Persona 5: Daywatch

Wednesday, 1 June 2016
After School
Kaneshiro's Bank

Akira slid his studded key into the diamond-shaped hole in the steel panel, glancing over at Ann to be sure she was ready. She lifted her pistol and its matte-black new silencer, glanced around, then gave a nod. Morgana cocked his crossbow just in case another trap triggered, then counted down. On one, Akira and Ann turned their keys towards the enormous, circular vault door.

Green indicator lights above the locks blazed, with a series of deep clunks he could feel in his feet as much as hear in his ears. Metallic whirling and groaning emanated from the door before it rotated open. Even before he got to her, Ann's shoulders slumped at the space beyond. "This guy's vault is huge. How're we going to find his Treasure in this?"

Reaching the inner side of the door, Akira's eyes widened at a corridor wide enough to drive a semi through, with a slow curve to the left. Safe deposit boxes the size of Shujin's gym lockers lined both walls from floor to ceiling.

Makoto paused at the threshold, her jaw clenched. "Then we do it the old-fashioned way." Before he could say anything, she reached out for the closest deposit box, tapped the unlock button, and yanked on its handle.

The box budged open only a centimeter, and the class president froze.

Morgana folded his crossbow and approached. "Nightrider?" He came to a stop right next to her and poked her knee. "She looks just like y—"

Makoto jerked back, teeth bared and shoulders trembling before she punched the box, knocking it ajar. "Bastard!"

Akira came next to her. A wild energy blazed in her eyes. "Calm down, Rider. You're in the Metaverse with us."

He reached out, but at the touch of his fingertips, Makoto spun on him, her hand clamping on his wrist. Her eyes wavered for a moment before focusing on his. She let go and took several seconds to regain control of her breathing. "Sorry."

Ann paced in and put a steadying hand on Makoto's trembling shoulders, avoiding the spikes. "Are you okay, Rider? What happened?"

Makoto fidgeted, her eyes sweeping over the lock boxes anywhere but near the other Phantom Thieves. "I felt like… for a moment, I was Kaneshiro. I saw him… I lived him planning the murder of an NHK boardmember because one subordinate journalist was closing in on Kaneshiro's man inside the government."

Akira frowned and slipped his free hand in his coat pocket. "I figured he would. There's no way an operation gets as wealthy as his without running across the authorities."

Sensing a pall forming over the group, Morgana hopped and waved to get their attention. "This just confirms what we already knew when we targeted him. Kaneshiro has to have a change of heart. Otherwise he's going to keep on corrupting officials and ruining people's lives. Let's keep moving, the Treasure is close." He led the group along the curving hall until slowing down and backing up. Catboy lifted a white hand and pointed at a column of lock boxes. "I'm sensing the Treasure this way."

"Disguised door?" Akira wondered, reaching out at one of the lock boxes, tapping the unlock button, and pulling.

Two boys cheating on the pinball machine looked up, then scrambled to leave. The four Hashiba men closed on the teenage Kaneshiro. Junya backed away from the bar, his hands up in supplication. "G-gentlemen, there's no need to do anything rash."

Kaito held up the handful of yen notes Junya had given him. His dark green gaze felt as cold as a shark's. "You're short by a lot, Junjun."

Junya's butt hit the billiards table. He could feel sweat rolling down him. "We wouldn't want to do anything to sour things between the Hashiba and Kaneshiro clans."

With the slowest pace of the bunch, Shichiro sauntered to the cue sticks, grabbed one, then walked up to the table arresting Junya's escape. Unlike his lazy walk, the powerful jab of the cue stick was so fast it drove the breath from the middle schooler before he saw the move. "Name droppin' doesn't work on businessmen."

Wealth knows no boundaries, remembers no loyalty.

Coughing, Junya clutched the forming bruise. "P-please, I don't have that much right now."

Shichiro nudged Kaito out of the way, then slammed the cue stick against Junya's sides.

The teen could've sworn he felt his whole insides move. His buy wouldn't mature for a year, and the House heads' stinginess even when they had money was what forced him to the Hashibas in the first place. "I… I could get you VIP rooms at—"

Shichiro slammed the butt of the cue stick into the teenager's belly again.

See how poverty invites misfortune.

Junya coughed, clutching the new bruise. "I don't have any more. My investments will take time to mature." When Shichiro drew back the cue stick, Junya threw out his arms. "But they will, I swear."

"Debts are meant to be paid, in cash or in real estate," the stubble-chinned adult growled. He swung the heavy end of the cue stick across the side of Junya's head, sending the teenager sprawling over the end of the billiards table. "You better find a way to pay by the fourteenth." He dropped the stick clattering to the floor and the adults strode out.

Akira jerked his hand back, shaking it as if he could get the filth of Kaneshiro's memories away by such action. "His life kinda reminds me of mine. Never getting any slack, even for being young." In one motion, he leaped to the top of the deposit box. The top of the stack still a ways away, he reached for another box to make stairs.

Junya slouched back against an overstuffed chair, almost purring. He looked across the insurance company's conference room, a dark-stained wood table clashing with the sterile plastic wall panels. His oldest bodyguard stood at his side, his sharp, dark suit making him look like a perfect symbol of corporate success. Exactly the look Junya wanted for the Kaneshiro Group.

At the other end of the round table sat the head of the Kaneshiro Group. The old man had almost as little hair as a grip on reality. He looked more like a museum mannequin than leader of the most powerful yakuza in Tokyo in his purple kimono. Two of the family bodyguards stood flanking him, their faces blank but the sharp lines on their necks betraying their tension. Old man Kaneshiro ranted, that vein on the side of his head looking more prominent than ever. "Fucking moron, Junjun! You think you can trust cops you buy? How long are they going to stay their hand when they learn they're being paid with drug money?"

See how wealth begets power.

Junya slammed his hands on the table at that demeaning childhood nickname. He reached out a hand and his bodyguard set a cigarette in it. "Don't blame me for your lack of preparation, Uncle."

The head of the House slammed his fists into the table. "We have rules for a reason, Junjun. Hands off the drugs, kids, and state attorneys. And never trust a sellsword! Breaking those won't just bring the cops down on the clan, the other Houses will come at us for free!"

There are only those who claim money, and those who make it for you.

Uncle jabbed a wrinkled finger at him. "It's only a matter of time until that Chink double-crosses you. He only came here because he was betraying the Ikeda Group. Well I won't give him the chance. I'm shutting it down and disposing of him. This House lives on our people."

Junya laughed, his slight belly shaking. "You ancient idiot." He slapped his hands on the table as he sat up, his presence dominating the room. "Dead men don't pay bills. If you'd bothered to learn from the Russians like I did, you'd know how much better kompromat is than dead debtors. And it doesn't matter how powerful our enemies are if they're at each others' throats instead of after ours."

Uncle motioned his hands from his bodyguards to Junya. "You'll have plenty of time to think about it from my hostess club for the rest of your life, never managing so much as a whore's schedule." It took the old man a few seconds to realize his bodyguards hadn't moved.

Smirking, Junya leaned back in his padded chair. "You always took loyalty for granted. I promised them a raise and free lifetime access to my hostess club." He chuckled. "Your men have been my men for years." He lit his cigarette, took a drag, then leaned forward. "Give him a long fishing tour."

The two men lifted Uncle out of the chair. His face turned red. "Only power is respected!"

Money is power.

Junya tapped ashes into a waiting tray. "Have you not noticed how few cops have gone after my boys? You relic of the last age. It's time the Kaneshiro Group gets with the modern day. International drugs. The internet. Overseas money laundering. You may have been fine with always being one bust away from bankruptcy as long as you told yourself you had purity and feigned loyalty." Junya took a deep drag from his cigarette. "But I will never be poor again."

Another ring of the vault opened before them, and Akira stepped up to open more memory lock-boxes. Sparing a glance at Akira, Morgana looked up to the top of the next wall of lock boxes. His eyes narrowed for a moment before he looked at the boy with red gloves. "Do you think you could open one more, Joker? The Treasure is so close!"

Akira drew in a deep breath. A dozen showers wouldn't wash off the all-too-long moments lived through Kaneshiro's memories.

To his surprise, Makoto came to his rescue. "Byakko, he's been through eight of Kaneshiro's memories. I could barely handle one. Surely that's enough to ask of anybody." After the long-coated teen jumped down, she came to a stop next to him, their eyes meeting for a moment. "I'll do the next one."

Makoto leaped up, ignoring their protestations. Her hand clamped on the handle, thumb flicking the lit switch, and pulling out the tall safety deposit box. After a few moments, she twitched and shook out her hand, then hopped up to the top of the next ring.

Morgana bounded to the top of the stack, tied off a cord, then lowered it so they'd have a quick descent once time came to steal the treasure. "This should be it, the treasure is very close."

Akira grabbed the nylon cord thinner than his pinkie and pulled himself to the top, popping up as soon as he could get a grip. A concrete pillar lay before them, reaching from floor to ceiling and big enough to fit all of Leblanc in the center. A steel door big enough to drive a car through gaped open and a Shadow guard stood in the gap. Another similarly heavy steel security gate filled a gap in the deposit boxes to the left.

Behind him, Makoto grunted as she pulled herself up.

Morgana waited until Ann reached the top. "Okay, everyone. Just one Shadow left guarding the location of Kaneshiro's Treasure. Get ready to hit quick, because I can't guarantee Joker or I are fast enough to ambush it at this distance." His eyes turned to Akira. "I'll try to get this one's mask, but have your fastest Persona ready just in case."

Akira nodded, readying his sub-machine gun and searching though himself for some connection that felt like he'd be able to hit hard and fast, and found his mind's eye coming to the cat in his physical gaze.

"Hey, intruder!" The Shadow lifted its tonfa, missing a swipe at the cat, though its body seized and bloated, consumed by black as Morgana leaped at its face.

The Shadow burst into a trio of tall, powerfully-built females. The one on the left bared light purple skin and no clothing to speak of. She gripped a thin, wicked-looking sword in each hand. The other two were covered head-to-toe in red cloth reminding Akira of cartoon ninjas but for the white nou mask. Their claws were smaller than Nekomata's, but still glistened in the light.

As he hit the ground, a ball of fire struck the purple one and a larger icy one exploded against the demon in the middle. He shot a burst into the demon on the right, one of his bullets hitting true and knocking it down. "Nekomata!"

His own nimble Persona leaped from the burst of silvery motes, her claws ringing off the purple ogre-woman's swords.

Zorro rushed at the demons in red, landing a lucky stab and letting the one in the middle slump to the ground. Ann continued lobbing ice at the demons as Makoto slid down the cord.

The demon his shot knocked down shuddered, then kipped up to its feet and clawed at Zorro in an angry frenzy. The burly Persona fell to the ground, dissolving into motes as Morgana fell with a cry.

Carmen arrived just in time to whip at the demons in red, buying Makoto time to get there on Johanna while Nekomata continued trading swipes and parries with the purple Shadow. The dancer swung its whip, but instead of striking the retreating demons, she unleashed a freezing gale filled with shards of ice.

One withstood the magic, but the other became encrusted in frost, just for Johanna to smash it to pieces with its armored bulk. He pulled the trigger and held it until the gun stopped firing at the red demon. Bolts of fire and ice finished it off.

Not letting up for a moment, the purple swordmaster struck a heavy blow into Nekomata, knocking it to the floor and Akira to one knee with a pained growl. Tired and sore, when the blade-woman scored a deep slice against Carmen, he reached inside for any kind of power to set it off-balance. Hifumi's relentless surprise moves came to mind, and his mouth opened. "Shesha!"

The five-headed, celestial-scaled serpent coalesced into existence. All five heads opened their mouths and roared a bluish beam into the Shadow, knocking it down.

The Phantom Thieves fanned around it, weapons up even though he knew his sub-machine gun was empty.

The purple-skinned ogre-woman heaved in breaths, her long black hair disheveled and not quite covering enough of her chest. She looked up at Akira as his serpentine Persona came to a stop next to him. "Few are foolhardy enough to deny Kaneshiro. Fewer still powerful enough to stand up to him. How do you come here?"

Akira held his firing position, though his Persona would have to take care of things if she pulled out a surprise. "We're here to change the world. One selfish prick at a time."

She took a steadying breath and her grip tightened on her twin swords. "You think this world is yours for the shaping, but not Kaneshiro's? Your arrogance is astounding."

Ann came alongside Akira, the powerful beam of light below her pistol's barrel throwing an oval on the Shadow and the darkened vault behind. "It's not arrogance at all! It's resolve. If that goes for Kaneshiro, why not for us?"

The purple Shadow glared. "The many do not want change."

This time Morgana hopped to the fore, crossbow still aimed at the Shadow. "Most people just want to get along. If they can do that with the same, they'll support that. If they can do that with change, they'll support that too."

Akira nodded, his stance straightening as he got into the argument. "It only takes engagement from three percent of the population to effect systemic change."

Ann's eyebrows rose enough to be clear despite her mask. "Really?"

"Yeah," Akira said, his Persona's tail shifting behind them. "Less than five percent of England's population rose up against the entitled nobles in the Dispenser War, but the tax collectors were required to collect from the titled as well as the workers after. Here in Japan only about three percent wanted to keep trading with the West and the Dutch were invited to our ports during the height of our isolation period."

Makoto's eyes flicked back and forth as she scanned her memory for a moment. "How do you know that?"

He shrugged. "Resistance, and rebellion against unjust authority was kind of a recurring theme in arguments against my old bastard."

The purple-skinned Shadow slumped, one of her swords falling to the floor with a clatter. "Your point is well made, bandit. But have you considered the cost of crushing the Kaneshiros? Tearing all like them from society?"

"We're no bandits," Akira snapped. He lowered his sub-machine gun. "We're here to reform society, not destroy it."

The ogre looked up at him, her messy black hair reminding him of a child caught in the rain. "Lofty goals, intruders. You really think you stand a chance?"

Akira nodded. "I know we can. Any enemy can be defeated piecemeal."

The ogre picked up her sword. Ann and Makoto tensed, but Akira noticed Morgana watching with a relaxed sway to his tail. "Then join my power to your confidence and let evil hearts be changed, one by one." Closing her eyes against the Phantom Thieves, the Shadow stood and burst into black streaks flinging into his mask.

He stumbled once before catching his footing.

Makoto shook her head and lowered her shotgun. "Even seeing it four times, I still can't believe it."

Morgana smirked as if he achieved the victory himself. "Neither can I, to be honest, and I've been watching him do it since we stumbled across it in Kamoshida's castle. Good job purifying another Shadow."

Akira tilted his head. "You guys stepped in and talked with it too."

Morgana gave a thoughtful smile. "True, but that doesn't diminish you reaching out. You really are something, Joker."

Makoto stepped past them into the dark vault. "So Kaneshiro's Treasure is in here?"

Ann took the lead, sweeping her pistol-flashlight over a vault strewn with yen notes and gold bars. She took her time moving the illumination to make a more methodical search, and stopped at a shimmering cloud. "There it is."

Makoto scratched her head. "What are you talking about? Are you saying all this," she paused to pick up a sloppy wad of yen notes carpeting the floor in mounds, "isn't his Treasure?"

Morgana cackled and folded up his crossbow. "Those are just accents. This is his Treasure," he pointed his folded up rod at the cloud. "All we have to do now is send a calling card."

"He needs to be put in mind that his distorted desire is a thing that can be stolen," Akira said.

Makoto's eyes widened for a moment. "I see. By drawing his attention with the calling card, you force it to physically manifest. Is that what you did to Kamoshida?"

"Yep. You're pretty quick on the uptake," Morgana said, grinning ear to ear. "Now that we've secured a route to the Treasure, it'll be no problem to speed through here next time. All we need to do is send the calling card."

"Let's do it now," she said, planting her free fist on her hip.

"Whoa," Morgana held his hand up to stop her. "Fighting a palace ruler is a very dangerous thing. We need to make sure we're as prepared as possible. And we'd need to write that calling card tonight, and distribute them in the morning without getting caught."

"I'm with her," Akira said.

"Of course you would be," Ann muttered.

"I just want to keep people like Doctor Takemi from getting killed," Akira shot back. "It's not like we have a convenient timer telling us 'ten days until Masa gets Kaneshiro's permission to shoot her in the back of the head'. And then there's all the other students who are so desperate they went to the student council for help. Besides, Ryuji might still be too injured to fight, but he can help us distribute cards."

Morgana's mouth twisted for a few moments. "We're not especially depleted right now. I suppose we can get enough rest even after preparing a calling card to be ready tomorrow."

Once they strode down the ramp back into the darkened, dirty facsimile of Shibuya, the conversation turned back to the plan. Ann began unscrewing her silencer. "So how are we going to get the calling card to Kaneshiro? I have a feeling he wouldn't be as generous as he was when he let you and Reaper get out of Spiral alive."

Akira folded his sub-machine gun's wire stock. "Shit, I didn't think of that. It would be suicide to try to just storm into Spiral again. And that's assuming he's there instead of one of his other dozens of businesses."

Makoto grimaced. "Sorry about that. It's my fault Reaper's mother is being shadowed now."

Morgana put away the squared rod of his folded crossbow. "There's no way we could have done it without your help, Nightrider. Thanks to what you did, we could get inside his bank and find his Treasure."

Makoto tapped her gloved fingers against her lips. "A similar method would ensure he gets it." Her head straightened. "Byakko, could I borrow Reaper? I'll need your help, too."

Morgana tilted his head at her, eyes squinted in confusion. "Um… I suppose, but I will not okay you marching straight back into that club. Joker's right, he might not even be there and even if he is, he might not let you live a second time."

Through the wide slits in her heavy iron mask, the transfer student could see the gears behind her eyes whirling. It reminded him of Hifumi deciding which counter-strategy she wanted to crush him with. Makoto's lips pressed into a thin smile. "Oh, don't worry. He won't see it coming." Her crimson gaze locked onto his. "How soon can you have eighty copies of the calling card printed?"

Akira's eyes stretched wide. "Eighty? I'd have to call Reaper, he was the one who lived next to a print shop. Once we actually got to it, he had a dozen pasted all over Shujin by the next morning. I mean, I commissioned an improved logo from one of the homeless artists drifting in Inokashira Park, but getting it to Kaneshiro would be the hard part. Not the making it. What are you planning?"

Makoto disassembled her shotgun, her smile even more pointed. "You guys write it. Let me handle getting it to him. Come on, Byakko."

Morgana nodded, but looked to the others. "Make sure you get plenty of rest."

Thursday, 2 June 2016
Morning
Aoyama, Road to Shujin

The air seemed hotter than normal, thick as if the humidity competed with the anticipation of the day's upcoming battle to change Kaneshiro's heart. Even the traffic, as ever-present as it was, seemed more subdued and distant. The carefree chatter of the students walking to the gate ahead of Akira made things feel even more jarring.

He stumbled when a dyed blonde shoved into his personal space and elbowed him with a face-splitting grin. "It's finally the day to steal his Treasure, eh?"

Akira's hand lashed out, swatting the track star across his bad dye job. He hissed, "Shut the fuck up in public, dumbass."

Ryuji's grin recovered after only a beat and he bumped the transfer student again. At least his volume lowered to a whisper, "I am so psyched to finally do this." He leaned into Akira's personal space again as they passed the gates. "That fuzzbucket can't keep me outta this fight."

Akira fought to keep from rolling his eyes. "He's still out spreading cards, remember? He'll be back at lunch, and he'll decide if you're healthy enough to come then." He paused to push open the door. "And if he says no, I happen to agree. I got cracked ribs when I was fourteen. That hurt for a month."

One of the students behind whispered, "Sakamoto's got broken ribs?"

The one next to him shrugged. "Whaddya expect from a delinquent? I wonder if the transfer did it."

Akira clenched his teeth, but the runner just rolled his eyes and strode through the open door.

Thursday, 2 June 2016
Lunch Time
Shujin Rooftop

Ryuji kicked at the roof, sending a small pebble skipping out through the bars and into the courtyard. He turned his rage-twisted face back on the team leader perched on a desk. "You guys better steal his heart."

Morgana looked over the assembled Phantom Thieves, his tail twitching behind him at the argument over keeping a wounded member out of a battle against a Palace ruler. "Don't worry, Reaper. We've got a good rhythm. Nightrider's meshing pretty well with the Phantom Thieves.

Akira slipped his hands in his pockets, resolved to stay out of this particular spat between the track star and the team's Metaverse guide. "It's no big deal, Ryuji."

He growled and stopped, his hand on the door handle. "'Course you say that. You get to go 'round with two hot chicks."

Makoto looked like she couldn't decide between choking in embarrassment and preening in pride.

Akira covered his red face with his hand as Ann scoffed.

The door opened into Ryuji's shoulder. "Ow."

He knew it was Haru even before he saw the curly brown hair from the surprised squeak. "Oh, I'm sorry."

Ryuji froze, staring for long seconds before Ann swallowed her last bite of onigiri and coughed into her fist. The sound broke the spell on Ryuji and he pulled the door open the rest of the way. "Uh… no biggie. We were just finishin'." He glanced at the others. "I'm still gonna see you there." He held the door open as she stepped onto the roof, trowel and hand rake in her left. Ann and Makoto followed the track star down.

Having paused eating to watch the argument and shoot down Ryuji's reasons for going along, he picked up his tray and ate another sushi.

Haru paused, the tools still in her hand but her eyes on the Phantom Thieves' leader. A moment passed before she let out a quick but mournful breath. "I always wished I could've had a pet ever since I saw Kirijo with her shiba." She lifted her right hand. "M-may I?"

Akira shrugged. "Go ahead."

Morgana's ears flattened even before her hand touched and he snapped, "Don't make decisions for—"

Her fingers stroked down the black fur between his ears, and when she scratched at the base of one ear, Morgana stretched his head up into the manicured digits. It only took a moment before a deep thrum rumbled from his throat. A faint smile spread over Haru's lips. "It's interesting how small the conditions can be that cause a change in behavior in animals."

Akira swallowed another small sliced roll of sushi. "I guess habit is always in the wings. I remember Haruko's dog went after me when Yoshida and I were running one day."

Her fingers went still. Morgana glared at the hand. "I didn't say stop."

Akira snorted in amusement. "What's wrong, didn't you not want her to pet you?"

Morgana puffed out his chest. "I… I'm just being gentlemanly." He leaned closer to her again.

Haru resumed scratching the back of the guide-trapped-in-cat-form's head. "It must be so simple being an animal. No facades on cause and effect. Humans are ruled by the same nature, we just add pointless steps and call it decorum."

Akira paused, sushi in his chopsticks halfway to his mouth. "There are tons of differences between humans and animals. We make tools."

"Humans are animals," Haru replied, though her tone sounded more like a classroom recitation than casual conversation. "And animals use tools. Capuchin Monkeys use rocks to break nuts, and they chip and break them to make better hammers."

Akira opened his mouth to retort, his long-running conditioning to be right compelling him to defend his argument. But his curiosity got the best of him. "Really? Monkeys actually make tools?"

Haru gave a faint smile, though the gesture looked genuine this time. "Not just monkeys, apes and beavers too. Sometimes to make shelter, sometimes to get to food. It's all to satisfy the drives of instinct. That's what rules all animals. And since humans are animals, us too. Chemical reactions. The chain of cause and effect."

Morgana's ear twitched, and he give Haru's lowered hand a distracted glare. "A chain…"

Heart rate jumping, Akira set his tray down and chopsticks on it. Talk of people being animals went against everything that felt right, but reducing them to chemical reactions… "That's like Tesla calling people meat machines."

"Well, we are," she said with a shrug.

"People aren't machines!" Akira felt his fists closing. "Without the capacity for free will and thought, we wouldn't even be able to ask if we are. People wouldn't be able to make smart decisions or dumb ones. We've known humans are capable of choice and independent thought. Rene Descartes. 'I think, therefore I am'."

She gave him a soft smile, though it reminded him of his mother before she called him a child and said something demeaning his intelligence. "Oh, Akira-kun. Things like independent thought are just misconstrued interpretations of how we reflect the processes around us. The present state of the universe is the effect of its past and cause of its future. Pierre-Simon Laplace."

The bell to start fourth period rang and Akira cursed. He grabbed his lunch box, stuffed a couple of the sushi rolls still left in his mouth, and chewed as he ran for the door. Haru followed, her pace heavy and eyes on the stairs.