Hitting solid ground shook Lynn to her core.
Air rushed from her lungs and her ears rang with a constant, deafening tone. It was unclear how far the fall was, nor how long she had been unconscious as a result. The fact she was alive at all was nothing short of a miracle. Dazed, she tried picking herself up. The ground shifted under her weight. The slab of stone she had landed on was barely holding itself together.
It wouldn't last long given it was floating on the lake itself.
She had mere minutes to figure out what to do.
Overhead, the dragon roared and circled like a huge, scaled vulture. The last thing Judy had said before their fall stuck in Lynn's mind. Was that thing V herself? The brief moment they had locked eyes, Lynn felt a familiar sense of recognition, yet at the time she couldn't place it. She watched the beast in awe, almost forgetting the imminent threat of death by lava. A chunk of rock broke from her impromptu raft, crumbling and sinking below the surface.
What the hell could she do? Arsene could fly her to safety, but what about the others? Were they even alive?
Panic set in as her eyes scanned the lake.
She couldn't see anyone. She couldn't hear anyone.
Granted, she couldn't hear much of anything right now. The ringing in her ears persisted for a moment before starting to fade. Adrenaline mixed with terror. Why was V attacking them, anyway?
"Joker! Quick, jump!"
Her panic had briefly distracted her from the calling voice of a familiar tone. It was Ann. Snapping herself out of it, Lynn's head whipped over in the direction of the voice. Her jaw hit the crumbling ground as one hell of a sight slapped her across the face with the force of a pissed off fashionista.
A boat.
No.
An entire damn ship. A slate grey man-o-war sailed through the lava as if it were mere water. A large, red glowing lantern hung from the hand of an exquisitely carved figurehead of a woman in flowing robes, reaching out with a welcoming smile. Across the hull, a familiar design was painted across the wood. It was the grinning pattern of Captain Kidd's skateboard-ship. On a much, much grander scale.
[Hoist the colours!]
Sure enough, the boisterous bellow of the pirate himself rang out from the helm. Two flags unfurled from their masts. One was the typical skull and crossbones Kidd was known for. The other, however, was unfamiliar at first glance. The letter V was surrounded by roses and two pistols mimicking the crossbones of a pirate flag. The whole thing completely jammed Lynn's brain for a full thirty seconds.
"Joker, god damn it, get your butt up here!" Ann called again, leaning over the bow's wooden railing. A rope ladder was dangling down the ship's side just next to her.
Joker leapt forward and desperately clutched the rope. The force of her jump was just enough to sunder the slab completely. She looked down at what could have been her fiery grave and tried swallowing the huge lump in her throat. She wasn't given much time to take it in, however. A strong hand grasped the back of her coat's collar and hoisted her up onto the deck. It was an unfamiliar man. Broad, heavy shoulders supported a squared jaw, mirrored sunglasses and rough hewn features.
"Thanks, Marcus!" Ann chirped to him, shooting off a relieved smile and sigh.
[Mmhmm.] The towering man nodded. The briefest hint of something that could have been referred to as a smile tugged at the stoney corners of his mouth. Without another word, he strode off back across the deck.
Lynn allowed herself a moment to catch her breath. She wasn't dead. She wasn't injured. All things considered, the last few minutes could have been catastrophic for her. "Friend of yours?" She sputtered. The shock of it all still hadn't quite faded from her chest. Ann gave a warm chuckle and knelt beside Lynn, placing a hand on her back. Soothing energy wrapped her body in a comforting embrace. The healing energy did wonders for the early stages of the several burns on her face.
"Something like that. Don't worry, the others are all safe below deck."
That managed to quell the last of Lynn's panic.
Still, it didn't answer the question of just what the hell was going on. So many questions, yet there was no time to get answers. The draconic form of V let out another screech before falling into a fly-by gun-run.
The glowing energy that resembled veins focused in the beast's throat again before the hail of fire rained down on the ship.
Carmen appeared from a plume of spiralling fire just in time to launch an intercepting gush of flame. Inferno met inferno, cancelling each other out for the time being. "Quick, let's get below deck! The Captain can steer us through the lake." She gestured to Kidd who looked to be having the absolute time of his life. He spun the helm with zeal and forced the ship to lurch in the direction of a nearby cluster of ruins and structures.
It was by no means a safe zone, but the ruins at least offered some cover from continued attacks.
Below deck was a vastly different atmosphere from what Lynn had expected. When she saw the man-o-war's exterior, the image of a ragged, rough crew deck sprang to mind. One straight out of Pirates of the Caribbean. Instead, however, it was a luxuriously furnished lounge.
Cream leather adorned the thick upholstery. A faint scent of a car's air-freshener tickled at the girl's nose. There was even the low hum of what Lynn could only imagine was a muscle car's engine.
Sat in a central, larger seat was an older gentleman. Heavily tattooed, leathery skin was adorned with glistening gold jewellery. His thick moustache curled into a neutral smile. He nodded with an air of respect as they locked eye contact. Lynn could see he was studying her. Sizing her up. Whatever he was looking for, he seemed to have found. Satisfied, his gaze lazily turned to Ann.
[It's good to see your compadre is alive. I can see she has some fight in her.]
"Yep! Thanks to Marcus." Ann replied. Her familiarity with the man offered a small sense of relief. If she trusted him, then he was clearly a good person. Despite sporting a look like he was some old school mob boss. Upon a second look at the tattoos, the same image of the rose-covered V stood out. So that was his flag.
The huge man from earlier grunted and nodded from the entrance, standing guard.
Everyone else had already taken refuge from the fire outside. An air of apprehension hung over the cabin, accentuated by the occasional violent tremor and muffled shriek of the dragon. Judy tensed each time the sounds outside grew closer. Even still, it didn't look like she was scared of it, more concerned about the creature behind it.
"Can I ask what's going on?" Lynn finally mustered the strength to speak up. Most of the shock and dizziness had subsided, so now she could appreciate just how strange this whole setup was. "Why is Captain Kidd steering a ship right out of a movie?"
[Welcome aboard the Santa Maria,]the old man gestured broadly, [Your young friend lent his strength and managed to work a miracle on my humble vessel. I understand that it's only temporary, however.]
"Yeah. Damn, gramps, just keepin' focus is takin' all I have." Ryuji grunted. He sat bolt upright with a strained expression. As though he was having bowel troubles.
Shiho rushed to Lynn's side and held her tight with a relieved embrace. "We were getting worried you'd fallen into the lava. We all got separated after the fall and I couldn't get any signal over the radio. But then Skull, Mona and Panther appeared aboard a small boat along with Sebastian and Marcus, here. I'm not too sure about how he managed it, but Skull used Captain Kidd to create this war ship for us!" Despite her clear relief of Lynn's safety, she was still incredibly tense. The near death experience still had a grip on her. "We gathered up everyone else thanks to Mona's keen senses, but we couldn't find you at all!"
"The Four R's." A smirk tugged at Lynn's lips. Despite being separated, her team had acted efficiently and effectively. It brought a sense of pride to the leader. Her friends had grown a lot since they had begun Phantom Thievery. That and the invaluable training V had provided had paid off. They retreated, regrouped, recovered and rethought their situation like true professionals. "Do we have a plan? Any ideas what that dragon even is?"
"It's V. I know that for a fact." Judy grunted, briefly slowing her pace.
Mona let out a hum as he folded his arms in thought. "I think that's only partially true, Mox…" he pawed at the lip of his mask. "It is V, there's no question about that. But at the same time, there's something missing." He groaned in irritation. He struggled to piece things together, and the lack of information was clearly bothering him. Lynn tried picking up the slack.
From what they knew of the Palace thus far, there were a few things they could discern. V's cognition was confused. It was trying to be different things at the same time.
It also didn't know if it wanted to welcome the thieves or repel them.
The varying hostility in different sections attested to that. Even still, not a single time had the thieves lost their thief attire. So, on a base level, V had an ingrained need to push away.
With those bits of logic, the beginnings of a theory budded in Lynn's mind. "I think the dragon is a representation of V's rage and animalistic desperation. When I looked into its eyes, sure, I saw V, but there was no recognition. Just pure anger and instinct." It made some sort of sense. Not only that, but there was something else deeper in the dragon's gaze. Hatred pointed inwards. "We slashed the chains and the tower's gone, but I don't think that's enough. The Relic's done so much to V. I think it might have warped her sense of self completely."
"I think I get what you're trying to say…" Ann furrowed her brow. "If I remember correctly, a person's Shadow is a warped manifestation of their inner thoughts and feelings. If V is so caught up in anger, then we need to soothe it somehow."
"There's also the matter of that weird cage we saw. There was someone inside it, but it didn't look like V." Lynn added.
"If it was hidin' inside the Relic, it's gotta be Silverhand. Only thing that makes sense. Figures the asshole would still be kickin' around in here." Judy's expression betrayed her confliction. She didn't know if she should be angry, sad, afraid or hopeful.
Johnny Silverhand.
Up to now, Lynn had only heard stories and vague allusions to the man. V didn't particularly like going into much detail about him. But at the same time, it was obvious the merc genuinely cared about the mystery man. Even if she fought tooth and nail to be rid of him, there was clearly a deeper connection shared between them. The Relic was bound to be a huge piece to this mystery. From what V had mentioned, it was part of the Mikoshi project. A sort of digital immortality. However, it was also a prison.
The fact Silverhand was locked inside a cage now reflected that idea.
"I felt two presences in that cage just before we fell. One of them was incredibly weak, though." Mona muttered, almost to himself.
[The Overlord has shed her own humanity in a last stand against death itself. However, the Relic's influence offered a failsafe. A remnant of its data remains locked away with Silverhand. The last fragment of V's humanity. Removing those chains has allowed access to that failsafe. But… well… your compadre is right. It's weak. Very weak. Unable to take back control on its own.]
"So we subdue the beast and free V's humanity." Yusuke gripped his sword and frosted air plumed from his nostrils. "I was in a place of weakness not so long ago. Ms. V and the rest of you helped me see past my own delusions and attain the strength to regain my own life with my own hands." He rose to his feet, with an air of stalwart determination. It actually stirred a fire within Lynn's chest just seeing him like this. "On my blade, I vow to help Ms. V take back her life. The fell wings of rage and fire will be frozen solid under my power. Together, we shall bring the beast to its knees!" He slammed the tsuba of his sword against his chest in a dramatic gesture.
For a few brief moments, everyone simply stared at him.
"Well… that was always the plan, but I appreciate the passion!" Lynn gave a sheepish chuckle as she spoke.
Even still, she would be lying if she said it wasn't an inspiring speech.
"Can we skip to the part where we save my fuckin' fiance, please? In case you guys forgot, she's currently tryin' to roast us alive!"
Lynn understood the impatience. She really did. The desperation to save a loved one. She might not have had personal experience with anything quite like this, but at least she could attempt to empathise. That said, rushing back into a fight like this without some kind of plan was certain death.
"Right. What's our weapon situation? Surely V left some things with you, Mona?" She asked.
"Yeah. One second." The cat brought out his handy yellow knapsack and began to rummage through it with his tongue poking out through the corner of his mouth. "Some explosives. Ammunition. Some rifles… there's your gatling gun, too." His arm delved deeper. Seconds passed and his tail suddenly straightened stiff. "Aha! There it is!" The cat gave a wide, toothy grin and heaved a large, long case out from the sack.
It was a military transport case from the looks of it.
Whatever it was, Judy looked both surprised and impressed. Recognition forced a grin of her own across her lips. "Well, well. Mi Calabacita was holdin' out on me! Was wonderin' where those eddies had gone…"
"Militech AHPS Rhino M127? Joker, do… you know what that is?" Ann read the graphic print lining the lid of the case with a quirked brow.
All Lynn could do was shake her head. Internally, she was filled with excitement and curiosity. It was a new gun from V's world. One she hadn't seen yet and that was enough to send her mind into overdrive. And judging from Judy's reaction, whatever it was, it was bound to be one hell of a piece.
Mona set the case down with a heavy thud.
Click.
The latches holding it shut disengaged, building the tension. Even Yusuke had taken a keen interest in the case.
It swung open and Lynn's eyes sparked with fire. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Yup. A man-portable guided missile launcher. Courtesy of Millitech's department of Artillery and Heavy Projectile Systems. I'm a little pissed off V bought somethin' this fuckin' expensive without talkin' to me first, but I'll let it slide this time." She ran a finger along the thick frame of the launcher. It was fit snug in a firm foam holder along with three shells.
They only had three shots, it seemed.
The small printed label on each missile was at least recognisable. High Explosive Anti-Tank - or HEAT. Explosives specifically designed to deal with heavily armoured targets. "These are… actually perfect. I have a theory that needs testing, though. I noticed that when V prepares for that fire breath, there's a brief moment where she gathers the energy in her throat. If we hit that spot with enough force - say from a H.E.A.T round - it might give us an opening."
"Dunno how to feel about shootin' the person I love in the throat with heavy ordinance… but if it's the best way to help her…"
"We just need to exhaust her. Killing the dragon would basically be like killing a person's Shadow." Mona did his best to sound reassuring, but he was still talking about extreme violence. "It'll be for nothing if we can't get V's humanity out of that cage, though."
Lynn nodded. "We'll need to send a team up to the cage while the rest of us keep V's rage distracted." Even with that said, only two of them had a way of flying freely. She herself was one of them, and she couldn't leave the front line. That left Mona. Or perhaps Mona and a certain non-Persona. "Hey, Mox, Pixie isn't technically a Persona, right? Think she could accompany Mona?"
"Sure, I guess. Dunno what I'll be able to do without her, though." The techy replied, shrugging.
With an understanding nod, Lynn glanced down at the Rhino launcher. "You know how to use our trump card?" She asked with a slight hesitation. Judy briefly stiffened and shot a pointed glare at Lynn. However, she eventually nodded.
"I know enough. Never actually used one before, though." For now, that was better than nothing.
"Ugh… Joker, Carmen's getting overwhelmed out there…" Sweat dribbled from Ann's forehead. Her breathing was ragged as if she had been running a marathon in the Sahara. "Don't… know how long we can keep V's fire off of us." She winced in time with another violent shake and accompanying roar.
"Right, enough delay." Joker huffed and picked up the Avenger gatling gun. "Mona, Pixie, you're on cage duty. Get V's humanity out of there and wait for the dragon to get tired out."
Pixie burst out from Judy's chest with a little too much enthusiasm. She chirped happily at the idea of avoiding the main conflict. Even still, her abrupt summon forced a grunt of pain out of Judy. "Could'a fuckin' warned me. That hurts, y'know." In response, the tiny fairy girl blew a mischievous raspberry back at her.
"Skull, you and Captain Kidd keep the Santa Maria in that cluster of ruins. We'll need a rallying point should we need to retreat. Everyone else, give V everything you got!"
With that, everyone simultaneously rose to their feet and barked their acknowledgement.
It was time to overthrow an Overlord.
Huge claws broke through rock like it was naught but thin air. Debris showered across a small plateau with explosive force. It pelted against the hardened form of Shiki-Ouiji. "Hunter, you're out in the open, V's going to target you if you keep pushing it. Panther, Fox could use some back up. Skull, we've got Lessers coming in from the north. Bring the Santa Maria to bare and open fire!"
Lynn's orders were precise, quick and followed with effectiveness.
The thumping of cannon fire ruptured the air, followed by the screams of Shadows facing the full brunt of the broadside guns.
From her cover on the small plateau, the GAU-8 Avenger spun up to speed. Unleashing a torrent of lead, Lynn tried her best to do some damage to the huge dragon. Despite the heavy fire, the bullets barely made any purchase. Most of them bounced harmlessly off the scaled hide. The robotic spine glowed with power and moments later, V blurred across the air quicker than the eye could follow.
She came to an abrupt halt and slammed a heavy strike down into the lava. Globules of molten rock rained over the ruins.
Lynn caught a glimpse of Yusuke flash freezing the air around himself and Ann. A flaming boulder struck the shield with the force of a meteor. However, Yusuke held strong. The frozen dome cracked under the blow and once the boulder had been deflected safely, he let the shield fade into melted vapour.
"Mox, are you in position, yet?"
"Almost. See that dilapidated water tower? That's me." Judy's voice crackled over the radio in response. Sure enough, a quick glance over the series of ruined structures showed there was, indeed, a half collapsed water tower perched atop an equally half collapsed structure. Lynn could just about make out the shape of Judy's figure fiddling with the rocket launcher.
"Everyone, we need to bait that breath attack out somehow!"
Therein lay the problem.
For this whole operation to work, they had to intentionally keep themselves in harm's way. That first fire breath would have outright incinerated the whole team were it not for the brief moment of charging. The timing would have to be perfect. If not, whoever was in the line of fire was dead. Game over. No retries.
The doubts swirled in her chest, leaving her usual awareness dulled long enough for the dragon to catch her by surprise.
Lynn took the full brunt of a heavy strike from the beast's spined tail.
Boney quills dug into her skin and the feeling of something cracking sent a jolting pain through her stomach. Once again, her lungs were completely drained of oxygen as the blow sent her across the ground.
"Joker! Hold on, I'm on my way!" Ann yelled down the radio. Seconds later, Lynn felt the warm pulsing of healing energy.
"Thanks, Panther… ugh." There was going to be some lasting damage, but for now, the emergency patch job alleviated the pain. The strike had knocked the gatling gun across the small platform, coming to a stop dangerously close to the lava. She darted for it. The intense gaze of the dragon tingled on her spine. The sudden dash had caught its attention and a change in the air pressure sent the hairs on Lynn's neck on edge.
Tucking into a roll, Lynn skidded across the rock, brought the gun to bare and opened fire.
V was already bearing down on her, halted only by the hail of bullets pelting against the scales on her face. The beast growled and beat her wings to back off. The tell tale signs of an incoming attack burned across her eyes.
"Mox, lock on, now!"
The energy began to build in the dragon's throat. The air heated up beyond the point of tolerance. The barrels of her Avenger slowed to a halt as she stared up at impending doom.
Then, the fwoosh of a missile brought a sense of hope. Only for it to be immediately dashed. V's reptilian eyes darted toward the incoming payload and engaged the Sandevistan. In a dizzying evasive manoeuvre, the dragon swooped and dove headfirst into the lake of lava. Its target now masked by the molten rock, the missile shot through the air and impacted against a far off stalactite. Explosive pressure blasted the chuck of rock into tiny fragments.
"Fuckin' Sandy! You good, Joker?" Judy grunted.
"Yeah, a little scraped up, but I'm alive. Forward team, regroup on the Santa Maria!" The shock of the last few seconds had yet to catch up with her. The brief lull in conflict wasn't going to last, but it at least gave the team an opportunity to catch their breath. "Advance team, I need a report on your progress!"
It took a moment, but Morgana finally answered the call. "This Johnny guy has a… colourful vocabulary. Also… V's humanity… she's just a child. Unconscious and barely breathing from what I can see." There was a brief pause and the sound of a male voice growling and grunting expletives. "Johnny says… uh… hi." The thought of hearing Morgana swear brought up a grin as Lynn dashed from ruin to ruin on her way back to the Santa Maria. "We're going to need a little more time to get this door open."
"Estimate?"
"Ten minutes at most!"
"You have five."
Now that the dragon had temporarily retreated below the lava, more Lesser Shadows had begun to crawl out of the ruins. They were less a threat and more of an annoyance at this point. A small obstacle hindering the team's regrouping efforts.
From the next ruin over, Lynn heard Yusuke grunt in effort. A flash of cold steel sundered the amorphous mass of one Shadow. A stream of frozen air encased another in a carapace of ice.
Ann lashed out with her whip, wrapping it around another. Flame burned across the weapon and incinerated the prey caught within. A nimble leap into the air was followed by a graceful, flame empowered axe kick right on the head of another.
The thumping sound of Shiho's Contender and bellowing war cries of Boudica painted a vivid picture of battlefield domination.
Within seconds, everyone had made it back onto the deck of the Santa Maria.
The heavy breathing of the group played a short chorus of exertion. Eventually Lynn managed to catch enough breath to speak up. "I really didn't expect her to be able to react so quickly. That Sandevistan is a real problem."
"She's always had an inhumanly quick reaction speed. The Sandy boosts it sevenfold. Fuckin' chrome-for-brains. God I love her…" Despite the visible frustration, the comment was a genuine one. As heartwarming as it was, Judy immediately went into a brief moment of deep thought. "I might be able to upload some chrome-disablin' Quickhacks. I need to keep a clear visual on 'er though. So if she dives again, I'll have to restart."
"This fight is just one thing after another, ain't it? Well, Kidd and I are ready for another round whenever you guys are." Ryuji looked visibly exhausted. Keeping the Santa Maria stable and launching artillery was clearly more taxing than he was admitting.
"Panther, I need you to help me try and slow her down. Fox, Hunter, I need you to back us up. Some ice and flashbangs might keep her disoriented and open for Panther and I to do some damage. Skull, keep the Lesser Shadows off of us like you have been doing. If you get too tired, back off and we'll handle it from there. Your main priority is to keep the Santa Maria operational, got it?"
"Y-yes m-ma'am." The boy stuttered at the authoritative, completely serious tone Lynn had put on. It wasn't the first time she had gotten like this, but it was definitely the first time the stakes were so high.
"Mox, do what you can. We've got two shots left at this so focus on those Quickhacks first." Granted, Lynn still didn't fully understand what Quickhacks even were. But if they stopped V from using that spine implant, Lynn wasn't about to ask. As if on cue, the sound of a rumbling growl swelled into an all out roar. V burst from the lava with violent intent.
A beat of her wings sent sprays of molten rock showering over the ruins.
Her entire hide glowed with the heat. Steam curled from between the scales. Her eyes pierced through the trespasser's souls. It was time to throw down once again.
"Phantom Thieves, roll out!"
"Will you fuckin' hurry up?" Disgruntled and increasingly done with everything, the man in the cage continued to groan and moan.
The door to the cage refused to budge, even with Morgana's expert lockpicking skills. The cat's tail curled in frustration. Johnny's impatience wasn't helping. Neither was Pixie's fussing as she was holding the cat aloft so he could do his job. The fairy was constantly making annoying muttering sounds and mumbling about the dragon.
However, out of all of it, Morgana was more concerned with the unconscious form of a child version of V. Innocent and tiny, to be sure. But there was no mistaking it. The kid was definitely V. Perhaps a reflection of how she saw her own humanity at the moment.
Small and vulnerable.
Helpless and weak.
The cat frowned as the fourth lockpick snapped with a sickening crunch. "Damn it…"
"Do you even know what the fuck you're doin'? It's insane a cat can even talk. I must be high. Gotta be. No way in hell is this fuckin' real."
Finally, Morgana snapped and let out a low hiss. "Will you shut up! I'm doing the best I can, alright? Like it or not, this is all real. See those people down there? Fighting that dragon? Those are my friends and they're risking their lives for that girl currently lying unconscious next to you. And I'm here… dealing with a whining man-child with some kind of cool guy complex! Who wears sunglasses in a volcano anyway!"
[Hey… Mona?] Pixie's voice barely even registered. He ignored her. Lynn's orders were clear. She needed the door open yesterday. [Moooona…?] His eye twitched. The fifth lockpick snapped and fell into the lake several hundred metres below.
"Your… uh… fairy friend wants you." Johnny's brow furrowed. At least he had finally stopped swearing.
Did V just twitch?
No. Mona needed to focus.
Snap.
There went the sixth pick.
[Mona!]
"What!? What is it!?"
[Is that pouch… supposed to glow?] She was gesturing with her head down to the belt around Mona's waist. Sure enough, there was one pouch that had a very distinct glow. A pulsing blue light that throbbed and hummed like a heartbeat. His irritation and frustration faded for a moment as he contemplated what it was.
Then he remembered what he had stashed away in that specific pouch.
Wrapping one arm around a bar of the cage, finally letting Pixie let go of him, he fished out the strange pendant he and Yusuke found in the Braindance Parlor.
It thrummed with a strange resonance.
Morgana's eyes drifted from the pendant to the unconscious form of child V. The same resonance glowed from the girl's forehead. The two were reacting to one another. At first, Mona didn't understand the significance. He then really thought about what the Pendant was as well as the stories V had told of her past.
"Wait… is this the bullet that Dexter shot her with?"
"Fuckin' yes. What of it? Get me outta this fuckin' cage already." As Mona expected, Johnny was no help.
That said, upon closer observation, the pendant looked to want to reunite with V. The chain gently tugged in Mona's paw, silently pleading to move closer to the girl. It was then that the clicking sound of a lock took everyone by surprise. The cage door swung inwards, opened by an incredibly sleepy looking - yet very much conscious - child V. She let out a long yawn and with half lidded eyes, she glanced at the pendant.
She paused for a moment. Blinked the sleep from her eyes. Then they shot wide open with concern. "The fuck? Mona? Pixie?" Her head snapped to look at Johnny. The concern turned to confusion, then to realisation, then to irritation. "Of fuckin' course you're rattling around in my brain, still. Guess I'll never get rid of you. Why are you so tall, though?"
"Uh… V…" Mona was still clinging to the cage door, not daring to actually step foot inside the cage proper.
"Why am I a little kid!? Is that a fucking dragon!?"
"Welcome to the 'confused, annoyed and likely insane' club, kid. Sounds like you're back to your old self, at least. Mentally, anyway." Johnny chuckled and took a drag from a cigarette he produced as if from thin air. "So, we goin' to delta, or stand around with our dicks in hand?"
"First, my friends need to tire… uh… the dragon out."
[Are… we not telling them that the dragon's actually V's manifestation of her own rage and desperation?] Pixie innocently pondered. Though the very slight smirk betrayed the fact it wasn't an innocent mistake at all.
Mona had half a mind to set Zorro on the tiny fairy.
Then again, it wasn't like divulging that tidbit changed much.
"Wow… talk about delusions of grandeur." V muttered. "So… why am I a little kid again? I don't even have any of my chrome…" That was a slightly more delicate matter. One that Mona still didn't fully get.
"Your cognition sees its own humanity as small and weak right now. However, the fact you've retaken control over it proves that you're regaining strength." His grip slipped on the bars, forcing him to place a tentative foot on the cold concrete floor. Thankfully, his fears of suddenly being closed in were unfounded. The door remained open without a hint of moving of its own accord.
The little girl frowned. "Last thing I remember I was going to Crossroads while you guys poked around. So, I take it this is my Palace? Not… what I expected." She peered over the edge and into the cavern below. The crumbling remnants of what was once the Relic tower could still be seen scattered across the enormous lake of fire. However, the rubble was now inert. The ominous pulsing light had faded to a slate grey. The larger chunks had even begun to dissolve into ash, blowing across the lake like grey, crumbling leaves. "If that's really a part of me," she pointed at the behemoth dragon as it fought ferociously against Lynn and the others, "why can't I control it?"
"Sebestian said -"
"Padre's here? What!?"
"It's your cognition of him. Not the real one." The sudden panic subsided. "Anyway, he said you shed your own humanity in a last stand, and that the Relic allowed you to plant a failsafe inside the remnants of its data still clinging to your cognition." He pawed his chin and his tail flicked idly in thought. "You're that failsafe. Or at least that body is."
"And where do I fit into this fuckin' joke?" Johnny grunted.
The small girl threw a weak, lethargic punch at the man's leg. "You're the punchline, asshole." She stuck out her tongue. Though a moment later, she shook off the childlike humour, replacing it with mild irritation. "Ugh… this body comes with some side effects…"
"Good grief…" Mona shook his head.
Although, Johnny did bring up a good question. Where did he fit into all of this?
He wasn't a cognitive being. Morgana could sense if he was. He wasn't a Shadow, either. As far as the cat could sense, he was just a regular human. That said, there was something off. Incomplete.
Like Johnny wasn't completely there.
Whenever Morgana's eyes looked away from him, it took a few seconds to focus on him again. Sometimes it was like he completely forgot the man was even there for a few brief moments.
Whatever the case was, it had to wait. The cat placed a paw on the radio's receiver. "Joker, we're good to go on our end." The sound of combat echoed through the cavern. All Lynn could offer in response was a quickened "got it" of acknowledgement. The buzzing of the gatling gun soon tore through the haze, followed by the deafening roar of the Dragon. Now all Mona had to do was figure out a way of getting both V and Johnny down. Zorro's wind would likely be able to handle V's child body, but there was no way the same could be said for the robot-armed, fully grown chain smoker.
Pixie wouldn't be much help either.
Quite the predicament.
Huge claws tore jagged fissures into the ground. The attack missed its mark by mere inches. Ann braced herself as she pushed off the ground in a one handed cartwheel.
Her whip lashed with a counterattack. That said, the draconic scales deflected the blow with ease. The girl landed on a jutting chunk of sundered stone and quickly brought her machine pistol to bare. The volley of small calibre bullets managed to at least catch the dragon's attention. If only due to the sheer annoyance of the bug-bite-like assault.
Piercing slitted eyes locked onto Ann. A low growl leaked malice as the spinal implant whirred to life once again.
"Panther, switch!" Joker bellowed.
Lynn skidded to a stop just behind the dragon, lifting the huge gatling gun. She was taking the lead, now. Bullets tore through the air, pelting against draconic scales.
With a higher calibre came a lot more force. Still unable to penetrate the armour-like scales, however.
The dragon groaned in pain and anger. The activation of the spinal implant had at least been interrupted. The piercing gaze shifted toward Lynn and with a howl, the beast swung downwards with a powerful arm.
Claw met ice and steel. Yusuke levelled his own soul-shattering stare up at the beast. Goemon had come to intercept the attack just in the nick of time. A dramatic gesture from the artist wordlessly ordered the Persona to deflect and counterattack. With a flourish, the beast's arm was knocked back and the huge blade of Goemon's sword struck a blow against the dragon's slightly softer underbelly.
A glancing hit, but it managed to draw blood. Or at least the cognitive equivalent. It was more like hot, steaming ink.
Nonetheless, the beast roared and beat its wings in a bid to back away. It looked like it was about to dive again. "Hunter, flash it!" Ordered Lynn. She heard the call in response and braced herself against the incoming flash of light.
With a ferocious rallying cry, Boudica let loose a blinding explosion of dizzying radiance.
The dragon screamed and stumbled in the air. The flashbang was bang on the money. Confused, disorientated and increasingly agitated, the huge beast was forced to land on solid ground. The stone plateau quaked under the force. Almost immediately, each of the front line team converged for a fresh assault.
Gun and blade struck the dazed creature as quickly as the uneven terrain would allow. A flurry of a thousand cuts.
It wasn't enough.
Sheer pressure from a simple sweep of its wings knocked the front lines into the air. As they tumbled, helpless and seemingly suspended, Lynn could just make out the refocusing of the reptilian eyes. Narrowing to mere slits, the Sandevistan let out a sinister hiss.
There was no time to even attempt to react.
In a blink of an eye, the dragon vanished. For the second the group spent suspended, time seemed to grind to a halt.
The torpor was broken by the sound Lynn was hoping for.
Loud, boisterous music and the sparking of short circuiting machinery. Judy's Quickhack had kicked in right as the beast had thrown itself into the finishing blow. As if a truck had slammed into its side, the dragon howled as the Sandevistan burst with sparks and arcing electricity. Its body smashed against a ruined building, turning it to rubble immediately. It struggled to right itself, almost as if it was panicking. Perhaps it was. Even beasts had self preservation instincts.
Lynn, Yusuke, Ann and Shiho hit the ground with a thud. It knocked the wind right out of each of their lungs. That was way too close. A second later, and they would have been sliced to shreds.
The dragon's arm finally planted itself firmly on semi-solid ground. Energy flowed across its scales and pooled below the beast's throat as its huge body grounded itself. A last ditch effort to fend off the intruders. Precisely what the group needed. "Mox! Now!"
"One step ahead of ya! Sorry about this babe…" The fwooshing of the missile was like music to Lynn's ears.
This time, the payload hit its mark. Without the Sandevistan, the dragon took the full brunt of the high yield explosive. The attack forced the building energy to detonate inside the creature's gullet with an audible and sickening thump. Smoke and embers sprayed from the dragon's maw and as the dust cleared, the rage in its eyes slowly faded.
As if in slow motion, the beast's legs buckled and it fell to the ground.
It let out a sorrow filled groan, completely exhausted and beaten. Honestly, Lynn wasn't sure it would survive. It was just a testament to how strong V's fury actually was. Now, however, the beast lay prone, breathing heavily and merely staring down at its assailants. The thieves were in much the same shape. Only, they were more like ants compared to the scaled behemoth. Nonetheless, their job wasn't done yet.
"Mona, she's down. Where are you?" Joker huffed into the radio. Static crackled over the earpiece. For a moment, it looked like the heat had messed with the signal.
Then a strange yet familiar voice came back through the comms. Higher pitched than what Lynn remembered, but it was undoubtedly V's. "Look up, kid!"In addition to V, there was also a very distinct and incredibly recognizable scream juxtaposed between the revving of an engine.
Wait.
Lynn's head slowly turned upward toward where the cage was. As if riding the very wind itself, Mona's bulky bus form was actually gliding. Although his angle of approach only made him gain more and more speed. How the cat was managing it, that was definitely a point of inquiry. As the bus grew closer, Lynn could see a small figure behind the steering wheel. A second figure was leaning out of the open side door. A figure with what looked like an arm made of solid silver.
A resounding crash sent a blue shockwave of ozone-scented energy scattering across the platform.
Mithras had somehow appeared and caught the bus just before the inevitable destruction. Cartoonish smoke burst across the landing sight, slowly revealing the sprawled figures of four individuals.
Hovering above them, Mithras' usually solid marble jaw twitched in annoyance.
"Nice catch, Mithras!" V exclaimed. Still face down on the volcanic rock. Oddly, she had the body of a small child.
[Do not make a habit of recklessness, Warrior.] The Shadow grunted, gave a respectful nod in Lynn's direction and then dispersed himself into a shower of azure embers and ash. Slowly, each of the four new arrivals made attempts to pick themselves up. The first to actually manage it was the tall, lanky man.
Shoulder length shaggy hair framed a rough, defined face. Stubble ran across a thin jaw and led up toward a pair of reflective aviator sunglasses. However, Lynn's eyes were drawn - once again - to the silver arm prosthetic. Unlike V's cybernetic limbs, this one was very much mechanical and didn't try to hide it. Still, the man lent back into a casual slouch. The form of a cigarette flickered to life between the metal fingers and with a long inhale, Johnny Silverhand blew a large plume of smoke into the hazy cavern.
"Fuck, it's fuckin' hot."He groaned. Finally, he noticed the group of teenagers staring at him with raised brows and expectant glares. "I got somethin' on my face? The fuck you kids starin' at?"
Now V, Morgana and Pixie had managed to recover.
Notably, Pixie absolutely refused to take her eyes off the huge, prone dragon. Its reptilian eyes were glaring right back down at the tiny fairy.
"V… please don't ever make me do that again…" Morgana was still in a slight daze. His fur - which was usually immaculately groomed - was now completely dishevelled as though he had just stepped out of a hurricane. Which, judging by what just happened, wasn't too far from the truth.
Not that V was listening. Her attention had locked onto the other version of herself.
She took a tentative step forward, toward the dragon's head. For a while now, the beast had been laying completely prone, on its belly and resting its jaw against the ground. The rage had dissipated completely and had only left consignment in its wake. Acceptance that it was now at the mercy of its attackers.
From the distance, Judy and Ryuji had arrived in a tired huff. Running across uneven terrain in such heat without the benefit of adrenaline was clear to see in the sweat and redness of their skin. Judy took one look at the child-like V, wanted to speak out, but was quickly hushed by a swift gesture from Lynn. Whatever happened next needed to be V's actions alone.
Smoke slowly curled from the dragon's maw. Its huge body shifted with each laboured breath.
"So… you're me, huh? Looks like you got fucked up. Hah, well, I guess that tracks." V placed a gentle hand against a scale, running it along the smooth surface. The beast merely watched, curious and reserved. "I have been pretty angry for a while now. At the world. The Relic. My… self. Guess it took dying again to come to terms with everything. Your anger needs to rest. My anger needs to rest. We have a life to live, don't we? Let's fuckin' live it."
Her fingers tightened over the scale's surface.
The beast slowly blinked and let a long, relieved exhale blow the last of the smoke from its lungs. Blazing energy gradually radiated out from a single point in the dragon's forehead. The same point also pulsed from the child-like V.
Light coalesced and consumed the two beings in a blinding display of pure energy. Lynn and the others had to brace against it just to keep from going completely blind. A chiming sound thrummed from the centre and within a matter of seconds, the spectacle dimmed and faded. Now, there was only one figure left. The fully grown, complete form everyone had come to know. Valorie Garcia. Legendary Afterlife Merc and part time Phantom Thief.
"Always with the dramatic bullshit with you, ain't it?" Johnny grunted. It thoroughly ruined the moment and had completely derailed the tone.
Judy approached the man, looked him up and down and folded her arms disapprovingly. "You're Silverhand, huh? The fucker who slowly tried takin' my fiance away from me?" The two locked into a staring match. Until finally, in a flash of movement, Judy's knee struck dead centre into Johnny's crotch. He howled in agony, doubled over and crumpled to the ground in a heap of misery. It was amusing to see both Ryuji and Yusuke wince in solidarity at the sight. So empathy pain was real among guys. "Ass." Judy muttered before turning to her fiance.
V was quietly giggling to herself until the look on Judy's face stopped her in her tracks.
It was pure, unfiltered love.
Tears tried to trickle from Judy's eyes, but the sheer heat made that quite a painful experience. She tried wiping them away, but the relief and pure emotion of seeing her loved one alive and well again proved too much.
All V could do now was bring the woman into a loving embrace.
For now, it was probably best to leave them to it. The rest of them still had a few things they needed to address.
For one, why was Johnny Silverhand here?
According to Mona, he was neither a Shadow or a Cognition.
Lynn studied him as he groaned on the ground. For the next few minutes, he was completely incapacitated. It was almost enough to give Lynn the empathy pain of her male companions. Almost.
Apparently, Johnny one hundred and fifty percent deserved it.
"What's your take on this, Mona?" Lynn asked.
The cat shuffled uncomfortably. "It's hard to say. For all intents and purposes, he's as real as you or me."
"Does that mean he could leave the Metaverse with us?"
A moment of thought passed. Eventually, Morgana shook his head slowly. "I don't think that's possible. It's… hard to explain. He's real… but also not. Like some weird contradiction. It's frustrating not knowing! However, if we go over what we know about Johnny, something's bound to click." That logic was sound at least. "The Relic V had in her head contained a digital copy of Johnny that was slowly taking over her body. Meaning that technically, it wasn't Johnny at all, just some copy that thought it was Johnny. I think."
"From the way V described the Relic and Mikoshi, it was a little more than that. The data was a complete conversion of a person." Added Lynn.
"Right," Morgana nodded, pawing his chin, "in that case, maybe the data on the Relic was altered somehow by the Metaverse, turning the engram into what we're looking at right now. Or at the very least altered the remnants of what was left after the Relic was removed."
"I can see that making sense. What do we do about him, though?" That was Shiho.
Was the Metaverse even capable of something like that?
Truth be told, it wasn't exactly the craziest idea in the world. If human cognition was strong enough to manifest entire dimensions in the first place, of course it was capable of creating a strange new kind of life. After all, Shadows were created from cognition and they were technically real.
So the Johnny Silverhand in front of them was a completely new, one-of-a-kind form of life.
Completely separate from its creator but completely dependent on it at the same time. Truly a contradiction given form.
"Y'know I could use some fuckin' help, right?"
Almost as if on instinct, everyone completely ignored the man's protest. Ryuji went so far as to let out an exhausted groan. "Can we head to a Safe Room? I'm sooooo hot…"
At least he managed to provide a decent enough idea.
Now that the overbearing haze was gone and they were in the pleasantly air conditioned Safe Room, they could finally let themselves wind down from the adrenaline and excitement. The thieves had just faced off against a fearsome enemy and came out with only a few scratches, burns and bruises.
Both Morgana and Ann had set up a miniature infirmary and were now tending to Lynn, Shiho and Yusuke's burns.
As the comforting healing energy enveloped Lynn's body, she couldn't help but watch V work up the nerve to approach Johnny Silverhand. The man was casually smoking and leaning against a far wall as if no one could see him. Presumably because he was so used to people not actually being able to see him. Honestly, Lynn felt somewhat sympathetic toward him. It must have been lonely only being able to watch life go by as merely a bystander. Secondary to someone else's body. As Lynn understood it, the Relic's processes were automatic and not intended by Johnny at all.
In fact, the way V told the tale, the man was just as determined to save V as she was herself. Even giving up his own second chance.
That took courage.
A lesser person would have seized the opportunity regardless of what it meant for V.
As such, despite the various negatives about Johnny Silverhand, Lynn couldn't help but respect him.
Her train of thought was suddenly derailed as a spike of pain shot through her arm. A cold sensation that was marred by unbearable heat. "Ow! Careful…" she winced. Morgana was administering aloe-oil to help cool the burns. It was doing its job, but damn it hurt.
"Stop being such a baby, Joker. This is… like… the second time you've gotten yourself burnt." Ann's grin slowly crept into view. Below the feline mask, there was almost a smugness to her eyes.
The remark stung just as much as the antiseptic on a small cut on her cheek did.
Mainly because it was true.
Lynn shrugged. There wasn't much they could do about it. As long as they continued to act as Phantom Thieves, the danger of grievous injury would also continue.
Either way, the banter between the thieves faded as V finally rose to her feet. The merc approached Johnny and gave a long, drawn out sigh. "Y'know, I hoped I'd never see you again after Mikoshi." She began. It earned a short grimace from Johnny. "That said, a not so small part of me actually fuckin' missed you. I must be a fuckin' gonk, because I actually agree."
"Fuck, V, you goin' soft on me?" Sneered Johnny.
His comment earned a tired growl. Yet at the same time, V let a snigger escape. "Just shut up and let me talk." After a few seconds of silence, V refocused herself. "We've had this talk. Right before you left with Alt. I thought it was the last I'd see of you. Guess I was wrong. After all the shit we've been through together, I guess I should have known. You're always going to be a part of me. Even with the Relic gone, we're stuck together by more than just fucking data and circumstance."
Stunned, the rockerboy slowly removed his shades. He had caught on to the tone and any sort of playful ribbing had vanished. "V… I'm sorry we couldn't save you."
She laughed.
"You're fucking hopeless. My new choombas actually came through. Not just well meaning - yet ultimately empty - promises. Turns out all I needed to get myself fixed was to cross interdimensional boundaries and fall in with a ragtag bunch of kids with bullshit magic powers."
"Wait…" Johnny's brow furrowed. He glanced over toward the thieves still tending their wounds. "What…?"
"Kind'a bullshit to explain. Human cognition. Alternate universes. Physical manifestations. Pretty gonked up now that I lay it out like that." V's lips turned up into a grin. A nod of appreciation directed toward Lynn sent a familiar sensation to pulse through the thief's chest.
The feeling of progress. Power. A step forward.
Despite her harsh words, V was brimming with a kind of joy she hadn't felt in a long time. It was as plain as day on her face.
"All that aside, there's one thing left to do." She cleared her throat and turned her full attention back onto Johnny. "As long as I'm kicking around, you're going to be along for the ride. So… partners?"
A hand was held out expectantly. It hung in the air as Johnny stared down at it.
Slowly, the stubble on his chin folded as his jaw set into a toothy grin. "Nice to see you're finally on fuckin' board. Took you long enough." Firmly, the man grasped V's hand and gave it a yank. He pulled her into a hug and slammed his robotic hand down on her back. Metal met metal with a tinny clang. "I've said it before, but I'll say it again. I'm proud to call you friend, V."
The gesture gave birth to a pulsing energy. An orb of pale blue light blinked to life between the two hands. It grew with each thrum until eventually, it enveloped both of them in a humming, thrumming display. It was similar to the spectacle with the dragon. A merging of two entities into a single soul. A true partnership and a true friendship. Forged through adversity and tempered by mutual respect.
I am thou, thou art I.
Wake up Samurai. We got a fuckin' city to burn.