Bound By Our Desires Chapter 69: Raided, an Earthbound + Persona Series Crossover fanfic

Chapter 69: …Raided

Ω • Ω • Ω

•Akira•

Thump-thump.

He could feel the heartbeat of the Palace in his bones. Panther breathed out as she stood by him, looking up at the pyramid. "The Palace's security level is so high I can feel it all the way out here…"

"Futaba seemed totally up for gettin' her heart stolen… What's up with this?"

"Hm… Something about this place really is unusual." Mona shook his head. "Either way, there's only one thing for us to do now that we've sent the calling card!"

"Hell yeah! No matter what we gotta face, we're gonna take that Treasure for sure!"

Thump-thump.

As the Thieves discussed their next steps, Joker eyed the door to the Velvet Room. It was vague, thanks to the delirious haze he was in when they had left the Palace, but he was pretty sure they had said something about 'strengthening his Personas'.

And if that was the case, then he had a fun idea he wanted to try.

Ω • Ω • Ω

"Whip 'em, Captain Kidd!"

"Charge, Johanna!"

"Ravage them, Guardian General!"

Thump-thump.

The grand staircase was absolutely flooded with Shadows, rushing down at them from above. Joker smirked as he led the Phantom Thieves upwards, tearing through the Shadows as they kept coming. Fox suddenly sped by, his katana slashing through multiple Shadows as Ann shot down several Anzu that attempted to strike him from behind. Whipping winds courtesy of Zorro then tore through Shadow flesh and sent black blood spurting.

He spotted an Anubis raising its scales, golden light coalescing. "Principality!" He intercepted the blast of holy light, before emerging from the stream and stabbing the jackal-headed god in the throat. "Guardian General!" The Golem Persona roared and leaped down from further up the staircase, and Joker backflipped away as it crushed the Anubis.

Queen caught him by the hand as she sped by on Johanna, and he swung around, standing behind her on her Persona as he grabbed her shoulder for stability with one hand, and blasted away at the Shadows with his gun in the other. "We're almost at the top! Tear through them!"

Thump-thump.

"Got it, Joker!" She revved Johanna's engine, and the motorcycle roared as it unleashed a nuclear shockwave, blasting away every Shadow near them.

The battle continued all the way up until they finally reached the summit of the staircase. He hopped off Johanna's seat as Queen dismissed the summon back to her mask, and the rest of the Phantom Thieves quickly joined them. "I hope she read the calling card," Panther mumbled uncertainly.

"Don't worry, I made sure she did."

"Good, cuz after all the trouble we went through, she damn well better've read it!" Suddenly the pillars of 'glass' that made up the door began to descend with a futuristic noise, revealing an elevator. Skull whooped at the sight. "All right! It's open!"

Thump-thump.

"I smell the Treasure up ahead! Let's finish this!" They piled in and rode the elevator towards the peak, only to find themselves in a vast room with seemingly no end. Similar to Kamoshida's castle, the distortions were incredibly strong as they got closer to the Treasure, with only patches of sandstone making pathways to a door on the far side of the room. Between the patches, a vast drop waited, and in the distance all around them, they could see holographic displays and code, constantly fluctuating.

"So, this is the place that represents Futaba's room."

Skull snorted at Queen's murmur and scuffed his shoes. "Yup, this is the heart of a hacker alright. Anyways, where's the Treasure?"

"I'm getting a strong signal from above us, through that door over there. The Treasure has definitely manifested."

"Then let's get going," he spoke as he strode forward. "This is the final stretch. Keep an eye out, and watch each other's backs!"

"Aye aye, Joker!"

Thump-thump.

They began to race their way across the floating islands, avoiding Shadows as they went. They didn't bother sneaking, instead rushing through even as the monsters around them spotted them and tried to chase them. "Up this way!" They ran up a crumbling stairway, weaved between pillars, and just before a Shadow could grab them, he grinned and jumped off the platform, shooting his grappling hook out into a sarcophagus that was floating above the abyss.

His fellow thieves followed his lead with varying shouts of alarm as their grappling hooks pulled them along after him. The Shadows that tried to follow tumbled off into the abyss after them, while he landed on a pillar, pushing off it and using his grapple to swing around and land on the final rocky outcrop right in front of the door leading to the Treasure.

"Whoaaa!" Everyone landed with him, with varying levels of skill and finesse, Skull in particular rolling along the ground and slamming into the wall next to the door.

Thump-thump.

Mona completely ignored him. "There's no doubt about it. The Treasure is right past this point."

Fox fingered the hilt of Jagato. "What may await us within?"

"No matter what it is, we need to be ready for it!"

He grinned as he grabbed Skull and pulled him to his feet. "Let's go."

Panther nodded vigorously, an intense expression on her face that couldn't be hidden by her mask. "We're coming to save you, Futaba-chan!"

Thump-thump.

Ω • Ω • Ω

•Futaba•

"If I use this… I can change my heart?" She stared down at the eye of the mysterious app as it peered back at her. After a moment of hesitation, she tapped the icon. It opened up and she could see several options such as a history, and places to input 'keywords'. "Vocal input'…? Fu… Fu-Futaba Sakura… Sojiro Sakura's house. And then… Something about 'distortion'…"

She pulled her feet closer on her gaming chair, thinking. "Distortion… Distortion… Hm?" She felt her heart clench and her head throb. She could hear the blood rushing through her ears and she groaned. "Not again…"

"You killed her!"

"You're a plague!"

"Murderer!"

"It's all your fault!"

"You're the one who killed her!"

"Don't come near me!"

The voices echoed, louder, louder, louder. "NO!" She scrambled off her chair, knocking it over. She tripped on the papers scattered on her floor, then ran for the door to her room. She had to get out, get out, had to escape her to—. Futaba burst through the door to her room, before stopping, sweat trickling down her face. "That's right… I remember now. Back when they were here, I… I messaged 'tomb' in the chat, and…"

The world distorted.

"Input accepted. Searching for route to destination."

She looked down at her phone in surprise. "I can go in now?"

"You're the murderer!"

She grabbed her head and cried out. "N-No!"

"You're the one who killed her!"

"It's all your fault!"

"I can't take this anymore!"

The app didn't care for her crisis. "Beginning navigation."

Ω • Ω • Ω

•Akira•

Thump-thump-thump.

Another elevator ride awaited them through the door, and at the very top was a dark, small room. It seemed they had reached the very peak of the Pyramid, considering the walls all began sloping inwards into a point just a few meters above them. The only reason they could even see was the neon light coming from the elevator platform, and from underneath what looked to be a sarcophagus, the only thing in the room.

But he was more focused on the heartbeat permeating the Palace. It had sped up, even though they hadn't confronted the Shadow yet…

"The hell? This ain't what I was imaginin'!"

Fox gazed at him out of the corner of his eye. "Were you expecting a mountain of treasure or something of that sort?"

"There IS that over there," Panther pointed out, motioning toward the sarcophagus.

"…That's it?"

Thump-thump-thump.

"The Treasure must be inside," Queen suggested.

"All right, let's take it! Joker, help me get the lid off!"

As he stepped forward with Skull, Fox crossed his arms. "Be careful."

"T-Treasure…!"

"Alright, calm down Mona—"

The pyramid rumbled, and everyone stumbled. Something screamed outside the pyramid, and Fox drew Jagato. "There's something here…"

Thump-thump-thump.

"I got a bad feelin' about this…" More rumbling shook the pyramid, and the massive stone bricks that made up the structure were smashed aside like Legos, letting in bright sunlight. Everyone shielded their eyes from the sudden light streaming in before it was blocked once more by a massive figure. A huge eyeball stared down at them, and an ear-splitting roar rang out.

"FUUUUUTAAAAABAAAAAAAAA!"

Everyone cried out and covered their ears, while Queen took a step back to try and get a better look at the figure. "Is it a Shadow?! No… then—!"

"It's certainly not Futaba!" Fox observed.

Mona's eyes widened. "Don't tell me…!"

Massive paws began battering at the pyramid, before the beast soared into the air, massive wings creating gusts of wind so strong that they tore the blocks free and revealed more of the figure. It was a Sphinx, humongous in stature, the head of the woman having black hair and eyes hidden behind square glasses with an Egyptian cuirass over her lion body.

"T-This is insane!" Panther cried out as she struggled to keep her footing, the wing beats of the Sphinx alone enough to force everyone back.

Thump-thump-thump.

Eventually it was too much, Skull cried out as he was sent tumbling, grabbing hold of the elevator to prevent himself from being blasted off the roof of the pyramid. "If it's not a Shadow… Then what is it?!"

"It's a… Cognition!" Mona struggled to form words, even Zorro's resistance to wind not enough to keep him steady. "A monster that Futaba's cognition created!"

"How can that be?!" Before Queen's question could be answered, the wind blasts tore a pillar apart, sending it crashing down towards her.

"HEY LOOK OUT!" Queen gasped as Skull's scream alerted her to the danger, and it was only thanks to Joker tackling her to the side that she managed to avoid being crushed. He breathed a sigh of relief and wanted to think up a witty line as he helped Queen to her feet, but didn't have the time as the cognition snarled down at them and Skull cried a warning. "Here it comes!"

The Beast That Rules the Palace began to circle the pyramid, even at such a distance its wingbeats caused their clothing to flutter and sand to be kicked up. "Do not approach the pharaoh's tomb! Misfortune will fall upon you!"

Thump-thump-thump.

Mona grimaced, eyeing the Sphinx. "Look at that thing fly about! We can't reach it like this! The only thing we can do right now is shoot it with our guns and hit it with our magic!"

"Everyone, let loose!" He pulled out his gun as he gave the order, firing several rounds while his other hand reached for his mask. "No holding back!"

"Let's go, Captain!"

"Dance, Carmen!"

"Zorro, show your might!"

"Goemon, strike!"

"Charge, Johanna!"

Even though it was a dire situation, he still felt a grin settle onto his face as he pushed the Persona he wished to summon to the forefront of his mind, the one he'd spent ample money on improving with the Gallows in the Velvet Room.

HahahaHAHAHAHA! Dark laughter echoed, and chains rattled. But spending all that money was worth it to bring him back stronger than ever.

"Ravage them, ARSÈNE!"

The quintessential Gentleman Thief appeared, newly empowered to catch up with the rest of his Personas. Chains flickered around him, his wings spread, and even though his flaming face never changed, he knew the Persona was grinning as widely as his was, as he appeared in a needlessly dramatic pose and a flourish of blue flame. "Perish!" Arsène snapped his clawed hand, and a ball of black flame was launched alongside the rest of his team's magic attacks, the powerful Eiga spell splashing against the side of the Sphinx as it howled in rage at the strikes.

Thump-thump-thump.

"Whoa, you got Arsène back?!"

"You think I was going to get rid of him forever?" He reloaded his gun, all while Arsène launched more cursed Eiga fireballs.

While it didn't seem like their magical attacks and bullets weren't doing much, at the very least it was annoying the monster. It let out a warbling roar, before soaring straight for the pyramid. Joker and Queen separated, jumping to either side as it slammed a paw down and tried to crush them. He fired a bullet into its eye, but it bounced off the beast's glasses.

Why can't your glasses do that?

Not now!

Yes, let the human focus.

'Thank you.' The beast flew back into the air, and used a powerful wing beat to send gales of wind towards them. Everyone gritted their teeth as they tried to endure, with Skull being hit the hardest thanks to his weakness. As soon as it ended, he switched to Principality. "Diarama!"

"Thanks!"

"Hey, what's it doing?!" He turned at Panther's question and saw the beast shoot off into the sky. Higher, higher… soon enough, the cloud cover hid it from view.

Thump-thump-thump.

"H-How far did it fly up?!" Mona tried to strain his eyes, but it looked like even he couldn't tell. "What's it gonna do?! Don't tell me, is it gonna dive attack us?!"

Queen immediately used the Ring of Gluttony, golden vault doors falling and raising their defenses. "Everyone, prepare yourselves!"

"How are we to prepare for a dive attack such as this?" Fox murmured, practically falling backward as he kept an eye on the sky.

"Mona, hit us with a Media, make sure everyone is topped up!"

Mona absentmindedly did so, muttering nervously to himself the whole time. "Damn that thing… When's it gonna strike?!"

Everyone rushed to get ready for whenever the Sphinx would strike, with defense buffs, agility buffs, healing… With nothing else they could do to prepare, everyone nervously guarded themselves, craning their heads back to try and spot the—

"LOOK OUT!" The Beast That Rules the Palace came crashing down, having fell so fast that it appeared in the blink of an eye. It slammed down and sent everyone flying back, knocking Fox out and sending Queen dangerously close to the edge of the pyramid.

"Shit!" Joker had no time to focus on healing, as the monster attempted to swat him into the distance. He just barely managed to jump back, feeling a rush of wind as the claws of the Sphinx missed him by inches. It snarled and took off again, buffeting him with the winds. "Mona, heal Fox! Queen, you good?!"

Thump-thump-thump.

"I'm fine!" She fired off some pot-shots, scowling. "That thing is strong!"

"Mona, did you learn anything when it crashed down?! Any tells for when it might land the next time it dives?!"

"Ngh…" Mona winced, uncertain. "No… I can't tell at all when it's going to attack!"

Skull groaned, holding his shoulder as he began to panic. "What do you mean you can't tell?! You gotta tell us, Mona!"

"I can't help it! There are some things that even I can't do!"

"Enough!" He readied his blade as the Sphinx began to swoop down toward them, though thankfully not in another dive. "Get ready to fight!"

Ω • Ω • Ω

•Futaba•

She looked around in wonder, eyeing the weird green symbols that were falling around her at high speed. "So this is inside my heart… I didn't think it'd be like this…"

She continued walking forward, before a massive screen crashed down in front of her, startling a 'yipe!' from her. On it, a picture of her wearing Egyptian clothing sat in a throne before several owl-headed men.

"Do you remember?" The odd mirror-her with glowing gold eyes appeared, and Futaba took a step back. Of course she knew what it represented.

"This is the suicide note… The men in black suits read it right after Mom died…"

"That's correct." Another mural fell into place. It showed her Mom throwing herself into the car that killed her. "Look at the next one."

Her throat closed up, and she held her arm. "This is… When Mom jumped in front of that car…"

"That's right." The final mural fell, and she did as well, collapsing onto her knees as she saw the scene of her selfishly hogging her mom's time. "Now the next."

"No…"

"Don't run. I thought you made your mind up after you talked to the Phantom Thieves."

"Okay… I'll look." It took her a moment. A moment where she had to gather her courage, before she stood up and stared at the mural, taking a shuddering breath. "…It's me complaining, Mom scolded me for bothering her…"

"Yes."

Futaba clenched her fists. "I knew it. It was me who killed Mom. I was a bad daughter… I weighed her down, and she hated me for it… It's just like I remember…"

Mirror-her stared at her. Her golden eyes looked empty, but intense. "Are you sure?"

"Huh?"

Mirror-her stepped closer, then around her, lifting her chin to stare at the mural again. "Remember everything. Don't avert your eyes. When did this happen?"

"Just a little before Mom died… I whined about wanting to go on a family trip, but she scolded me and said no."

"Was that all she said?"

"Mom said… 'I'm too busy right now. I need to finish my cognitive research as soon as possible.'"

"And what did you do?"

"I threw a tantrum. Told her she thought her research was more important than I was. That's when she scolded me."

"What did she say afterwards? There was more."

"…" She stared at the mural. She didn't… what was Mirror-her saying…? But… "Did she say…?" She thought, hard. Mom had said something after that, didn't she? "'My research is almost over. Once it's finished, we can go where you like. I'm sorry I've left you alone for so long, Futaba. Please try to understand though. This research is really important. I need to complete it, even if it costs me my life.'"

"Did she hate you?"

"She didn't…?" The mural began to glow. A small change occurred, minuscule in comparison to the whole picture, but to her, it was the most noticeable thing about it. "Wh-What?! She smiled… AGH!" She collapsed to her knees, grabbing her throbbing head as pain lanced through it. "It hurts…! Which is true?!"

"Your mem̶o̸r̶͕̀y̸͓̋ ǐ̷̮̻͇̈́͛̎̈́͐̌̚s̴͓̞̦̜̟̟͔̐̾̈̉̐ͅ…̷̨̨̤͍͇̦̱̙̝̠͔̀̾͋͊̔̒̅̔̃̿̈́͘" The weird version of her disappeared as her voice became more distorted.

A scream echoed around her. "Huh?!" She felt the ground beneath her rumble, but she focused on something ahead and above her. "It's calling me…?"

She was silent for several moments before she furrowed her brow in determination and began to run.

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

Ω • Ω • Ω

"The hell?! We ain't doin' shit to it!" As she climbed out into the open, she heard a familiar voice ahead. It was the vulgar boy, with blond hair. As she stepped around a pile of rubble, she saw him, as well as the other Phantom Thieves, all wearing… really weird outfits, and clearly hurt and exhausted, battered and bruised.

The one wearing the sexy biker outfit saw her and gasped. "Huh?! Futaba?! You came into your cognitive world?!"

"Mm-hm." She stepped closer, and saw some kind of… weird mascot thing look at her nervously.

"The person themselves coming into their own Palace? If that happens…"

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

A scream interrupted them. Futaba's gaze was drawn upwards, and she saw a monster swooping closer to the pyramid. A Sphinx… with the head of… "That's…"

You killed her!

A memory stopped her, the men and women in black that told her what she had done. What she had caused. "No…"

Why don't you say something?!

It's your fault!

She fell to her knees, hugging herself. "It's my fault… It's my fault that Mom…"

Someone grabbed her shoulder, but the screams of the monster drowned everything out. "That's right! You killed me!"

"Wait, is that monster her mother?"

"Futaba's desires and guilt must've distorted her cognition of her! The wish that her mother was alive again is mixed in as well, along with those eerie jeers…"

She couldn't understand who was talking or what they were saying, the beast the only thing dominating her attention. "You are nothing but a demon who stood in my way! I wish you had never been born! That way I could've announced my results without having to waste my time on you! I poured my heart and soul into that research! It would've been the discovery of the century!"

"What does she mean by that?"

"Could she be talking about cognitive psience?"

"You're going to die! There's no meaning to your life! No one needs you!"

"Nobody cares about me…"

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

The memories rushed back. The men who read the suicide note. 'I should never have had Futaba…' 'She was always such a bother…' It seems you caused your mother a great deal of trouble, Futaba-chan…

She must have had some kind of maternity neurosis…

"N-Ngh…"

Visions of her mother appeared around her. They reached for her, trying to drag her down to hell for what she did.

"Agh— AHH!"

"F-FuuutaBAAAAA!"

"You… Arrreeeee…"

"Ah… No! Stop!"

"Hey, we're gonna be in deep shit if this keeps up!"

"Skull, wait, the Sphinx hasn't attacked… Is it more focused on tormenting her?!"

"So because she thinks she killed her mother… and because she thinks she deserves to die… Futaba gave birth to a Palace where her mother wants her dead?"

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

"Futaba-Chan, look!" The nice, pretty girl with the blonde hair knelt and forced her to look at her face. "There's no way that monster is your mother! It's just an illusion you created!"

The other, brunette girl gently turned her. "She never abused you, did she?! Boss told us! He said she did her best to raise you alone!"

The tall, lanky boy with indigo hair knelt next to her. "Isn't this a false memory that's been imprinted upon you?"

"A false memory…? Ugh!"

You made your mother destroy all her research, Futaba-chan… She had worked so hard on it as well. She lost her mind, and it's all because of you.

It's your fault!

Murderer!

"M-Mom… I-I…"

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

The memories suddenly vanished. "It's her Shadow!"

She looked up with wide eyes as Mirror-her stared down at her, furious. "Futaba Sakura! Remember!"

The world became just the two of them, the screams of her mother dying out, the concerned words of the Phantom Thieves disappearing. All that was left was her, Mirror-her, and the darkness. "You're the reason she committed suicide. You were just getting in the way of her research. Why did you think it was suicide?"

"…Because of the note."

"Exactly. The men in black suits read her suicide note to you, and what was written on it?"

"All of her complaints… about me."

"Yes. The shock and the pain led you to avert your eyes. But they kept reading it aloud in front of your relatives." Mirror-her let the words sink in. "Think hard. Was that suicide note real? Would the mother you loved so much truly have written that? Did she ever say such horrible things to you?"

Did she…?

"My research is almost over. Once it's finished, we can go where you like. I'm sorry I've left you alone for so long, Futaba. Please try to understand though. This research is really important. I need to complete it, even if it costs me my life."

She didn't hate her… She never said such things!

"No!" Futaba stood up, glaring at Mirror-her. "She scolded me whenever I had tantrums, but she cared for me!"

Mirror-her nodded. "Then what about the suicide note?"

"A total lie!"

The look on her golden-eyed self's face was furious, enraged. "You were used! They forged her suicide note and laid the blame of her death upon you! They trampled all over your young heart! Get mad! Don't forgive those rotten adults!"

"It's because I couldn't face myself, or Mom's death… Even then, why did they have to yell at me like that?!"

The dark void disappeared, and she stood up. The girls stepped away, and the lanky boy stood as well. "Ah… NGH!" Pain lanced through her head, different from before. It was a blinding, numbing pain, and the blonde girl gasped.

"Futaba-chan?!"

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

What denies you is an illusion… A curse put upon you by the heartless… You knew from the very beginning… And yet, you cowered in fear…

"That's right. I knew, but I…"

"It's all your fault! This time, you'll be the one to die!"

Will you die as you are told? Who will you obey? Cursed words spat out by a seething illusion? Or the truth within your own soul?

"Everyone, protect her! She's about to—!"

"It's your fault! IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!"

Thumpthumpthumpthump.

Massive gales of wind slammed into them, and she whimpered as she felt grains of sand sting her skin… But she forced herself to keep standing. "I won't let those distorted lies deceive me anymore… And I won't be led astray by other's voices either… I'm going to trust my own eyes and my own heart to distinguish the truth from the lies. There's no way you're my mom! You're just a fake created by those horrid adults!"

The monster screamed down at her, but she ignored the corrupted words. She would trust her own heart from now on.

"I'll… I'll never…"

The pain reached a crescendo, and something in her finally snapped as she glared up at the false mother.

THUMP.

"I'LL NEVER FORGIVE THEM!"

She spread her arms to either side as Mirror-her appeared behind her, haloing her in pure light. With a flash, the golden-eyed version of her transformed into an alien UFO. At its top, a stylized gargoyle squatted, while mysterious symbols glowing neon-green lined its sides. Five orbs pulsing with similar-colored light formed a pentagram as broken chains floated around it.

"What is that?!"

"It's… her Persona!"

Tentacles began to slither out from a hole in the center of the pentagram, wrapping around Futaba's body and pulling her up within it, while the glowing rings of a tractor beam helped lift. "Wha… whoa!" She was pulled inside and she squeezed her eyes closed, slightly afraid of what she might find.

"Contract: I am thou, Thou art I… The forbidden wisdom has been revealed." Light shone against her eyelids through her glasses, and she opened them to find herself floating in a dark void, dozens of green holographic screens floating around her, while multiple rings formed of various esoteric symbols rotated about her body. "No mysteries… No illusions shall deceive you any longer."

She couldn't help the giggle that left her, tapping one of the screens with a finger and watching it respond to her touch. Stat screens for all of the Phantom Thieves revealed their health pools, their remaining mana, even their elemental affinities! More screens showed the stats of her false mother, and she grinned at the influx of information. "Wow…"

"I am the embodiment of the arcane knowledge, the grimoire of the dead: Necronomicon. Behold my hidden truths."

"Futaba?!"

She looked down at the one who'd called out to her. Her screens told her that it was Makoto Niijima, though she wasn't sure if that was because she already knew who they were when she'd done her research on the Phantom Thieves, or some innate power of her Necronomicon. She swiped away the screens and called up a keyboard, typing in her commands. Within seconds she set up a call between everyone, allowing her to talk into their minds.

[Don't worry, I'm okay!]

"Look at that…!"

Laughing at Morgana's (Wasn't that Starr's cat?) amazement, she focused her attention on the Sphinx. [Please, help me! That thing's gotta go!]

Seeing Akira Starr smirk and Ryuji Sakamoto grin at her enthusiasm, she began to input her next set of commands, the Phantom Thieves turning, reinvigorated, and ready to finish the fight.

The final battle was on!

Ω • Ω • Ω

•Akira•

"FUTABAAAAAAAA!" Joker dove to the side as the Cognitive Wakaba Isshiki's paw crashed down where he'd just stood, Rakshasa slicing into the fur and flesh. But even as he dodged and struck, the cognition's full attention seemed to be on Futaba, screaming at her Persona even as it hovered a safe distance from the pyramid. "I know I didn't raise you to be like that! How dare you run around with such an awful crowd! The only thing you should be doing is following my orders!"

[M-Mom… No, that's not her! You're just a monster!]

"Talking back to your own mother?! You've spent too much time with these no good punks, haven't you?! I'll crush them!" After screaming so, the Sphinx took off once more, flying high into the cloud cover.

"Damn!" Mona hopped over, craning his head back. "It's going to swoop down on us again?! Joker, can you think of anything we can do to stop it?"

[Don't worry, I'll take care of it!]

It was weird hearing Futaba's voice in his head like that. When his Personas talked to him, it felt natural. They were a part of him, after all. But he could ignore that, and turned to look at the UFO. "We're counting on you."

He could hear her grinning as she did… something inside her Persona. [This is my heart's world, right? Hacking into my distortion should be no problem for me!] Before he could question what she meant, the cognition of Wakaba struck. She crashed down in the center of the pyramid, but this time a massive dome of green, enigmatic symbols surrounded him and the rest of the Phantom Thieves. The power of the dive rebounded directly into Wakaba, and the monster screamed in pain as she was thrown head over tail through the air and off the pyramid. [I won't let you!]

"Awright! Awesome work, Futaba!"

"Yeah! Great job, Futaba-chan!"

The Sphinx snarled, righting itself in midair and beginning to circle them again. "YOU GODDAMN BRATS!"

Joker violently twitched hearing that phrase again, while Futaba just snickered over their mental connections. [Now it's our turn! Here goes, I'm summoning our ultimate weapon to the battlefield!] Necronomicon hovered at the edge of the pyramid and rings of green light shone down, creating one of the huge ballistas they had used throughout the Palace.

Mona blinked owlishly at the sight. "W-What the-?!"

[Shoot it down with this, then beat the crap outta it!]

"Ah, I get it now! Let's go! Joker, who do you want to fire it?!"

"Heh, mind if I do it?"

Joker grinned. "Go for it, Skull!" As his teammate ran towards the weapon, the Sphinx screamed and rocketed toward them. Everyone began firing, their bullets not doing much to stop the Sphinx's advance before it smashed into the side of the pyramid. She screamed and swiped at Panther and Fox, who both just barely dodged back in time, continuing to fire their guns as their Personas unleashed magical attacks. Fire and ice scorched Cognitive Wakaba's face, and she snarled as she tried to gnash down at them with her sharpened canines.

"Goemon, strike!" At his urging, Fox's Persona struck Wakaba in the temple, dazing her. "Joker, now!"

"Got it!" He pushed Rakshasa and Yaksini to the forefront of his mind, and felt the blinding pain that came with it. "Ahh… ARRGHHHH!" As he tore his mask free with a shower of blood, and his eyes turned crimson red, he hunched over, feral, and unleashed the Fusion Spell. "SAVAGE BLOOD!"

His Personas began to tear into Wakaba, flesh and fur gouged out in great chunks as she screamed in pain, the force of it causing the pyramid beneath them to rumble. "Let's not let Joker do all the work, Panther!"

"Yeah, let's get her, Mona!" Just as his Personas vanished and his mask reappeared, Mona and Panther jumped forward, the entirety of the Palace warping into the field of flowers that comprised their Showtime attack. Cognitive Wakaba shrieked as Panther's bullets and Mona's cartoony bomb went off, blasting her away and into the air as Futaba's Palace reasserted its reality..

"GNYAH! How dare you!" The Sphinx then focused her gaze on the Necronomicon, snarling as she flapped her wings. "After all I did to raise you… You dare side with these villains and neglect your mother like this?! I am your MOTHER! The one and only in this whole, awful world!"

Joker snorted. "Nah. Calling bullshit on that one."

"What?! Why won't you admit it?! Why, why, whywhywhywhy—"

[Mom is gone. No matter how much I wish for her to be with me, it'll never come true. That's why I'll live in the real world, even if she's not there with me anymore! And I'm gonna love my life as free and happy as I can!]

"For a child to survive in your cruel world, they need a concerned mother figure— like me! Understand?!"

"Yeah, that might be true. But you're just a fake," Joker shrugged, taking potshots verbally and with his gun.

"I'm a… a fake?!"

[Listen, my mom is so precious to me, and I still love her a ton… But, you're not her! And I'll never live a life where everything gets decided by someone else!]

The Sphinx stopped circling, instead hovering in the air directly in front of the pyramid as she alternated glares between him and Futaba. "Naughty children who defy their parents… should be punished!" Within seconds she soared forward and struck the side of the pyramid, rearing one paw back and swiping it across the top. If she managed to complete the attack, it would easily be enough to send them all flying.

Luckily, they had Futaba.

[I won't let you!] Another dome of green symbols surrounded the Phantom Thieves and reflected all the power of the attack back at Wakaba. The Cognition screamed in pain and Futaba focused her attention on Skull. [Sakamoto, focus your aim… Adjust vertical alignment… Ready… Now! FIRE!]

"Yeah, let 'er rip!" The ballista launched its javelin, spearing Wakaba in the side as her wings were on the downbeat. It easily cleaved through feather, cartilage, and flesh, pinning her right wing to her side and sending her crashing down. She groaned as she lay on the pyramid, the Phantom Theives quickly surrounding her in a Hold Up.

"Nghhh… How… Dare you…! Children that defy their mothers should… DIE!"

[Shut up! You're not my mom! You're just a monster born from my own weakness… Everyone, keep attacking it! Don't let up!]

"You got it, Futaba! Phantom Thieves!" He smirked and twirled his blade. "ALL-OUT ATTACK!"

Everyone began to relentlessly assault the Cognitive Wakaba Isshiki, with blades, hammers, guns, and Personas. Flames and wind scorched and slashed up her body, while Queen and Fox used their superior physical strength to tear into her. Joker summoned Arsène had the Gentleman Thief tear into her with his claws and heeled boots, and as Wakaba tried to take off again, Skull roared as he ran around her side and smashed his hammer into the spear that pinned her wing to her side, keeping her grounded.

Wakaba desperately attempted to swipe at them with her good paw, but grounded as she was, she couldn't keep up with even the least agile of the Phantom Thieves. Instead, she focused her hate-filled gaze on the Necronomicon as it reloaded the ballista. "Futabaaaa! It's all because I had you… You did this… You screwed up my life! All you did was get in the way of my research! I should've never had you!"

"Man, you are terrible at acting like the real Wakaba," he smirked as he backflipped over her paw and fired several bullets.

"No, that's exactly what I've always thought! If Futaba wasn't around, I—"

[That's a lie,] Futaba cut her off, voice filled with confidence. [Mom told me herself! She said no matter what, she could keep working so hard because of me… The one who decided my existence was a burden on her is myself! No one else!]

"No matter how much you struggle, you'll never escape me! You'll be tormented by your personal guilt FOREVER!"

"She won't be. Because we'll have her back."

"That's right!" Panther unleashed a burst from her gun, Carmen behind her throwing balls of flame. "She won't be alone!"

"And we'll make damn sure she knows she's got nothin' to feel guilty about!" Skull roared as he smashed Wakaba over the head with his weapon.

"B-But, that's impossible…" The Cognition seemed to be breaking down as they countered everything it said, all of Futaba's fears being proven wrong by them and herself, leaving it dazed and confused amidst the violence.

[No! With them, even the impossible can be made possible!] Futaba set up another barrier as Wakaba threw out a desperate swipe with her paw, reflecting the damage once more. The Cognition let out a roar of agony and rage, and flapped her wings, beginning to tear the spear the ballista had launched free.

Queen cursed, summoning Johanna. "Stop her, before she gets free!"

Skull was too far to hit the spear back in, having dodged an attack and landing near the ballista. Joker thought for a moment, before ripping his mask off again. "Arsène!"

"Allow me the pleasure," Arsène smirked and the chains that surrounded him launched forward. As he stood on Wakaba's opposite side, they wrapped around her, grabbed the spear, and as he pulled them towards him, shoved the spear deeper into Wakaba's body, causing another scream.

"Whoa, since when could Arsène do that?!"

"I just kinda went with the flow," he grunted in answer to Mona's question. He felt the chains begin to strain, and physically grabbed them alongside Arsène. "But… She's a bit too strong…! I'm losing my grip!"

"Skull, the ballista!"

"Got it!" The blond sprinted over and pulled the trigger, another spear having been loaded thanks to Futaba. "No need to aim when she's already grounded!"

The spear launched itself straight into Wakaba's forehead, throwing her head back as black blood spurted from the wound. "Ahh— Ahhh… Fu— Futaba! Futaba, Futaba, FUTABAAAAAA!" On her last legs, one wing pinned to her side and chains wrapped around her while a spear stuck out of her forehead, the Sphinx just screamed, pure wrath spewing from her. "It doesn't matter what you say! Futaba is MY property! Defying one's mother is absolutely disgraceful!"

With her so weakened, Joker sighed and let go of the chains, leaving Arsène to hold them instead as he casually walked around her front to stare her down, his fellow Thieves joining him. "Sorry, but we'll be taking Futaba."

"Shut up! SHUT UUUUUUUUP!" Cognitive Wakaba Isshiki thrashed, and Joker nodded at Arsène to vanish before his chains could snap. Even after being freed she couldn't fly away, or even fight back anymore, too wounded and exhausted by that point. She breathed heavily, hot air, even hotter than the desert normally was, washing over them. "Ngh… Futaba… If only I had never birthed you…!"

He pulled out his gun and looked back at the Necronomicon for permission. [No matter what you say to me… I will live! Fire!]

He pulled the trigger.

The Sphinx was too injured by that point, and Futaba's final rejection of her past twisted delusions and desires allowed his round to finally put down the Cognition. Cognitive Wakaba Isshiki lost her grip on the top of the pyramid and began tumbling down it, crashing to the bottom with a massive thump.

Silence reigned for several moments, before a quiet thrumming grew louder as the Necronomicon floated down to the pyramid. It carefully deposited Futaba with more glowing rings and tentacles as he and Fox steadied her as she almost tripped over herself.

He got a good look at her outfit now, a sleek, black suit with glowing green lines all along it. Her boots were thick and heavy, colored orange along with the fingers of her gloves, with large pockets on either thigh and huge, red-lensed goggles over her glasses. It almost looked like something from the Trom movies.

"T-Thanks."

Queen quickly hurried over, leaning down to the younger girl's height and checking on her. "Futaba, are you alright?!"

"Y-Yeah, thanks."

"Damn, you're freakin' incredible!"

"Skull's right," he agreed, "you were amazing during that fight."

Futaba seemed to redden at all the praise and pulled away from him and Fox, before finally taking notice of her outfit. "Whoa! What in the world?!" She ran her hands up her outfit, amazed at the switch. "Ooh, it's totally skin-tight!"

Panther wasn't sure how to respond to that and glanced at him, but all he could do was shrug. "Uh…"

A pure light began drew everyone's attention, and he heard Futaba's breath catch as another version of her mother appeared, this one transparent, but completely human. "Another thing showed up?!" Skull exclaimed.

"Mom?!"

"Huh…?"

The new cognition of Wakaba smiled, no hatred on her face at all. "Futaba. Thank you for choosing to remember the real me."

Futaba wrung her hands. "I'm sorry for being so selfish. Mom…"

She tried to step closer, but Wakaba shook her head. "Don't come over here. This isn't where you're supposed to be, is it?"

"But I finally got to see you again…"

Wakaba laughed. "Are you being selfish again?"

Futaba sniffled, shuffling in place. "Um, I… I love you, Mom…"

"I love you too, Futaba. Now, you should get going." With a final caring smile, she vanished into sparkles of white light, Futaba watching her go quietly.

No one said anything, letting the girl process what she saw. After a bout of silence, Futaba turned and nodded. "Oh, right. Medjed."

She began to walk away, and Queen stepped forward. "Where are you going?"

"Home. I know how to use the Nav now."

"Huh? Oh… Right."

Panther coughed awkwardly as Futaba casually stepped towards the edge of the pyramid and pulled out her phone, before disappearing. "She left…"

"That girl marches to the beat of her own drum, doesn't she?"

Skull scoffed in Fox's direction. "Like you're one to talk."

"But if we have her on our side… Wait, what about her Treasure?"

"Oh yeah, we almost forgot!" Skull ran over to the sarcophagus and he followed, the both of them grabbing the lid and forcing it open. It took a moment, but they managed to wrench it off, accidentally sending the whole thing onto its side.

"Hey, careful! Wait, it's empty?"

Hearing Panther's confusion, he knelt to look inside and sure enough, nothing but dust and sand. "What the hell d—?" Before he could finish his question, the Palace rumbled.

Everyone yelped, trying to catch their balance, and Skull looked down at Mona in confusion. "What's going on?! Wasn't it supposed to be here?!"

The not-cat took a moment to think, before his eyes widened. "Futaba herself was the Treasure! And she's gone, so of course it's empty!"

"What?!" Joker tried to wrap his mind around that one. Before he could, the Palace rumbled again, harder.

"Shoot… This is bad!"

"What's the matter?" Fox asked Mona, hearing the distress.

"Not only did the real person come into her own Palace, she awakened to a Persona while she was here! This place could collapse any second now!"

"Shit!"

Queen stepped forward, trying to calm the group. "We've accomplished our mission if her Palace is crumbling. We should hurry back to reality!"

"That would be wise!" Fox readily agreed. They began to sprint for the elevator but it crumbled before they could reach it, falling into a dark abyss below.

"Everyone!" Joker began to sprint for the side of the pyramid, hopping down the side and using the massive blocks as a large staircase. "We'll run down the side! Hurry!"

"Aw craaaaap!"

Joker didn't dare look behind himself as he and his Thieves sprinted down the side of the pyramid as fast as they could without tripping over themselves, even as he heard the collapse of the structure behind them, large clouds of sand billowing out around them.

Fox was able to stomach his fear apparently, as he heard the boy cry out beside him. "It's catching up to us!"

"Runnin' here's a bitch!"

"Mona! Turn into a car already!"

"I know! I know, I kn—!" Before he could finish answering her, Panther grabbed him by the head and launched him high into the sky with a loud yell. There was a puff of smoke as he transformed midair, landing on the ground and shaking himself out.

"Come on, come on!" The collapse finally caught up with them and everyone screamed as the force of it launched them through the air. Joker cried out as he tumbled, scrambling for his mask. "Arsène!"

Of course, as the Metaverse was in the middle of a collapse, he couldn't summon a Persona.

Sorry!

"Hyah!" Mona luckily managed to catch them, the back door on the Mona Mobile opening, as well as the couch inside expanding to give them a cushiony landing. They bounced around inside, with Queen thrown into the driver's seat, where she immediately slammed on the accelerator as she reoriented herself. Mona lurched forward just as a massive block stone crashed down into the sand, dissolving into green symbols, almost crushing them.

"GO, GO!"

"I'M GOING!" Queen struggled to keep her foot on the pedal as she moved in her seat, grabbing the steering wheel and spinning it so they could dodge another boulder. Joker shoved Skull's foot out of his face, turning to look out the back window and watch as the pyramid fully collapsed in on itself, some rock cubes still being launched out, before the entirety of the desert began to fall in on itself into the black void beneath every Palace.

Fox noticed as well, and grabbed Joker's shoulder. "Should we use the Nav?!"

"We're… probably far enough that we won't all crush each other in Sakura's house! I'm using it!" He dug his phone out and frantically pressed the button for the nav, everyone crying out as the sandstorm kicked up by the pyramid's destruction washed over the Mona mobile.

Then, the next thing he knew, he was bathing in still hot, but nowhere near as stifling, air.

"You have returned to the real world. Welcome back. The destination has been deleted."

Alright, the second part of yesterday's chapter, and the pyramid as a whole, is finished! I do enjoy that even though Futaba is Sloth, with the Sphinx being the real threat of the Palace, it's actually the Pyramid of Wrath. Makes me think that a certain Grail could be considered the 'Ruler of Wrath' even though it drives people into Sloth.

Necronomicon gets a longer title because she wasn't put into the chapter title, as it was taken up by '...Raided.'

I really enjoyed writing the boss fight. P5, especially Royal, is pretty notoriously easy. Even a certain burger man can be trivialized by either using Merciless difficulty for the increased weakness damage, or the free Izanagi-No-Okami and his Myriad Truths. But while the Sphinx may be the easiest boss thanks to Futaba reflecting all the heavy aoe hits, the story around it and the writing are amazing. It's definitely one of my favorite fights in the game!

Arsène returns, with the power of hanging other Personas! I've been excited for the gallows to be unlocked for a while so I could finally get Arsène back. Most people just use it to optimize the strongest Personas to get rid of their weaknesses, or make them fully immune, or round out their skills with the most busted ones, but I enjoy using the whole fusion system to make personas like Arsène and Pixie the most busted in the game lmao. Also, Arsène is just my favorite starter Persona in the series. Orpheus and Izanagi are cool, but Arsène is just badass.

Even if he's weak to ice, for… some reason.

But, that's all for this chapter. So let me know what you think of the chapter, or just leave a 'nice,' both are always great to read. See y'all next time!