She showed her wedding ring and pointed to Ren's on his ring finger. "See?"

"No way! You two?!" Ann (P5-Crimson)'s jaw dropped. "I… I never would've noticed the rings you two had on."

"Well, to be fair, they were wearing gloves and clothing to cover up their rings while we were in Mementos," Yusuke (P5-Crimson) reminded them of their Phantom Thief garb concealing most of their body's areas.

Ryuji (P5-Crimson) nodded. "Wow, congrats, you two."

Ann (P5-Crimson) walked up to Ren and Ann, shaking both of their hands. "I'm happy for you two. I hope your marriage continues to go well."

"Thank you," Ren and Ann responded kindly.

"And I bet you have a girl back in your home, right? An older me with a dope beard has to have found someone, right?" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) turned to his counterpart.

Ryuji grinned. "Oh, wouldn't you want to know?"

"Well? What is she like?"

"She's a hot Osakan girl."

"Whoa, dude."

"What about you, Yusuke?" Yusuke (P5-Crimson) queried. "Have you found someone?"

"You could say that. We have quite interesting chemistry." Yusuke said without mentioning Futaba's name since the Thieves (P5-Crimson) haven't met her yet and only know her at this point as Ali Baba.

"And you, Ann?" Ann asked her alternate, younger self.

As she was asked this, Ann (P5-Crimson) nervously chuckled. "Well…"

"It's me," Ryuji (P5-Crimson) interjected. "Even if she doesn't want to admit it."

"Oh, please!" Ann (P5-Crimson) rolled her eyes at her friend's smooth dialogue.

"Anyway, you said you were here for an important reason. Did it have something to do with that dark aura that influenced those Shadows?" Akira immediately brought this crucial subject to light.

"Yeah, that's what we've been dealing with as of late," Ren stated. "It's called Yami Matter and we're here to remove it from your world."

"That's right and so you guys won't have to worry about it. You have a lot on your plate," Morgana said.

"Thanks, we appreciate it," Morgana (P5-Crimson) genuinely replied.

"So, where do we start?" Yusuke (P5-Crimson) asked the Phantom Thieves. "Do we need to go back to Mementos?"

"No, here's the thing. The Yami Matter can exist anywhere. We haven't had to go to Mementos in like forever," Ann said.

"If it can exist anywhere, then it'll be harder to find," Morgana (P5-Crimson) realized.

Morgana chuckled. "Oh, believe me. You don't even need to find it. It'll find us."

"We can start by exploring Shibuya," Ren suggested. "Plus, it'll be nice to see familiar sights in this dimension."

Akira smiled and nodded. "Sure, why not?"

---

12:20 PM (JST)

The two sets of Phantom Thieves left the Underground Mall and explored different corners of the Shibuya prefecture. They passed by several recognizable locations such as the Big Bang Burger, Toyo Cinemas, the Protein Lovers gym, and the Untouchable shop.

The group's outing went calm and peaceful as no obvious signs of Yami Matter activity occurred. As far as the Phantom Thieves were concerned, they wondered if the Yami Matter was biding its time and possibly waiting until they left, leaving it to spread its influence over the P5-Crimson.

The two groups then arrived at Shibuya Crossing and faced the big screens that were currently broadcasting some commercials for a body fragrance product.

"Ok, remind us again. This Yami Matter can manifest outside Mementos?" Akira turned to Ren.

"That's right. It doesn't need Mementos to simply exist. It just does and has been able to revive spirits."

"Spirits? Oh crap, that just sounds freaky!" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) shuddered at this notion.

"Yeah, but we kicked their butts!" Ryuji boasted.

"So, is it like a whole network, or does it create independent entities to do its work?" Yusuke (P5-Crimson) inquired.

"We're still figuring that part out," Yusuke answered as best as he could.

"We're leaning to the latter since this would be the third major Yami Matter activity we're pursuing," Morgana informed them.

"Third? So, that means you've stopped it twice already," Morgana (P5-Crimson) said.

"As far as major Yami Matter events are concerned, yeah, but we've fought a couple of smaller-scaled battles with supernatural entities empowered by the Yami Matter," Morgana detailed how the Yami Matter activity has behaved since it surfaced.

"Oh, so the major Yami Matter events are like Palaces and these smaller-scaled battles would be fighting regular Shadows," Haru (P5-Crimson) drew a comparison between the Yami Matter and Shadow activities.

"That's one way of looking at it, yes," Haru nodded.

"Well, one way or another, we'll help in any way we can," Akira offered. "Although things might get problematic if people here mistake you for me, Ren."

"That's true, and that's why we need to act fast. We probably can't stay here for long."

"Hey, guys…" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) looked to the sky with dread.

"Not now, Ryuji! We're talking!" Ann (P5-Crimson) chided him.

"Yeah, you guys might want to look at this!" Ryuji pointed to where his counterpart was staring at.

"What? We're busy ta-!" Ann paused and blanched at the sky darkening.

As dark gray clouds quickly covered the sky, the blue sky became painted with red. Both sets of Phantom Thieves could see it, but so can everyone else.

"What the hell…?" Akira gaped as he saw the sun become black like a solar eclipse, but its rays weren't harmful to anyone's eyes.

There was sudden and eerie tranquility as every person witnessed the same phenomenon occur. Then, it started to rain down with black drops of water, which stained like ink. If that wasn't creepy enough, Shadows began surfacing.

"Oh shit! Shadows!" Ryuji (P5-Crimson) exclaimed as he noticed the demonic creatures appearing.

"But, they aren't supposed to be here outside Mementos, right?!" Haru exclaimed.

"Yes, this is the Yami Matter at work here," Haru frowned.

"The Yami Matter has decided to make its move," Morgana looked up at Ren, who looked resolute to fight.

However, Ren glanced over and noticed Akira appearing very apprehensive about this.

"Akira? What's wrong? Snap out of it!" Ren barked at him.

"S-Shadows… here?!" Akira shouted as he gripped his chest and panted heavy breaths as if he had just run over a mile nonstop.

"Akira!" Morgana (P5-Crimson) tried to snap his friend out of it.

The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) checked on their friend as he was still trying to make sense of the horrifying imagery he was seeing. It didn't take long for the Shadows to start scaring and attacking civilians. Horrid screams from civilians were heard. Among these Shadows are Eligor, Choronzon, Black Ooze, Mithras, Ganesha, Decarabia, Dominion, Kali, Kumbhanda, Cerberus, and Scathach.

"You guys tend to Akira! We'll handle this!" Ren ordered as he and his group confronted the incoming Shadows.

With that, the young adults and their cat companion willfully transformed into their Phantom Thief guises. Joker fired his pistol at a Black Ooze, but the bullet did little more than annoy it. When Panther tried to use her whip on a Ganesha, the elephant man overpowered her with a swing of its sword.

"Guys, look!" Skull pointed to the Shadows each covered in similar dark auras like the ones they fought briefly in Mementos.

"The Yami Matter is greatly enhancing them! This means the Yami Matter's influence has spread faster than we anticipated!" Fox exclaimed

"But, there's no way it should've spread this quickly!" Noir cried.

"Or, maybe that's it. This dimension has been marred with worse corruption than in our world," Mona inferred the possibility of P5-Crimson having been tainted by much stronger corrupt individuals.

"That would explain how the Yami Matter was able to spread faster," Panther realized.

Joker quickly turned around and saw Akira standing up. "Are you ok?"

"I will be… when I'm ready to fight."

"Not in your condition, you're not," Ann (P5-Crimson) reprimanded her friend.

Akira jerked his arm away from Ann (P5-Crimson). "Sorry, but we can't turn our backs on them. I'm ready."

As the Yami Matter's influence continued to spread, Shibuya started to resemble a little like Mementos. The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) watched in horror as their city and the landmarks became darker and inverse variations of the familiar areas. When some Shadows attacked more civilians, Akira and his friends willfully turned into Phantom Thieves.

"Hey, we're able to turn into our Thief forms now?!" Skull (P5-Crimson) gets taken aback.

"I suppose this is due to the Yami Matter's influence and turning our world into a Mementos-like atmosphere," Mona (P5-Crimson) deduced.

"Whatever the case, we can now fight!" Fox (P5-Crimson) declared and summoned Goemon into battle.

"Come forth, Carmen!" Panther (P5-Crimson) conjured her Persona to blast away the Shadows from harming civilians.

The Phantom Thieves stepped in to help their P5-Crimson counterparts and half of them summoned their Personas. Joker had Lucifer ready to defend civilians from Shadows. Joker (P5-Crimson) joined in and summoned Rakshasa to fight off a Cerberus.

"There's so many of them!" Noir called out as she and Lucy fought off a swarm of Shadows.

"We've got to dwindle their numbers down!" Fox called out as he and Gorokichi neutralized a few Shadows.

"Easy for you to say!" Skull screamed as he and William intercepted some Shadows.

"Don't give up, guys! Keep blasting them!" Mona yelled while he and Diego took down a few Shadows.

While Panther summoned Celestine to fend off Shadows, she noticed the Jokers working together.

"God, how are we going to overcome this?!" Panther overheard her P5-Crimson counterpart's cries. "There's just so many! We weren't prepared for this!"

"Panther! Don't give in to your negative emotions, because that's what'll fuel the Yami Matter's influence! You're making it stronger the more negative emotions you have!" Panther called out to her alternate, younger self.

Just then, the Shadows paused and started to fly into the air. The two sets of Phantom Thieves were befuddled as to what prompted the Shadows to stop fighting them. They witnessed the Shadows combine and form into a larger Shadow creature. In place of the demonic entities was a larger black mass of formless sludge. The amalgamated creature shifted its head around, revealing two bulbous red orbs that doubled as eyes. Two long limbs sprouted from the sides of its body and helped lift its massive frame off the ground.

Now wearing a similar dark aura the Shadows had, the creature raised its head and let out a loud, grotesque gurgling roar that rattled the entire Shibuya prefecture.

For the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson), what started as a regular day in Mementos turned into an eventful encounter with alternate versions of themselves. That eventful occasion turned into this living and horrific hell. However, things were about to get uglier.

"Is that the Yami Matter you guys were talking about?!" Mona (P5-Crimson) turned to his alternate counterpart.

"Yeah, but we weren't expecting this! Your world must've had so much of a higher concentration of corruption for the Yami Matter to feed it, it was enough to turn it into this monstrosity!" Mona exclaimed.

The Yami Matter, now known as Myrk Hedoro, set its sights on the fleeing crowds of civilians. It tossed out a few black tendrils that grabbed a handful of people, melting the skin off their bodies and reducing them into bones.

"Stop!" Joker shouted furiously as he sent Lucifer to attack Myrk Hedoro. Lucifer unleashed Blazing Hell on the Yami Matter creature, but it absorbed the divine flames of the Persona.

Myrk Hedoro spat green goo that engulfed and dissolved Lucifer. Frantically choosing his next Persona, Joker summoned two: Satan and Michael.

"You monster!" Joker (P5-Crimson) yelled at Myrk Hedoro as Rakshasa used Regenerate 1 to heal himself. The demonic swordsman went for Giant Slice, cutting off a tendril to save a civilian, but it was too late. Joker (P5-Crimson) felt an urge to vomit at the sight of a mother holding a child, both melted alive by the creature. "Oh god… oh shit…" He backed away, completely spaced out and ignoring the fact his Rakshasa got killed off by Myrk Hedoro.

He dropped to his knees and screamed in bloody horror, unable to get the images of the melted mother and child out of his mind. The horrific images not only burned into his mind but made his stomach stir as he vomited.

"JOKER!" Mona (P5-Crimson) called out to his friend.

"Joker, you have to snap out of it! We need everyone in this!" Joker tried to let his words reach his alternate, younger self.

"I can't…" Joker (P5-Crimson) panted, coughing out a putrid mix of saliva and vomit.

"YES, YOU CAN!"

"You didn't see… a woman and her kid… oh god…!" Joker (P5-Crimson) folded his arms around his waist.

"C'mon, man! We gotta fight or the people we know will get killed by this fucker!" Skull (P5-Crimson) hollered.

"But…"

"JOKER! WE NEED YOU!" Panther (P5-Crimson) pleaded.

Clenching his fist, Joker (P5-Crimson) punched the ground hard four times. "Shit! Shit! Damn it! Damn it!" He gritted his teeth and threw his head backward. "I'm going to die today, aren't I?!" He took a deep breath and summoned Decarabia. He sent Decarabia to assist Joker's Satan and Michael against Myrk Hedoro.

As everyone's Personas fought off Myrk Hedoro, many watched the monster battle occur in real time. Despite a few lives being lost, the Personas were able to prevent any more deaths for the time being.

As the two sets of Phantom Thieves regrouped, they saw their combined Persona forces couldn't properly damage and destroy the combined Shadow.

"Dudes, you know we can go full Persona's Ascendancy…?" Skull reminded his colleagues.

"No, doing that would only cause worse collateral damage," Joker muttered, clenching his fists and grinding his teeth hard. Seeing the untold destruction and deaths occur stirred a fury within him.

"What are you guys whispering about?" Panther (P5-Crimson) overheard.

"Don't worry about it. We just need to find a way to bring this thing down!" Panther cut her off.

Panther (P5-Crimson) nodded but stared suspiciously at the older Phantom Thieves.

"Oh shit! That thing's overpowering all of our Personas!" Skull (P5-Crimson) yelled out as Myrk Hedoro unleashed a thunderous roar that not only knocked away the Personas but shattered nearly every glass window within the vicinity.

Witnessing their Personas either being blown away or outright destroyed, both sets of Phantom Thieves fell into despair. The creature then set its sights on more civilians and ensnared them with tentacles and acidic sludge blasts. What followed were the blood-curdling screams of civilians and the collapse of buildings when Myrk Hedoro moved away from the Phantom Thieves.

"No, this is terrible!" Noir (P5-Crimson) sank to her knees, falling into utter despair. Being the newest member of the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson), she had yet to experience anything of this level of wanton destruction and horrific imagery.

Noir quickly consoled her P5-Crimson self. "We're going to get through this, Haru…" When she saw her younger self crying, she, too, shed tears.

"Hey, you fucking mass of chickenshit sludge! Get back here!" Skull furiously yelled at Myrk Hedoro. "Guys, we've got to follow it!"

"But, that thing defeated our Personas! What more can we do?!" Fox (P5-Crimson) shouted.

"No, it's not over…!" Joker growled as he bit his lip so hard it started to bleed out. He ignored the pain. He clenched his right hand and placed it over the left side of his mask.

"Joker?" Mona approached him.

"Ren," Panther muttered his name, her concern for her husband increased.

Joker (P5-Crimson) glanced over to his older counterpart. "What's wrong with…?" He paused and noticed blue fire leaking out of Joker's mask.

As Myrk Hedoro continued its rampage over Shibuya, Joker's emotional distress became unbridled. He lets out a deafening blood-curdling scream as the blue flames from his mask seared through and engulfed him. Both sets of Phantom Thieves quickly withdrew from the blue flames erupting like a mighty inferno.

"REN!" Joker (P5-Crimson) shouted to him, watching his counterpart enveloped inside a pillar of blue fire.

"REN!" Panther screamed fearfully for her husband. As she reached for him, Skull seized her. "Let me go!"

Skull said nothing as he kept Panther at bay from the burning Joker, who stood but no longer screamed with agony. He raised his head and grabbed his mask. With a quick thug of his mask, he ripped it off his face. Blood quickly spilled from his face. Joker's face became crimson as blood smeared over and became something like a mask.

Then, Joker's body began to grow. He continued to grow as his Phantom Thief garb vanished. His humanoid form grew until he became a 25 feet tall, three-headed dragon.

The Phantom Thieves looked on with horror, recalling Joker had taken on this form before. This was Joker's alternate Persona's Ascendancy transformation. It happened during their last battle with Yaldabaoth ΩX.

However, this was completely new and out there for the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson). This was their first glimpse of a Persona's Ascendancy in person.

"Shit, he's become Raoul ΩX!" Skull cried fearfully.

"Not just that, but that's his Devil Hydra form!" Mona wailed.

"And here we thought we'd refrain from taking this course of action!" Fox paled.

"The other you just turned into a big ass monster!" Skull (P5-Crimson) freaked out.

"What the hell kind of world are they from?!" Panther (P5-Crimson) shouted in aghast.

"REN!" Panther once again called out to her husband, but her voice seemingly couldn't reach him as Raoul ΩX turned away and headed straight for Myrk Hedoro's direction.

As Raoul ΩX crashed through the giant screens, it perched on top of the ruined buildings. The monster's three heads roared one by one in harmony, producing bellows that sounded like high-pitched crackling roars, which became louder. Loud enough to draw Myrk Hedoro's attention. The middle head bellowed and blew blue flames from its gaping maw.

Myrk Hedoro returned to confront Raoul ΩX and retorted with an antagonistic gurgling roar. The black sludge creature expelled acidic spray, which Raoul ΩX evaded. Raoul ΩX landed on Myrk Hedoro's left side. All three heads started expelling blue flames. Myrk Hedoro rushed the three-headed wyvern, but by the time it reached Raoul ΩX, it was decided.

Three flamed blasts from Raoul ΩX converged into a single dark flamed sphere. Raoul ΩX's Sinful Neutron Blast completely obliterated Myrk Hedoro and ended the Yami Matter monster.

"Alright, take that, you slimy bastard!" Skull exclaimed.

"No, something's wrong! Look!" Noir pointed to Raoul ΩX losing a sense of itself and spreading its blue flames through sections of Shibuya.

A large flame storm began sweeping through the prefecture, incinerating anything in its path. The roars from Raoul ΩX continued to be heard as all the known citizens witnessed the horrific scenes unfold.

Among those witnessing Raoul ΩX's attack was Niijima Makoto (P5-Crimson), who was on her way to find Akira and company. She became horrified by what was transpiring.

"Oh god, this can't be real! This isn't Mementos, is it?!" Makoto (P5-Crimson) reached for her phone to call Akira. Then, she got a quick call from Sae (P5-Crimson). "Sis? Yeah, I'm seeing what you're seeing! I'm nowhere close, but listen… don't look for me! I'm out to get my friend Haru and others!"

"Makoto, you get the hell away from there! Makoto…? MAKO-!" She hung up and headed to find her friends.

---

Another who witnessed Raoul ΩX's mindless attack was Niijima Sae (P5-Crimson), who had just contacted Makoto (P5-Crimson) but failed to convince her to come back. Sae (P5-Crimson) quickly got up and left to find Makoto (P5-Crimson) before it was too late.

Other witnesses to the event: Akechi Goro and his father Shido Masayoshi, who were both together observing the hell being unleashed on their home.

Tae Takemi, Iwai Munehisa, Ohya Ichiko, Yoshida Toranosuke, and Sakura Futaba were other witnesses to this attack.

Coming out of their hideout, a yakuza group led by a tall, muscular man garbed in a gray suit emerged. This imposing yakuza man was P5-Crimson's version of Kaneshiro Junya, a complete contrast to his shorter, fatter, and incompetent Kaneshiro from the Phantom Thieves's dimension. This Kaneshiro, a man who referred to himself to his followers and enemies as 'the Dragon', became a witness to a literal three-headed dragon. A look of fear smeared over his usually fearless face.

---

Makoto (P5-Crimson) gained enough ground and was close to her friends. As she turned a corner, she bumped into an older gentleman in a policeman garb.

"Mini-Makoto?! What are you doing here?!" The policeman was surprised to see Sae's younger sister. This man is Sae and Makoto's father's old police friend, Kagawa Hideotoshi.

"Please, I need to get to my friends!"

"We're evacuating Shibuya because of the wildfires! Your sister would kill me if anything happened to you!"

"But, I have to know if my friends…!"

"Please for your own safety, Mini-Makoto…!" Before he could finish, a burst of blue flames swept through and incinerated a crowd of civilians, some being burned alive. As flames headed their way, Kagawa pushed Makoto away and took the impact of the blue flames. "RUN, MAKOTO!" His screams ceased as he was completely wiped out by the flames.

Makoto's jaw dropped and her face paled. Her heart pounded hard against her chest. She cried out hysterically and got up heading down another way from the flames.

---

Elsewhere, an organization called Tatterdemalion witnessed Raoul ΩX on its rampage. The members consisted of the leader, Maki 'Juni' Junichiro; second in charge, Akio aka Aki; the bartender Kaneko; the smart bruiser Dunk; the disguise mastering homeless woman Mori, and the twins Ai & Niko. Unlike others, they were away from the wildfire that spread, but if they stayed behind much longer they'll become victims, too.

"We're going to have to get out of here, Juni," Aki addressed him. He saw Juni terrified out of his mind. "Yo, we need to get the fuck out! Or, we're dead!"

"Y-Yeah, right… let's get out of here," Juni came to his senses.

---

"Damn it! Why the hell aren't you answering, Akira?!" Ohya (P5-Crimson) growled as she yelled into her phone, getting no response. She waited again. No response. "Shit! He's probably in an area where it's out of service… how else am I going to get in touch with him?!"

When she arrived at the Phantom Thieves's location, she blinked thrice upon seeing two sets of them. She couldn't have been imagining two Phantom Thief groups. She hadn't even had a drink since the other night.

"I know I'm sober… and Akira said that… this is my chance for that meeting!" Ohya (P5-Crimson) readied her camera. "Hey! Phantom Thieves!"

The two Phantom Thief groups saw Ohya (P5-Crimson) heading their way.

What?! Oh no, Ohya! Joker (P5-Crimson) gasped in thought. "Hey, get away! It's dangerous here!"

"I'm not leaving until I get my interview with not just one, but two Phantom Thief groups!"

"But…!"

"I told Akira I'd get my interview one way or another! A reporter has to get the latest news even during the most dangerous situations!"

"This is different! Get away from here for your own good!" Joker (P5-Crimson) beckoned her away.

"Who do you take me for?! I'm Ohya Ichiko! Nothing's going to keep me from getting my sto-!" And just like that the dragon's blue flames swept through and engulfed her. Ohya (P5-Crimson)'s eyes widened in shock and horror with no time to react as she collapsed and burned away. Her camera hit the ground and was destroyed by the flames.

Having witnessed Ohya (P5-Crimson) die before him, Joker (P5-Crimson) became unnerved and grabbed his chest as his heart pounded. He dropped to a knee and panted, falling into an overly anxious and stressed state. The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) tended to their leader again to calm him down.

"Sh-She's gone! I-I…" Joker (P5-Crimson) cried out.

Panther (P5-Crimson)'s eyes narrowed and her face contorted with anger. She turned around to meet the worried gazes of the Phantom Thieves. However, before she and her friends could scornfully and rightfully chastise them, Makoto (P5-Crimson) arrived.

"Mako-chan?!" The Noirs shouted in unison.

Noir (P5-Crimson) called over to her friend. "You shouldn't be here, Mako-chan! Please go now!"

"He's gone... " Makoto (P5-Crimson) muttered still in shock over Kagawa's death. "Everyone's dying…" She stumbled around completely out of it.

"Makoto! Please, you shouldn't be here! It's dangerous!" Fox (P5-Crimson) pleaded.

Lifting his eyes to Makoto (P5-Crimson)'s level, Joker (P5-Crimson) gritted and stood up.

"Akira… is this a bad dream? Just some trick caused by Mementos?"

Joker (P5-Crimson) tried opening his mouth to speak.

"Explain why people are dying… and these blue flames… and that dragon…"

"You want to know why this is happening?!" Panther (P5-Crimson) cried out as she pointed to the Phantom Thieves. "It's their fault! They came here and brought monsters into our world! Their Joker is that dragon and he's caused these flames!"

"But, we didn't mean for this all to go this far!" Panther tried reasoning with her alternate, younger self.

"Shut up… JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP, IMPOSTER!" Panther (P5-Crimson) hatefully snapped at the older Panther.

Makoto (P5-Crimson) blinked in confusion. "Why are there two of you…?!" The usually calm girl was in a state of disarray and walked away. "What the hell is even happening anymore?!"

Just then, the roars of Raoul ΩX were heard from within the hellscape that was once the Shibuya prefecture. Makoto (P5-Crimson) turned and saw the three-headed behemoth bellowing far off. A wave of blue flames came spreading out.

"Makoto, move…!" Joker (P5-Crimson) screamed toward her.

Makoto (P5-Crimson) tried to move, but her legs and body buckled over. Before she could even scream, the blue flames swept over and engulfed her. When the blue flames wisped away, Niijima Makoto was gone.

The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) were unable to react in time to save her. They failed to stop Myrk Hedoro and Raoul ΩX. As a result, hundreds. No, quite possibly thousands of lives have been lost, including Niijima Makoto (P5-Crimson).

The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) reacted in horror over the death of their friend. Noir (P5-Crimson) broke down hard like never before. Joker (P5-Crimson)'s paranoia and anxiety hit a new level. As if seeing someone Ohya (P5-Crimson) was enough to break him, Makoto (P5-Crimson) being killed absolutely destroyed him beyond repair.

"Mako...Makoto… MAKOTO!" Joker (P5-Crimson) shouted to the heavens as if cursing the deities for taking his loved one away.

Having witnessed Makoto (P5-Crimson)'s demise, Sae (P5-Crimson) reacted in similar horror when she saw her sister killed. First, her father had been taken from her. Now, fate took her younger sister away, leaving Sae a lonely and mentally defeated woman.

As if that wasn't enough to fuel Panther (P5-Crimson)'s fury, she and her friends witnessed the grisly imagery of burning debris falling on top of people, including innocent children. The burned bodies of civilians became etched into their skulls.

Grinding her teeth, Panther (P5-Crimson) finally let it all out and shouted scornfully at the Phantom Thieves. "This is all… THIS IS ALL YOUR FUCKING FAULT, YOU MONSTERS!" She pivoted and hatefully glared at them. Her anger was justifiably comprehensible for someone who had just seen friends, loved ones, and innocent civilians burned alive and wiped out.

"I'm sorry…!" Panther pleaded, crying as she and her friends tried to speak. However, her pleas were met with unbridled resistance.

"DON'T FEED ME YOUR HORSESHIT LIES! THEY'RE GONE! THEY'RE ALL GONE!" Panther (P5-Crimson) screamed. "FUCKING LEAVE! FUCKING LEAVE NOW!"

Not even giving them a chance to leave, Panther (P5-Crimson) recalled Carmen and turned her Persona loose against the Phantom Thieves.

"Oh shit!" Skull cursed.

"We have to retreat and get Ren!" Fox suggested, grabbing Noir.

"TAKE YOUR FUCKING MONSTER AND LEAVE! GO BACK TO THE HELL WHERE YOU ALL BELONG!" Panther (P5-Crimson) then commanded Carmen to shoot fireballs toward the Phantom Thieves.

As the fiery blasts headed for them, Panther quickly intercepted and summoned Celestine. Celestine easily stopped Carmen's blasts. However, being fueled by Panther (P5-Crimson)'s unbridled fury, Carmen's blasts scorched some parts of Celestine's clothing.

"What now?!" Noir screamed out.

Raoul ΩX quickly headed straight for the location where the Phantom Thieves were. The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson), sans the mentally broken Joker (P5-Crimson), prepared to stop the dragon. Panther (P5-Crimson) hatefully glared down at the dragon.

"ALL OF YOU FUCKING GO AWAY!"

Before Raoul ΩX could attack the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson), a portal opened up between the two groups. Hifumi emerged much to the Phantom Thieves' delight. Hifumi scanned the entire hellscape. Her expression was much like the others: horror and utter dread.

Having seen enough of the horrific scenery, Hifumi glowed in pure white light. Closing her eyes, she willfully focused her reality-warping powers to cleanse the blue flames that ravaged Shibuya. The white light washed over the ruined areas, repairing the damage, and restoring the buildings to their original states. Every victim killed during Myrk Hedoro and Raoul ΩX's attacks was being revived. The white light consumed Raoul ΩX and turned him back to Joker, who collapsed to the ground.

"Ren!" Fox hurried over and collected him, throwing Joker's arm over the back of his neck. "There. I have you."

Hifumi pivoted toward the Phantom Thieves. "Get into the portal. Now." She instructed them.

The Thieves did exactly as told. Fox was the first to go carrying Joker. Then, Skull. Noir was next. Then, Mona. Panther was on her way out but she turned and watched Hifumi finish the healing process.

Confused, the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) witnessed their world being restored by Hifumi's divine power.

"Who are you? Are you another one of those monsters from their world?" Panther (P5-Crimson) asked Hifumi, her tone retaining its anger.

"She just restored everything," Fox (P5-Crimson) was at a loss for words.

"Including all the people who died!" Skull (P5-Crimson) pointed to the revived victims, including Makoto (P5-Crimson) and Ohya.

Joker (P5-Crimson) looked up and saw Makoto (P5-Crimson) waking up as if she had just awoken from a dream.

"I'm sorry for the horror and tragedy that was brought to your world, but we've removed the Yami Matter," Hifumi informed the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson). "Starting now, you won't remember anything."

With that, Hifumi produced halos of white light that formed over the Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) and all of Shibuya's citizens. With a clap of her hands, the white halos shattered and produced a reverberating sound that effectively erased their memories of everything related to the other Phantom Thieves, the Shadows' attack on Shibuya, Myrk Hedoro, and Raoul ΩX. Everything involving the Phantom Thieves's meddling was erased from this dimension's timeline.

The Phantom Thieves (P5-Crimson) found themselves back in their civilian states. They had no idea why they were in Shibuya and recalled nothing related to the other Phantom Thieves. In fact, their only recollections were fighting the Shadows and then leaving, but for some reason, they ended up in Shibuya.

"Akira?" Makoto (P5-Crimson) approached him and his friends. "Hey, I'm here."

"Oh, hey?"

"Hey, yourself."

"Oh, right. We were supposed to talk about what to do next regarding finding Kaneshiro's Palace?" Haru (P5-Crimson) asked her.

"Sssh, not here," Ann (P5-Crimson) cupped Haru's mouth.

"That's right. So, any more leads?" Makoto (P5-Crimson) queried.

"Nothing, except we now know his Palace is all of Shibuya," Akira said.

---

Dimension: Akane-no-Mai/Odaiba Seaside Park/Odaiba (お台場)/11:20 PM (JST)

Once Hifumi and Ann stepped out, the portal closed up.

"Ren!" Ann cried out as she hurried over to her husband.

Coming to his senses, Ren had already been told what had happened. When his friends explained all that went down, Ren became distraught. He removed his glasses and covered his face. The group, sans Makoto, Futaba, Akechi, and Sumire who weren't there to see the horrific events unfold, were distressed over the experience. Even Hifumi, who was there briefly, was a witness to the destruction caused by Myrk Hedoro and Raoul ΩX.

However, none were as distraught as Ren was going through. He realized he accidentally murdered innocent civilians with his bare hands. If Hifumi hadn't been there to reverse everything he caused, he'd feel worse off. He was reminded of his previous troubled experiences being accused by Shido and society as a troublesome outcast, especially during his time in Shujin Academy and when he was arrested. However, he was wrongfully accused as a teenager but still treated like a criminal. Here, he was a young adult who outright caused accidental murder, and all for what? Because he couldn't control his anger while the Yami Matter started killing civilians.

"Oh, Ren-senpai," Sumire was distraught after hearing Ren's account of the horrific events.

"So, things didn't quite go as we planned, but you managed to destroy the Yami Matter," Akechi said.

"Yes, but at what cost?" Sumire wondered.

"Please, Ren. Don't beat yourself up over it," Hifumi said. "I've repaired that dimension and erased their memories of you. They won't have an inkling as to what happened during those couple of hours."

"I know, but still… I'll never forget it," Ren gripped the left side of his face.

"Our dimension and theirs were never meant to cross, but the Yami Matter forced our hand," Hifumi informed them. Having exhausted herself using her reality warp, she nearly collapsed, but Yusuke caught her from falling. "Thank you, Yusuke."

As Makoto embraced a crying Haru, she watched Ann consoling Ren.

"I know what happened was horrible, but don't blame yourself. It's over and we… should put this behind us," Ann reassured her husband. She couldn't even say it without looking him in the eyes. "C'mon, it's getting late."

Ren replied with a delayed response. "...yeah." He propped himself up from the floor and walked hand in hand with Ann.

"It'll be ok, senpai. Please look after him, Ann," Sumire suggested, watching the couple walking off.

"I will. Thanks for your concern, Sumire," Ann replied.

Unbeknownst to everyone, a shard of black matter slithered up the back of Ann's shirt. It took its time and slowly slipped through the back of Ann's head.

---

Chapter Soundtrack

Persona 5 OST - Aria Of The Soul- The Velvet Room.
Persona 5 OST - Suspicion - Phantom Thieves and Hifumi discuss the Crimson dimension.
Persona 5 OST - Mementos - The Thieves (Akane-no-Mai) entering Crimson's Mementos.
Persona 5 OST - Last Surprise - Crimson Thieves fight Shadows as a cold prologue before they meet the Akane no Mai versions once they arrive to assist them.
23-Boss Battle | Shin Megami Tensei 3 Nocturne HD REMASTER OST CD1 - Akane no Mai and Crimson Thieves team up to fight Shadows in Mementos.
Epic Battle Fantasy 3 - Nebula - Akane-no-Mai and P5-Crimson interacting in Shibuya's Underground Mall.
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne OST - 51. Deep World Amala - Akane-no-Mai and P5-Crimson Thieves are searching for the YM in Shibuya.
Persona 5 The Royal OST - Mementos (New Layer) - The skies in the real world are turning blood red. Shadows appear in the real world. Shibuya changes to a Mementos hellscape.
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne OST - 52. Normal Battle (Deep World Amala) - Fighting the Shadows in Shibuya.
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne OST - 57. Demons- Formation of the Myrk Hedoro. Myrk Hedoro's rampage and killing civilians in graphic detail.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters - Rise of Ghidorah - Bear McCreary- Raoul ΩX (Devil Hydra)'s rage against the Myrk Hedoro. Many other Crimson cameos like Akechi, Sae, and the Tatterdemalion group with dialogue witness the news and their reactions. Raoul ΩX obliterates the Myrk Hedoro while causing collateral damage and civilian deaths in graphic detail.
Re:Creators OST - RE:3343 - The aftermath. The Crimson cast is shocked by the horror of the collateral damage. Shibuya (P5-Crimson) is in ruins. Ann (P5-Crimson) furiously screams at the Thieves, sees them as monsters, and tells them to get out. Hifumi restored the Crimson dimension and erased their memories while the Akane-no-Mai cast returned home with bad results.

---

A/N: Uh oh, Ann, you got something crawling inside your head. What could this mean?

I do apologize for that extended hiatus since the previous update. That was back in September 2021. Wow, where did all that time go? Aren't you glad the hiatus came after a breather chapter and not this one? The wait would've been more insufferable, haha.

Why the hiatus? Three reasons: My work on my novel draft is still ongoing. Akane no Guilty Crown happened (and it's not related to AnM). And the holidays. What else is there to explain?

Well, that was an intense chapter. So far, it's the most graphic as far as onscreen deaths, gruesome imagery, and overall fucked up situations that make one think they've experienced an acid trip. Haha, but I digress. This is also the first (and only) crossover with another Persona 5 fanon universe. And believe me, this isn't the first time I've done crossovers with other fanfic universes.

This P5 fanfic universe just happens to be based on the popular AU fanfic Crimson by Dowdz. Thanks to a recommendation by Allfather-Ford, I was finally able to read this tale. If you're looking for a dark but good P5 fanfic, I'd highly recommend Crimson. I hope I was able to somewhat capture the essence of this fan universe, even if for this one-shot. Ftr, yes we got permission from Dowdz to use his AU for this one shot and Hifumi helped retcon the events so Crimson can naturally progress as nothing happened.

As you may have noticed, there are differences to be had in the P5-Crimson universe. For example, Kaneshiro (P5-Crimson) is a completely revamped character compared to the canon game (and the AnM continuity). In Crimson, he's a large, muscular crime lord with a whole network of connections and is a very competent, and imposing criminal. Kaneshiro (Canon) would be pissing himself scared of this guy and would probably be a minion to him, haha. Also, as of this writing, Makoto (P5-Crimson) has yet to become a Phantom Thief, but she knows Akira and company are the PTs. Futaba (P5-Crimson) barely just asked the PTs to steal her heart and remains a shut-in, which is why she didn't show up here. And yes, the biggest difference: in Crimson, the Protagonist is named Kurusu Akira as opposed to Amamiya Ren, which worked out great for this crossover. Saves me the trouble of differentiating Ren and Akira until they both become Joker. Moreover, there are exclusive OCs in Crimson like the Tatterdemalion group, and Kagawa.

But, let's get to the Yami Matter-related tidbits. Not much to say, but the Third Yami Matter event ended up being a Kaijū battle between Hedorah and King Ghidorah. Haha, just kidding. But, Myrk Hedoro and Raoul ΩX (Devil Hydra) are parallel to them. And both pretty much leveled Shibuya (P5-Crimson) and left destruction in their wake. Thankfully, one of them was destroyed and Hifumi arrived to restore the damages (and turn Ren back to normal).

And wow, Ann (P5-Crimson) completely went off on the Phantom Thieves. And to think, this same girl gave her blessings to Ren and Ann (AnM). How quickly south things went once the Yami Matter reared its ugly head and forced Ren's hand.

Anyway, I have a cheap plug: If you like a good dark P5 fic or even an AU take on the story (or if you like ShuMako shipping), then what are you waiting for? Well, Dowdz is planning and going to give his fic a complete rewrite. His newly rewritten Crimson will be posted with fundamental changes from his old story on AO3. At the same time, his old Crimson story will remain on FF without any updates. So, it's up to you which path you want to choose if you're interested in Crimson!

Now, the next chapter is going to show us what Skyler and the Revenants have been up to while this Crimson event commenced.

And that's all I have for this chapter's commentary. Until the next chapter, please comment and send a review!