Chapter Text
It was another day in the early February chill. The Phantom Thieves themselves were strewn across the room doing their own thing as a group. Their apartment was a little too cold, it was cheap for a reason, but a few thin blankets fixed that problem for most of them. With the entrance exam being soon, Ryuji, Ann, and Makoto were reviewing a few subjects. Yusuke was sketching Futaba as she worked to keep up the information flow from the police, silently lamenting the cheapness of his art supplies. The rest of the Phantom Thieves were resting in some capacity, trying to gather enough energy to patrol another night.
“Mweheheh!” Futaba suddenly chuckled, “Our friendly neighborhood detective is getting serious! Looks like this PR war is getting physical!”
Ryuji furrowed his brow looking over, “What’s that s’posed to mean?”
“He’s calling in more heroes! We can take any of them easily, so it’s like free Exp!”
Akira sighed. He did not want to have to deal with more threats. Before he could reply Makoto asked, “Are you certain we can beat them?”
“Yep!” was Futaba’s instant response. “Most of them are close-ranged fighters so we can just keep our distance. Though there are a couple that might cause a few issues, one of them uses sound attacks by screaming and the other cancels our abilities through sight.” She paused to think “I don’t actually know if the canceler will work on us though since our powers are different.”
Makoto hmm-ed, “We’d better prepare for the worst so I’ll think of some ways to deal with that. It would be bad if we lost our personas, but it’d be much worse if we lost our metaverse agility too.”
“And I have a few ideas on the sound one.” Akira added, “Go for the mouth or incapacitation. Ann got the sleep spell recently, right?”
“Yep!” Ann smiled, “So long as it works I can take anybody out! It sucks that it’s a chance thing though.”
Akira frowned, “It would look really bad if we beat up heroes. We should aim for alternative methods of winning fights, running away if necessary along with status effects.”
“Uhh…” Ryuji started, “I may be wrong but wouldn’t beating up a bunch of pros make us more liked? Y’know, proving we’re so strong.”
The strategists exchanged a glance, a quick silent debate that was missed by their teammates. After a few seconds they broke away, Akira smirking and Makoto scowling. “You aren’t wrong that being strong brings in a lot of supporters, but being too brutal turns you into a bad guy. Not to mention the heroes could spin the story to look like we were the bad guys if we cause too much damage. We aren’t going to kill or cause lasting damage, that’s a given, but we would be roughing up some really famous people who haven’t done anything wrong.”
“Sooo..?”
Akira’s smirk grew into Joker’s signature cocky grin, “We’re going to prove our strength, both to the people and Tsukauchi.”
A variety of cheers and sighs spread through the thieves, excitement and nervousness accompanying it. Nobody was prepared for Akira, maybe slipping into his Joker persona, to propose another idea. “We’ll have to make the debut during the day. The more people that know about us the more leverage we can use to find our way home.”
The mixed emotions in the room became more jumbled with those words, fear, nervousness, and excitement, being the most prominent. Makoto stood in shock, not seeing this in their argument, while Ryuji sported a wide grin. Futaba was full of fear, the many risks giving her anxiety, but she resigned herself to start researching other debuts in case they actually went through with this. Ann felt nervous, excitement slipping through somewhat, Morgana was gaping at Akira’s boldness, and Haru was staring at her lap, wondering if this was for the best. Yusuke delicately held his chin in his hand thinking of the possibilities in the concept of a debut as Phantom Thieves doing their best for the people.
Morgana was the first to talk. “What!? We’re Phantom Thieves, not some low budget superhero team! We work in the shadows to take down criminals, we don’t parade down the streets looking pretty for people!”
“I have to agree with Morgana.” Makoto stated, “Do you really believe this is the right choice? More fame brings more opportunities, but this seems to be more of a risk than a benefit.”
Ryuji disagreed, “I think it’s kick-ass! Since the famous heroes are out durin’ the day too we could run into them, winnin’ a fight with them would make us look super good!”
Futaba hmm-ed, “So the pros and cons are more opportunities but a chance of this backfiring. I’d bet the waves get stronger each time we beat them too, they won’t keep sending trash mobs. If we go daytime we’re putting huge targets on our backs.”
“We are.” Akira agreed. “It may also be the only way we find a way home. The news may have made us a sensationalized story, but people don’t really care that much yet. ‘It’s just a bunch of kids hiding in the shadows, it’s not like it’ll impact me ’. As soon as we do a daytime patrol though we’ll be a bigger issue, something people can’t ignore anymore. If we get more attention from the heroes we may also get one of the most valuable sources of intel too.”
After thinking for a second Makoto’s expression hardened. “Don’t tell me you mean villains. If we get more attention from heroes villains will pay attention too, is that what you mean?”
“Of course.” Akira stared back. “Villains have connections, and if this is anything like our world, there’s someone behind the scenes with power too. Someone who could have the ability to send us back to our own reality.”
“You can’t seriously be saying we should associate with murderers.”
“Intel gathering can be done in a multitude of ways” Futaba cut in. “If given access to technology I could plant a bug, we could even get confessions from people we beat.”
Joker’s smile spread across Akira’s face again. “Exactly, we don’t need to do anything unethical. Not using the villains would limit the information we can get. Why not use those terrible people then? It’s like using the info we get from a person’s shadow to find the next one we need to take down.”
“I still think it’s too much of a risk.” Makoto held her ground. “Remember, we can still be injured or die.”
“It may be our only chance. If it proves to be a problem we can stop at any time, plus this still requires a vote. Even if I think it’s the best decision ”
“Alright.” Morgana agreed. “Does anybody need a little more time before they vote?”
After nobody spoke up they held the vote. After everybody but Makoto voted for a daytime patrol she gave in, being the final vote in favor. Despite his outward confidence, Akira was still nervous about the patrol. As the team got ready for bed he thought about the situation. It would likely be dangerous, especially with the new group after them. He would have to ask Futaba about who would probably be after them during the daytime. Of course, then he would have to set up a team to fight them. Ann was a given, dormina would be so powerful when it came to incapacitation without injury. Maybe Yusuke would be a good second choice, freezing was a slightly more harmful way to take someone out, but it would still work. Morgana would be useful to have, healing was always an important skill to have, but the police may not be aware of him yet. Would it be a good idea to bring Haru as well? It could be, he thought, staring up at the ceiling. Slowly his thoughts trailed off as he fell into sleep, awaiting the many days of planning that were soon to come.
It was finally time. They had been silent for almost a week while setting up their big reveal to the public. They wanted this to be perfect. The plans were thought up by Akira and Makoto, the latter still having some reservations about the whole idea. Yusuke watched videos of hero debuts with Futaba, ranting to the entire team about aesthetics and timing. The debut team trained with each other as well, working on not only physical abilities but communication and teamwork as well. They weren’t sure if they were ready but it was as good as it could get.
An electric buzzing in the teams’ ear appeared and with it came Oracle, “Store robber running. Three blocks forward, seven to the left. Heading to your right. Should be able to catch ‘em between blocks three and five.”
With that the team was off, running and hopping on rooftops like it was the first thing they ever did. Few people saw them. Most too busy with their lives to notice, others not caring. The few that did, however, wondered about what they were seeing. Dark clothed individuals crossing roofs meant one of two things at this time of day, villains or heroes. Although some were intrigued none thought enough to call another hero. And so they went on with their lives, none the wiser.
The thieves found who they were looking for while a few blocks away, seeing the large man, barreling through people with a bag overly filled, running where Oracle said he would. He didn’t have any visible mutations, though his normal body definitely was large and strong enough to overpower the average person in the streets. He was approaching the building they were standing on, trying to get away before anybody stopped him. Fear was in his eyes, though most weren’t able to look long enough to see it. The thieves found their chance as he kept running past.
Joker was the first to jump down, landing a few feet in front of the robber, the ever-present smirk on his face. The man did not stop, however, he made a sharp turn and continued running, not seeing the three other figures jumping down towards him. In a blur of dark blacks and bright reds he fell, shallow cuts decorating his body along with harsh bruises. Falling to the ground groaning in pain, he tried to push himself back up, terrified of being caught. Instead, he was met with a concussion and unconsciousness.
Facing the crowd of silent onlookers and victims, Joker announced, “Hello. I am Joker, leader of the group known as the Phantom Thieves.”
A murmur passed through the crowd, as they looked at Joker in surprise. The thieves knew what would happen now, some people would start yelling questions or insults, while others were already calling the heroes. Being a well-known outlaw brings a lot of different reactions out of people, from excitement to fear, even respect and resentment. They likely only had a couple of minutes before heroes arrived, and due to their near-omnipotent navigator, they would know who it was before the fight.
To Joker’s left stood Panther, skin-tight fiery red latex catsuit on display alongside the matching whip and submachine gun. To his right was Fox, his weight shifted on one foot as he framed the defeated villain between his fingers, Katana delicately set on his side. Behind him his most loyal companion stood, Mona, smirking at those around him, especially those staring at his odd form with the usual mix of confusion and shock. They stood together as a unit, ready for whatever could come at them.
Oracle came over their connected channel, not bound by radio waves or anything primitive like that. “Alright, the first hero is coming. It’s Present Mic, the sound guy. Joker told me he had a plan for this so you’ll probably be good. He’s about a block behind you guys so be prepared for him to attack at any moment.”
They continued soaking up the mixed looks and glances, waiting for the sign of attack. Although not obvious, their stances changed, ready to move and strike at any time. Finally, Oracle gave the signal and they leaped into action, moving quickly away from where they were standing. They heard the ear-shattering yelling, though they escaped with only minor ringing. Now in front of them stood the radio host, decked out in his full hero gear as he stared them down. People were finally moving, realizing that this was about to become an actual fight instead of a one-sided blood bath.
“Hey! You’re those vigilantes I’ve been hearing about aren’t ‘cha!” The booming voice of the hero yelled, “Can you guys turn yourselves in so we don’t have to fight? I don’t want to hurt you guys, but you are still breaking the law!”
Instead of answering outright the thieves readied themselves, shifting into a fighting stance as Present Mic frowned.
“Aww, man! I really thought you’d take it! Sorry about this then!” He ended his speech with another screech, still not hitting anybody as they jumped away once more. In their ears they heard Oracle go over the closest heroes, estimating when they would arrive. Joker listened to very little of it, dodging and giving commands to his teammates, only hearing the times. The closest hero was about fifteen minutes away, if they could end it in ten they could escape easily. Could they beat a pro hero in ten minutes though?
In five minutes not much progress was made. For a range based fighter, he had a surprising amount of skill in hand to hand combat. Panther could push him back with her range advantage close-quarters, but Fox, Mona, and Joker had trouble getting in, Joker only placing one shallow cut on his arm. Their own ranged firepower was limited and slow as well, only having access to some low-level skills and abilities. They made due though, a few fire, ice, and wind skills hitting the hero as he nearly burst their eardrums at any opportunity he had.
Joker knew this would go on seemingly forever, the reinforcements coming not helping their chances of winning. He had gone over plans before, thinking of what troubles could come from facing any number of heroes they could have come across. He didn’t have many plans for Present Mic, most were banking on weak close-ranged skills. There was one plan though, although slightly risky, that would at least guarantee escape. After one final look at their situation, he put it into action.
Jumping away from a blast of sound towards his teammates he said, just loud enough for Fox to hear, “Step back and take out the machine on his chest.”
Fox gave a small nod before sneaking out of the hero’s sights. With one look towards his fellow thieves, they understood and relentlessly attacked. They jumped around, attempting to distract Present Mic with erratic movement and combined attacks. Most were dodged, a few attacks from the hero landing as well. One particularly devastating blow nearly took Panther out entirely, Mona expending a lot of strength to recover her shattered eardrums, blood still showing around her ears. All of a sudden they all jumped away, Present Mic standing in the middle of the street, wide open. A single sound was heard, a gunshot, the destruction of machinery being the next thing anyone could hear. Fox stood, staring down the pro hero, smoke coming off the barrel of his gun as the support item fell off his enemy’s neck.
A moment of shock was all that was needed though, Panther quietly casting one more attack to end the fight. As bubbles rose from beneath his feet Present Mic began to feel tired, then a little more, then a little more. He had to keep fighting, he was right there in front of the vigilantes! But he could also… take a nap instead. They’d probably be there when he woke up, right? And the nap would only be short, no longer than thirty minutes. Maybe an hour. Maybe longer, actually. Before he could figure out what was happening, the radio star fell asleep at the hands of the Phantom Thieves.
Oracle’s voice buzzed in their ear again, “It seems like you’ve gotten him down? Good, we have a few minutes to spare before anyone gets there. I’ll lead you through your escape.”
And so they ran, splitting apart as they fled the scene. They ducked between stores, into alleys, and away from prying eyes as they slowly stopped being Phantom Thieves. Each individual member moved back towards their apartment while taking as long as possible. If anyone was following them they would either lose their stalker at some point or bore them into leaving. By the time they got home, the adrenaline wore off leaving the field team in various forms of complete exhaustion. Morgana was already asleep on the couch by the time Akira got there, though Yusuke and Ann looked pretty close to the same point. They decided to celebrate the next day, everybody wanting to sleep and see how the news would react before getting too excited. As Akira started slipping easily into unconsciousness he kept looking for something they did wrong, something that would screw them over in the future.
The next day’s news was filled with nothing but Phantom Thieves. Every headline, every story, every news station. The thieves themselves were ecstatic, they were in the eyes of the public. There was no ignoring them. Eyes were on them from heroes to villains, and they would take advantage of it. They could find sources of information or sources could find them. It was great. Slowly throughout the day relief spread through the Phantom Thieves, Ryuji being the first and Makoto being the last to feel it. Akira felt a great sense of pride for his team, though he was still stressed about any mistakes they could have made. Any slip-ups or failures that would send them directly to jail no questions asked. Nearing the end of the day after their big debut he finally started to relax. There was nothing to worry about, after going over it five times in his head he still couldn’t find a point where they made a major mistake. Everything would be fine.
Until Oracle spoke, “I know you’ve told me blackmail is wrong before, but I swear this time it was an accident.”
God damn it.