Title: Breaking the Chains

Summary: An Atlus crossover. Persona centric but will also implement elements from other franchises.

Olivia

Nervously walking through the main entrance, I glanced around the campus. It was a rather lovely place with elegant architecture and fragrant smells. As expected of a place designed for nobles.

It also made me feel out of place.

While no one pointed me out, it was only a matter of time. The school uniform would only protect me for so long. My commoner status would inevitably come out.

It didn't matter that I had been able to manifest a Persona to help stop a Shadow incursion on my village. All nobles could summon one. It was nothing notable to them.

If anything, the nobles here would likely look down on me. After all, having a Persona with no noble lineage meant I had to have been from an illegitimate line. An unworthy line.

In my nervousness, I bumped into someone.

"My apologies," I hastily said.

Looking up, I saw a boy slightly taller than me. He had black hair and tired eyes. While he wore his uniform properly, he looked rather ignoble. His slouch ruined whatever noble look he could have gone for.

The boy's eyes seemed to twitch, but he simply walked away. Rude, but I could accept casual dismissal. Better to be ignored than to earn the ire of a noble.

I needed to focus. I needed to find the faculty office and get my situation sorted out. So where was that?

... Oh dear. All the buildings looked official enough to be the office.

How mortifying. I had unwittingly slapped the crown prince. I don't even know what came over me. The sheer rudeness has simply pushed me over the edge. Frustration over being lost was not a sufficient reason for me to have lashed out like that.

I had promptly fainted upon learning of his status.

Speaking of fainting, what was with that dream? Igor, the strange creature with the long nose, had spoken about some contract and trying times. I couldn't remember the details. It was all too fuzzy. It was like trying to catch smoke with my bare hands.

The only aspect that seemed to stick with me was to build my bonds... whatever that means.

Perhaps I'll remember more when I fall asleep tonight.

Leon

I was looking through the odd artifact Jose had given me. It was much like the Compendium the Fool was supposed to have access to in a Persona game in that it was capable of drawing out Personas. However, unlike the Compendium, it wasn't drawing out the beings from the sea of my soul... what that meant.

It was more akin to a database that summoned Shadows. The difference between a Shadow and a Persona was lost on me. The only difference I could think of was that a Shadow was a collective representation of something while a Persona was specifically tied to the individual. That was why someone's Persona could differ compared to a Shadow version.

... Which still didn't make sense since the protagonist could summon these Shadows, and boss fights often pulled out a Shadow unique to the person you had to fight. Uhhh... whatever. The distinction didn't matter.

As I browsed the selection of Shadows available, I came across several... intriguing entries. I was definitely going to explore some of them at night now that I wasn't in my parents' house.

I shook my thoughts away and pocketed my summoning device. I had more important things to take care of, such as learning the mechanics behind summoning a Persona. While I knew the plot of Alto Liebe, I was insure how the Persona aspect melded into it. Learning the game's representation of the contract or the means to summon a Persona would certainly lead me into the right direction.

Hopefully, it would also help me identify suspicious plot points.

During the practical exams to determine our summoning proficiency, I paid careful attention to Brad.

"Let me show you the power of the Fionn mac Cumhaill," Brad said dramatically.

As he posed in front of the class, several things happened. His arms became shackled and blue and white chains extended from them. It spat a fire as the chains grew, and then the chains began to loop in the air above him. A body manifested in between the loops.

It looked to be a pale warrior with a sword hung by its side. It had blonde hair that was braided and hung the length of its body.

It had a pained expression. Brad, with a similarly pained expression, smiled. From what little reading I was able to do, this was considered a proper summoning. Looking at the professor, I saw she was gushing his praises.

Clearly, the first awakening or simple manifestation was the extent of what the people knew about Personas. While it could be possible that there were no second or third awakening, I doubted it. The process seemed far to painful and cruel to be simply be left at that.

So now that I have established that the core theme revolved around chains and heing shackled, how did that apply to an Otome game such as Alto Liebe? Considering the nature of the game, the shackles must be tied into the restrictions imposed on them due to their positions.

Side-eyeing another pair of nobles dojng partial manifestations, I felt I was missing something. If the core theme revolved around only repressing oneself, why would other nobles be able to manifest Personas.

Actually, now that I think about it, Personas seemed to be something nobles and high ranking officials could do. So bloodline wasn't it. The rate of acquiring a Persona seemed to increase as a non-noble went up the ladder. So what is it responsibilities/duties?

It would make sense. The chains could be a representation of the duties and responsibilities of power that restricted one's freedom. It woulf be a painful repression of the self.

With that in mind, the second awakening would be unshackling of the Persona when the social link reached rank ten. Well that was obvious considering the five would cast off their obligations and engagements for Olivia.

And to finish the sequence off in case this was the remastered version, the third awakening must involve finding a balance between one's freedom and accepting the burdens of responsibility. A very likely lesson to be learned considering we would have to fight a war with the Principality.

A very coherent message about reaching out for one's freedom with a sobering note that responsibility is a part of life. It was the sappy crap highschoolers would find profound. Caters to their dreams of being exceptional while convincing them to grin and bear with reality in the end.

The question was, who was the true big bad? After all, Atlus games are always instigated by some god.

Truly a question that needed an answer.

Angelica

"I suppose these floors would be too easy for a seasoned adventurer," I said to myself as I witnessed Bartfort lazily cleave his way through the Shadows.

He had yet ot summon his Persona at all. The closest he got to doing so was whenever he snapped his fingers to cast an elemental spell to capitalize on a Shadows weakness. There were several odd things though.

The telltale sound of clanking chains were absent.bPerhaps his Persona was far more obedient compared to others. A boon to be certain. Not having to expend as much energy to command his Persona would surely keep him going for much longer.

Secondly, he had access to far too many elements to be considered natural. Personas almost exclusively favored two attributes at most. For him to be able to wield virtually all types, it was simply unheard of.

Perhaps this was a case of mere proficiency? Jack of all trades and master of none? It would certainly explain why he seemingly used the weakest spell to knock down the Shadows before going for the killing blow.

Then again, it could be a strategy he formulated due to being a solo adventurer. When one only had themselves to rely on, running out of steam was a death sentence. As such, using the weakest spells, not manifesting his Persona, and disciplining his Persona to such a degree would all be necessary.

"Might I ask, why are you following so closely behind me?" the boy in question asked.

"You should watch your tone. You should consider it an honor," one of my followers said.

I simply gestured to cow her.

"Sir Bartfort, we merely wished to observe how a solo adventurer conducts himself in a dungeon. It is rather unusual and the rumors can be rather outlandish," I said placatingly.

Bartfort quirked his eyes.

"And what do you think?"

"Curious about the manner in which you fight."

"In what way?"

"Why do you not manifest your Persona? As a noble, you should at least be able to manifest a limb. Is it because you find it unnecessary? Or is it for some other reason?"

Bartfort gave me a pensive look. Was he judging me?

After a few more moments, he said, "It's a waste of energy to do something so strenuous when using a simple gust or flare will get the job done for much less."

"For a solo dive, I can see the benefit of such frugality, but we are on a class expedition. Surely you wish to test your limits?" I pushed.

Bartfort took on a rather annoyed look.

"I apologize if my demonstration was not entertaining enough for you."

While I wanted to bite back, I knew better. I could see how haughty my words could be perceived. No need to alienate Bartfort for something so trivial.

"No, I did not mean suggest such. I only meant that I thought you would like to know the extent of your abilities. A good measure of one's capabilities would surely help you in the long run as a solo adventurer. I do apologize if I came off as rude."

Bartfort stalled at that. He did not seem used to the idea of someone admitting that they were wrong. It was something to keep in mind.

"Sorry," Bartfort muttered.

While a bit petulant, it was a good sign. He could admit his own faults. He had a good basis to becoming a follower in the future.

Plus, admitting fault meant he recognized that I was different from those who had wronged him. He would be easier to persuade.

Julius

"Ahhh, that baron must be going above and beyond to impress Angelica," Greg said lazily as we walked down the corridor.

It was a boring affair. This was supposed to be the our first dungeon raid, and yet, no Shadows appeared before us. Bartfort had cleared them all out as the vanguard. I could help but clench mybhand tightly. No doubt he was culling the Shadows because my presence.

Oh how I loathed my status as the crown prince.

Noticing my frustration, Jilk decided to say, "It will only be a matter of time. After all, everyone has their limits. He'll simply burn out sooner by showboating."

"Should we move along a bit faster then? If what you say is true, then wouldn't the vanguard be in danger," Olivia said worriedly.

"No. If the baron is trying to demonstrate his skills for Angelica, it would be crude of us to get in the way of that. Like every aspiring noble, he deserves the opportunity to climb his way up."

"But what if he pushes himself too far?"

"Then that is on him," Jilk said a tad callously. He sometimes forgot that Olivia wasn't like us. She saw us all as people and couldn't quite cut baggagr off so easily.

Deciding to appease Olivia, I stepped back into the conversation.

"Now, now. This is a place of learning, and students can psuh themselves too hard at times. It is a common enough experience that we shouldn't hold it against Bartfort. Olivia's desire to ensure the safety of her peers is commendable. We can certainly pick up the pace a bit."

Jilk nodded and mentioned something abouty my magnanimity. Greg said something about getting some action.

Looking at Olivia, I saw she had a brightened expression. Ah, the unfiltered joy and her abolity to wear her feelings so freely was a breath of fresh air.

We entered the final planned room of the dungeon raid. Aside from the teacher, it was completely empty.

"That's odd, where is the vanguard and Angelica's group?" I asked.

Had they gotten lost? No. The passage to here had been completely devoid of Shadows. Bartfort must have gone through here.

Perhaps they had used a teleport crystal?

"Your Highness," the staff member said with a bow.

"Where are the groups that were ahead of us?"

"Mr. Bartfort and Lady Angelica have descended further into the dungeons. Her followers opted to use a crystal to return to the entrance."

"You allowed them to dive deeper?" I asked with a quirked eyebrow.

Angelica was my fiancée and a ducal daughter. I wouldn't have thought the staff would be willing to put her at risk to placate her whims.

"They do have a member of the staff with them. We'd never do anything to risk your fiancée's safety."

"Might I ask why they are diving deeper?"

"Lady Angelica was curious about the extent of Mr. Bartfort's talents. It appears that the planned excursion was too basic to draw out anything from him, but I suppose that's to be expected from a solo adventurer."

Looking at Olivia, I saw she was somewhat relieved. Such a kind heart.

Still. This situation made me want to try something.

"Might we try to dive deeper as well? Due to Bartfort's prowess, we've not had the chance to face the Shadows ourselves."

"Your Highness?"

"I do not wish to trouble you, but surely you must admit that allowing us to not have any experience battling Shadows in the dungeon could be problematic."

"... Of course, but I must man the floor here to redirect students back to the entrance," the man said evasively.

"I understand, but surely an extra floor or two wouldn't be too problematic? Especially since we've yet to test ourselves. Plus, Greg has already had prior experience."

"... Very well."

Lucas

I looked at the reports on my desk. As the mentor for the two students in question, I couldn't help but knead the bridge of my nose.

My former apprentice, Olivia Gardenia, had summoned an unchained Persona in an effort to protect the prince and his friends. It was something to be considered a myth or fanciful conjecture. The ability to freely summon a Persona.

It went against everything we understood about the subject. Personas were shackled beings forced to enact our wills, or so we thought. Clearly, there was something more.

My current apprentice, Leon Fou Bartfort, was forced to summon several Shadows to ward off an unknown Shadow that had severely injured the staff member accompanying him and Ms. Redgrave.

While controlling Shadows was not particularly rare due to our research in creating artifacts to temporarily chain Shadows in a similar fashion to how we control Personas, summoning them and freely commanding them without any tools was beyond us. It mirrored Olivia's ability.

And if Ms. Redgrave's comments are to be believed, Leon may also be able to summon his Persona freely. I was inclined to believe that assessment despite Leon never summoning his Persona in front of her.

What troublesome apprentices I have. As delightful as they are, I had to ensure their safety.

Busy times were ahead of me.

AN

1) Honestly, just in a crossover mood for quite some time.

2) More world building/introduction than an actual story.

3) While this is more to fit a Persona-esque style into Mobuseka, it is also me somewhat trying to predict what theme Persona 6 might hold.

4) I think it makes sense that a Persona core theme could revolve around the difficulties and clashes betweens fulfilling one's duties/obligations at the expense of being able to express oneself freely. Thus the chains holds down the Persona until such time that one decides to free onself and be who they truly are. Then have it so that the third semester had them resolve the situation by coming to the realization that the duty/obligation in of itself is a necessary sacrifice, but doesn't need to come at the expense of the self. Very 'powerful' message high schoolers would identify with.

5) My core theme also fights nicely with Mobuseka since any romance route with necessitate that duties/obligations are shed for the love interests to be themselves.

6) Leon would be the slated rival/final boss/twist villain. Hence why he is using Shadows. He is also using more SMT style team comps.

7) Because I know someone is going to ask about Marie, dealers choice. I'm not thinking about it.

Review Response

Because so many people are asking if I will be making the Pokémon crossover it's own story, the answer is no. I have too many fics already, and I do plan on getting back to them... eventually.

Randomguy2178: They are truly artificial.

swordmaster888: Good lengthy review. Apologize if my response appears curt since I tend to word vomit whenever I respond.

To clarify some things. For your first point, I'm fairly certain you are wrong. Volume 13 AI isn't an AI crafted by Luxion, but is Luxion missing all of the memories. I think you are thinking of the AI for Arroganz in Anoseka, which you are missing the context for. Arroganz's AI was supposed to be a stopgap measure since Luxion constantly kept leaving the humans behind to stop threats like Arcadia. In this Pokémon fic, Luxion is still with Leon and thus doesn't need to craft an AI.

When you mention that Pokémon battle when they have a bond and Leon doesn't have one is handicapping him... that's the point. He's the rival character. Even if he cares about his Pokémon, he's using ones he doesn't care for. It handicaps him and also forces the protagonist to question if bonds or brutal efficiency is the best practice. And then obviously the power of friendship eventually overcomes Leon's strategy.

As for your comment about Olivia bursting into twars about people getting hurt, I already addressed this. This Olivia isn't canon Olivia. She's got game canon mentality mixed with being raised in a world that doesn't see Pokémon battling as cruelty.

For your third point about the fic not having interactions, that's more of the fault of it being a three chapter thing. I focused more on building the world and larger dynamics in the roughly 7,000 words I gave it. I'm not going to write all the small interactions necessary for something I don't plan on continuing. Obviously, a fully realized fic would actually have more character interactions and relationship building.

It's also fine if the three chapters didn't vibe with you. This is definitely one of those fics that needs a more time than what I can give it. Obviously, I focused more on the world building since I only planned on writing a coulle of chapters.

Hnbutt: ABC Demote was a little more thought out than you think it is. ABCDe. Your title, while amusing, wasn't quite what I was looking for at the time.

Phlebiac: I mean, I kinda suggested that. Olivia was able to read that something was really wrong about the relationship between Leon and his Paradox Pokémon. I mean, yeah it's vibes people can pick up on, but Olivia also feels that the Paradox Pokémon are a mockery.

Jayswing103: I did write a separate fic call A Little Closer to Home. That is kinda the endgame at the moment.