Chapter 8: Into the Dungeon

Armored demons patrolled the halls of Kamoshida's castle, intent to protect and defend their lord from any manner of threat. No prisoner would escape, no marauder would strike their lord, and absolutely, under no circumstance would a thief steal his Treasure.

For simple tools in a false vision of the world, the Shadows were more intelligent than they seemed. They realized that any serious attempt to invade would have to proceed through the main hall. As a result, security was extremely tight in that area, with several squads of Shadows lurking through the vast space.

No prisoner would escape, no marauder would strike their lord, and absolutely, under no circumstance would a thief steal his Treasure.

But there was a problem. Unbeknownst to the Shadows, and many other guards both real and not, they were a part of a constant statistic. While they patrolled the halls and swept the area, the guards all failed to do one thing that admittedly wouldn't have to be necessary under normal circumstances.

They forgot to look up.

Despite their vigilance, the guards failed to notice the faint creaking of metal as the chandeliers far above their head swayed slightly, to and fro. Shadows fluttered across the ceiling as the Phantom Thieves leaped from chandelier to chandelier, speeding towards the tower that held Kamoshida's most beloved possession.

If one listened closely, you could also hear the soft chuckles of one of the Thieves. "God, Mona... out of everything you could of said..."

Mona had become more and more annoyed at his insistent giggling. Up until this point, he had kept it under wraps by focusing on the mission, but now the shadowy feline had reached his wit's end. "What?! What did I say? What did I say that's making you laugh yourself silly?"

His small outburst put both Panther and Joker on edge. While Mona did his best to control his anger somewhat, he still ended up whisper-yelling. Joker could feel a vein popping out of his forehead. "Could you two quiet down?"

Skull continued, though he did seem to listen to his friend, as his voice quieted somewhat. "Dude, how do you not know what 'cougar' means?"

"Can we stop talking about this?!" Ann complains, uncomfortable with their conversation.

"We were looking for a name related to cats, weren't we? Cougars are fierce, strong, and vicious!" The more Mona tried to explain himself, however, the more Skull laughed. "What?!

"Oh God..." Ryuji wheezed, his laughing high starting to fade. "This is awesome. Calling a girl a cougar is slang, man!"

"Slang...?" Mona asks, his anger starting to fade as fear seeps in. "Slang for what...?"

Before they could continue, Joker butt in again. "Alright, that's enough!" The team landed in the cathedral, Joker pulling out his knife and pistol just in case they run into enemies. Pressing himself against the corner, he peeked out to see a single knight patrolling down the rows.

Closing his eyes, Joker let the world fade around him. A moment passed before the world returned to him in a shockingly abrupt vision. The room returned in a shadowy black, a few containers shown gold and the knight emanated a dangerous red aura. He opened his eyes again, and cursed under his breath. "Shit, it's an Archangel..."

Mona climbed up Joker's back, reaching his shoulders as to also survey the scene. Spotting the Shadow and noticing Joker's apprehension, he knew that whatever Joker saw had to be bad. "What's the plan, Joker?"

The plan was simple; Joker would summon Arsene, knock them down with a dark spell and go from there. It would work, but bad memories of their previous encounter with the powerful Shadow still haunted Joker's thoughts. He would never forget how Archangel had nearly ended their lives before they could bring Kamoshida to justice.

If they were lucky, then the others wouldn't have to experience that this time around. "Follow my lead."

The monstrous knight walked towards the teenagers, autonomously completing it's predefined route around the room. It walked closer,

And closer,

And closer...!

'Now!' The Phantom Thieve's leader rushed from his hiding place, jumping into the air and landing on the Shadow's shoulders before it could react.

"Reveal yourself...!" Joker ripped the mask from the creature's face, leaping off to allow it room to reveal it's true power. Brilliant white wings unfurled midair, revealing an armored angel with sword in-hand. "Heretics! You will die for setting foot on these hallowed grounds! In the name of King Ka-"

"Arsene, Eiha!" A whirl of blue flame surrounded Joker as the master thief was given form appeared behind him. In a instant, dark tendrils shot up from the ground, striking the Shadow and bringing him to his knees. The team surround it, each of them aiming their guns (or slingshot) at the warrior.

Ann smiles at it's misfortune. "We got you! Time for an All-Out Atta-!"

"You got any money on you?"

The question from Joker throws everyone off. "Payment for my life, eh...? I have 250 yen." The angel replies.

"W-Wait, Joker...!" Mona stutters out in vain.

Joker takes the money from their hand and counts it. "Deal. Now get out of here."

Before any of the other Thieves could argue further, the enemy had disappeared into thin air. It might have said something about how Kamoshida was unbeatable, but their words were soon forgotten as Joker was soon peppered with questions.

"Dude, what was that?!" Skull yells, peeved that they couldn't fight what seemed to be a strong enemy.

"Why did you let him run away? He might go around and tell his friends!" Ann points out, motioning in a general direction.

Joker doesn't want any of it. "Yeah, well, trust me when I say that you don't want to fight these yet. They're way too strong right now."

He stashes the money and walks off, the faint sounds of his muttering was barely perceptible. "Not my fault light spells are killers... Not my fault I have to get my money back... Stupid window..."

~-J-~

Two hours had passed and the four had found themselves a safe haven in one of the classrooms. The four sat around, resting and taking in whatever refreshments they had brought.

Ryuji had a sports drink and energy bar,

Joker brought a thermos of coffee and a biscuit,

Morgana just had some water,

and Ann had a soda, doughnut, sugar cookies and gummy bears.

Needless to say, Ann was still eating well after they had finished. This wasn't a problem, since they were all fine with resting up for a little while longer before heading out. In the meantime, Ryuji couldn't help but marvel at everything Ann was eating. He debated whether or not to say something, opening and closing his mouth repeatedly before finally getting the words out.

"So, you're a model, right?"

Ann looks up from her chocolate bar, an item which I had failed to notice, and nods. "Yeah, why?"

Ryuji shakes his head. "Nothing, it's just that the only thing I ever heard about modeling is that they can't eat junk food. Or, you know, just... food." As he explained this, he kept glancing at the pile of wrappers laying on the floor.

Ann did not like where this conversation was going. "And what, exactly, is that supposed to mean?" Her voice held a dangerous edge.

Without thinking his response through, Ryuji replied: "I'm just surprised you can model while eating so much crap!"

"Are you calling me fat?!"

"What?! I didn't say that!"

"But that's what you meant, isn't it?!

Joker could feel a headache coming on as the two began to argue. Loudly. All he could do was tune out their banter as he tried to read the book in his hands. 'Knowing Ryuji, he probably wasn't even thinking that. It's just that he's too dense to hear himself.'

Tired of listening to his team argue, he tries to disarm the bomb that was this situation. "Who cares what she eats? She's gorgeous anyways. They'd be idiots for not hiring her." He doesn't look away from his book as he says this.

The room goes silent after he says this, and it takes Joker a moment to realize that it was because of what he had said. He ran the sentence through his head again to see what the problem was.

'Who cares... what she eats... she's gorg-shit!'

Looking away from the book, he sees everyone staring at him. Ryuji and Morgana looked shocked while Ann's face went red.

The mask that Joker wore to protect himself from the horrors of society did little to hide the blush spreading across his cheeks. He looked away from them and hid his face with his book. "That... slipped out."

"Dude... Did you just flirt with Ann?!" Ryuji asked, a laugh welling up in his voice as he said this.

"No, I wasn't flirting. Shut up." Joker just wanted to get through the dungeon with as few issues as possible, and not die in the meantime, whether it be from embarrassment, or a light spell from Archangel. Was that too much to ask?

'Too dense to hear myself... God dammit, I'm Ryuji!'

~-J-~

Bang!

A shadow faded away to nothing as a bullet shot through it's head. Joker takes grim satisfaction in his work, before moving on with his team. At this point, they needed to find a way into Kamoshida's treasure vault without having to go through the miniature army stationed in the throne room.

The throne room which they had to go through to get into the treasury.

As they searched for an opening, an idea popped into Ann's head, one that grew more confusing the more she thought about it. "Hey, Mona?"

"Yes, Lady Ann?" The cat responded with a perfect politeness that forced Ryuji to roll his eyes every time he heard it.

"So, like, we don't use real guns, but because Kamoshida wouldn't be able to tell the difference between these and the real things then his shadows think we're shooting them, and that's enough to actually hurt them?"

Mona nods, happy to explain his expansive knowledge of the Metaverse with her. "Exactly. In a world based on what he perceives, so long as it's real-enough looking, he'll believe that our weapons can kill."

"Okay, yeah I got that, but..." Ann says, thinking about how best to explain this. "Does that mean some of our weapons shouldn't really work?"

Mona blinks. "Huh?"

"I mean, these weapons are great..." Brandishing her Coil Whip as she turns to Joker. "Thanks again for finding these, they're great!" She turns back to Mona.

"But it's not like anyone would think it would kill. It looks really... impractical."

Mona was left speechless for a moment, trying to find a reasonable explanation to her rebuttal. "Uhhhh... Well, maybe he perceives things a bit differently. Everyone perceives whats dangerous and fearful differently."

"Dangerous, my ass!" At this point Ryuji joins in while shoving aside an end table in search of another entrance. "No way in hell that Kamoshida thinks your stupid slingshot is a dangerous weapon!" He points out before continuing. "I already said that and you dodged the question!"

Joker also gets confused. "And why do some guns even have a magazine size? I get that they're replicas and all, but their magazines can't actually detach outside the Metaverse, so do they somehow know how many bullets can be held in that particular clip?" As soon as he says this, he catches that he said 'they' instead of just Kamoshida, though thankfully nobody noticed.

Mona quickly gets frustrated. "I don't know, alright? Why is this important?"

Ryuji also gets frustrated. "I wanna know why your dumb peashooter is doing more damage than my shotgun!"

"Listen, I don't know! You're still killing Shadows without a hitch, right? Then stop worrying about it and focus on the task at hand. And stop asking questions I don't have the answers to!" Mona looked up, seeing a window above left from the door. "This way."

The four proceed upwards, jumping through the window and landing on a walkway overlooking the throne room. Inside was the king himself, surrounded by his army of Shadows. "How have you not captured the intruders yet!?"

"Kamoshida..." Ann whispers, hatred seething in her voice.

"We're almost there... We're going to bring him down." Joker said, looking forward to his downfall.

It felt strange to him, facing Kamoshida again. One side of him loathed this, having to let the villains who they managed to stop have another chance at freedom and continue their crimes. On the other hand, he didn't hate Kamoshida any less now than he had last time. Knocking him down a peg was going to be just as satisfying as the first time.

Mona looks between the two, letting his mind wander before giving his input. "I'm almost curious as to what life is going to be like for Kamoshida after we steal his heart. He's not going to aspire to anything, he'll just be... stuck there."

"Good." Ann said, her voice still severe. "I want him to spend the rest of his life regretting what he's done."

Ryuji raises an eyebrow, but doesn't look away from the king. "You know," He said, his voice carrying a soft tone that was rare for him. "I always forget how intense you can be sometimes. Kinda scary, honestly..."

"Of course she's intense, she's a Panther." Joker says, admiration in his voice. "Justice is her calling and fire is her weapon."

It was all an attempt to make the joke sound cool, and it didn't fail to impress the woman in question.

"Fire is her weapon... Alright, I like it! If you can think of more compliments like that, it'd be appreciated!" She said jokingly.

Joker just shrugged. "I'll do my best!"

They laughed and continued on, and just like that the morbid air of their previous conversation disappeared and was replaced with a silent determination to bring down the mad king.

~-J-~

April 20th

The halls were abuzz with conversation about the fliers that had been scattered throughout the school, detailing a mysterious group of thieves stealing the heart of the corrupt physical education teacher.

"Who's responsible for this...!? Did you do this!? Or was it you!?" The target in question was stomping through the halls, trying to disperse the crowds and get them back to their classrooms. At the same time he was trying to piece together who in the crowds would have posted these fliers in an attempt to intimidate him. The students all dispersed, returning to their classrooms so that they wouldn't have to face his wrath.

Three exceptions stood in the nearby hallway, staring daggers at him. 'Of course it's them.'

He walked over to the two male students, disregarding Ann for the moment. "... Was it you two!?"

Akira wasn't afraid of the man, instead staring him in the eye and challenging his authority. "What if it was?"

The teacher shook his head, frustration growing even greater. "What garbage..." But his anger seemed to abate slightly as he returns to his smug demeanor. "Eh, it's not a problem. You'll be expelled soon enough, anyway."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that!"

It was something Akira didn't expect. The voice came from behind them, and as the three turned around they saw Shiho standing there defiantly facing the man she feared most.

"What do you want, Suzui? Shouldn't you be in class?" Kamoshida spat out, growing weary of this conversation.

Joker was afraid of what was going to happen. Just a few days ago Shiho was unable to say his name... And now here she was, speaking out against him. 'I'm not going to stop her... But I am going to make sure Kamoshida doesn't try anything funny.'

"I hope they're real, you know." Shiho says, her knees shaking slightly. "The Phantom Thieves."

Kamoshida grins at her, clearly thinking he still has the upper hand. "Oh, really? You think these 'Phantom Thieves' will magically solve all of your problems? Well I have some news for you: You're off the team! You were terrible when you joined the team and you're still terrible! And you know what?"

The grin drops from his face as his voice drops to a growl. "What you said can be taken as a threat Ms. Suzui...!"

"No, it's a promise! Soon, you'll be exposed as the violent, dirty old man you really are!"

In that moment Joker came to fully appreciate Shiho's strength. He already knew how determined she was, and how she could bounce back from pretty much anything, but it took seeing her first-hand like this to learn how powerful she could really be. She stood there terrified, tears forming in her eyes and she still spoke against Kamoshida, the person who had controlled her entire school life. This time, it wasn't fear that rooted her into place.

It was her determination to talk him down.

Joker couldn't help but smile. 'She's strong like that.'

Kamoshida's face contorted in rage. "How dare you!?"

The P.E. teacher took a single step towards Shiho, and in an instant he found himself stopped by Akira, Ann, and Ryuji. The three stood in a line in front of him, forming a wall that Kamoshida would never be allowed to pass. For a moment, for the smallest fraction of a second Kamoshida felt outmatched, and before he could stop himself he took a step back.

He would never admit it, but in that moment it was those three students that scared him the most.

"Grr... Brats. I know this is your doing. Nothing any of you do matters anymore! You'll ALL be expelled, even you, Takamaki!" He stormed off, his mind in hysterics and his heart now aware of it's greatest desire. The four stood there and watched him disappear from view. They knew what they needed to do, there was nothing more to be said.

It was time to reap their vengeance.

~-J-~

Author's Notes: Hey, Everyone! So, yeah, a little late, and a bit short. Sorry. You can blame school for that, but I think the end result is still worth it.

Reviews-

Toni Morrison:

"The function of freedom is to free someone else."

Ooooh that's a cool quote. Where's it from?

Withered Phoenix:

I'm so glad I found this fic. I love re-do fics and I love your writing and how you drastically change it yet keep it true to heart. Couldn't put it down since I started reading it. I just hope the consequences for changing the past won't come back to haunt Akira. Keep up the great work and don't stress on releasing chapters too quick. Quality is better then quantity in the long run.

Thanks, the praise is really appreciated! I would prefer to have both quantity and quality, though I suppose I could substitute quantity for a more consistent uploading schedule.

Blank C:

So akira literally used ZA WARUDO

Honestly I didn't even get the reference. I had to look it up on TV Tropes to know how to properly respond. XD

Guest:

Good nice

Thanks!

I thank all of you for reading and see you next chapter, where they finally kick Kamoshida's ass!