2025-09-20: Arsene Lupin Vs. Herlock Sholmes

• Log: 2025-09-20_ArseneLupinVsHerlockSholmes
• Cast: Goro Akechi, Joker, Panther, Fox, Queen, Noir, Belle and a Mysterious Interloper!
• Where: Principal Kobayakawa's Palace, Parade Grounds
• OOC Date: September 20, 2025
• IC Date: July 14, 2012
• Summary: Detective Akechi ambushes the Phantom Thieves in an attempt to arrest them, using the power of far too many Mementos runs for his own good. But someone out isn't too keen to just let this happen without having his own 'fun'...

---

AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa has readied for combat as Cendrillon! She is now fully healed!
AS: Yusuke Kitagawa has readied for combat as Goemon! He is now fully healed!
AS: Haru Okumura has readied for combat as Milady! She is now fully healed!
AS: Ann Takamaki has readied for combat as Carmen! She is now fully healed!
Makoto Niijima has arrived from Historia: The White Chronicle.
GRID: Makoto Niijima has joined Ren Amamiya.

<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.

Over the weeks Principal Kobayakawa hasn't been seen by the Student body, mostly spending time in his office. He seems anxious... a little paranoid even. Chouno-sensei got snapped at for even knocking on his door to deliver a stack of quarterly reports. Vice-Principal Kawazu has been mostly picking up the slack on his own. The atmosphere around the faculty is tense enough that it's easy to see the signs from day to day at school.

Why is it like this? Is it due to them invading his Palace? Or... are there other pressures upon him. Pressures that spurred him to lay the responsibility for finding the Phantom Thieves of Hearts upon his Student Council President? And as Ren might well ask why was 'Black Mask' prowling around the Palace of the Shujin Principal in the first place?

Well today they'll figure these things out because after a meeting, the Phantoms went to Kobayakawa's Palace. The reason? Well not to change his heart! That requires unanimous consensus anyway and right now there are questions that they require answers to. Ones which will require them to go to the Ruler's Shadow themselves and interrogate them.

The Phantom Thieves upon entering his Palace will find that things have changed in response. The sky outside of the entrance to the Shujin Bunker is full of smoke, and the starbursts of warfare. Ordnance screams through the sky to slam into the top of the bunker, always causing it to shake. Never doing any real damage.

It is more reminder than anything, that everything could come tumbling down at any moment. Security is quite high, and the shadows trade banter, regarding their internal search for 'saboteurs' - Phantom Thieves.

They're far less concerned with anyone getting in, than more 'betrayals' from within. It would be convenient to be able to use the ventilation ducts for Joker to lead them straight into the War Room, but they've been blocked off, and in some cases collapsed. The atmosphere down here is more stifling than ever.

Which leaves only one way to get to the War Room, across the 'Parade Grounds'. Strangely, they're the place with the least security of all. There are no Shadows, no Cognitions. Just a long stretch between there and the hastily repaired blast doors to the War Room. Though at one point there seems to be a crate about halfway down the stretch? Most curious.

<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.

When the Phantom Thieves enter, there's a moment of stillness, quiet. It's easy enough to guess that it's 'too quiet' indicating the possibility of a trap.

Well, someone is happy to oblige them with one. Abruptly, numerous flood lights turn on, all pointed in the direction of their entry. All blinding bright, like something out of a police drama. You know the ones, where the crooks are about to get away, only for the lights to turn on, and far too many cops are waiting for them.

And in the initial searing blindness of the lights, one can only hear the general direction of his voice. "I wouldn't take another step if I were you. The room was evacuated because the Ruler's forces turned this place into a minefield... fortunately I've disarmed them all and made some 'changes' of my own."
 
Step, step, step, step. The silhouette of a person can be seen now against the glare, which grows as he steps just about five meters closer, and stops as he greets them in a way that seems equal parts cheerful and smug. "I was hoping if I staked this Palace out long enough that you might make an appearance."
 
It's a familiar voice, far too familiar. Probably many at least have heard him from TV and are trying to place it. But several likely grasp who he is right away. The lights glare against the red of his long-nosed mask, not quite allowing definition against the blinding array of floodlights.

"I'm glad that my patience has been rewarded." More of him comes into view, as vision subtly adjusts. An outfit, princely, like a Drum Major in a marching band, with gold epaulets, and a red cape, with gold trim. "The value of a Detective is determined by there being a case that only he can solve, when all other institutions have failed." And then almost almost amiably, he compliments them! "I must admit, you've all given me quite the runaround trying to find the right opportunity to confront you."

If there was any doubt to anyone who he is, then it's dispelled in that moment, it's Goro Akechi, clad as he is - he almost certainly has a Will of Rebellion, but it's not protecting him. "But it's past time I close this case." He says, with a smirk, as he snaps out a toyetic shining gold ray gun with his right hand and points it right at them, "I will accept your surrender if you offer, but for now I'm just going to assume that's not on the table."

Something changes in his eyes as he checks Belle though, like he's not expecting them, scrutinizing her for an additional moment.

OOC: Due to the concept of the fight, target Penguin. He'll be filling in as Goro Akechi's stunt double! (An uncanny likeness really!)

AS: Detective Prince PenPen has readied for combat as Detective Goro Akechi's Happy Funtime Field of Cognitive Traps!
They are now fully healed! Ready for 6 opponents!
AS: Makoto Niijima has readied for combat as Johanna! She is now fully healed!

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    Not to change his heart, no. The Phantoms do require unanimous consensus, and part of getting that is investigating the target--seeing not only if they really are twisted on the inside, but also if they really are inflicting their twisted desires on people in real life.
    
    Kobayakawa's cowardice is infamous, and his ill deeds well-known to the student body--but how much is he actually doing himself, and how much can be dealt with in real life by leaning on that cowardice? The atmosphere at Shujin Academy is far from ideal, but it's way better than it used to be once Kamoshida was gone. He's already been withdrawing recently and relying on the Vice-Principal to do his work for him. How necessary is it to change his heart?
    
    That's what they're here to find out--that, and to find out if Akechi has been here as a Persona User. Indeed, more important than Kobayakawa himself are those surrounding him--the aforementioned Akechi, the awakening of Kasumi Yoshizawa... and the lurking of the one in the black mask.
    
    After all, he might just be Goro Akechi. That much, though, Joker's been keeping to themself (and Mona).
    
    The Palace itself is in even more dire straits than it was when Joker, Panther, Noir and Fox explored it only last week. The environment is louder and flashier, but also nothing keeps actually happening. Despite that, security is high--and no wonder, again, after the events of last week--and sneaking around gets them lots of information, but not much in the way investigation. Even the vents are largely inaccessible. They do fill out their map of the shallower parts of the bunker Palace in the process, but after a while, there is a bottleneck.
    
    The only way deeper is through the Parade Grounds.
    
    "That all right by you, Belle?" Joker asks their newest provisional companion. (Not yet a member--maybe not at all. "Belle," or rather Kasumi, might only work with them until they've dealt with Kobayakawa's Palace, and then go her own separate ways, just like how it wasn't guaranteed that Fox would join until after Madarame's Palace was dealt with.) Still, they do quirk a smile at her response... and at the reminder of the codename she chose for herself. (Someone might well have made a joke about two Beauty Thiefs, considering o~ Belle means beauty o~, as the Destiny song goes!)
    
    Either way, the group makes it there--or part of it does, anyway. Just to be on the safe side, several of them are serving as back-up at the closest safe room, ready to rush in to help--or secure the way out--as necessary. It's eerily empty and quiet--no Shadows, no Cognitions.
    
    "Something's wrong," Joker murmurs, narrowing his eyes as they enter. "This could be a..."
    
    Trap, he's about to say, but he's cut off by... well, a trap. Brilliant floodlights pin all of them down. Joker reflexively raises a crooked arm to both shield their eyes and shade their face, and from behind it, he squints at...
    
    I wouldn't take another step if I were you, an excruciatingly familiar voice sounds. Joker's heartrate surges as an icy chill washes over their skin. They know immediately who that is--strange, because that outline... they can't make out the details with the light at his back, but that's a cognitive costume, isn't it? They shouldn't be able to know immediately who that is. But as he approaches, Joker hears the lightness in his voice, the cocksureness, that have irritated them since the first day they met in Leblanc, a copy of Arsène Lupin vs. Herlock Sholmes in his name. He even echoes what he said that day about the value of a detective.
    
    It's Goro Akechi. There's no doubt about it. Of which there is equally no doubt is that it's not the one in the black mask. Completely different outfit, completely different silhouette--and even with these blinding lights, Joker can tell that mask is red.

AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Spotlight! on Ann Takamaki, Ren Amamiya, Yusuke
Kitagawa, and Kasumi Yoshizawa!
AS: Pressure: Detective Prince PenPen gains 1 Limit!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Spotlight! on Haru Okumura and Makoto Niijima!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Sleuthing Instinct on Kasumi Yoshizawa!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Recovery skill Detective Prince on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen's turn has ended.

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    "Damn...!" But underneath that growled curse is a note of relief. Akechi pulls a shiny ray gun on them--and, defiantly as ever, Joker pulls a dark handgun back on him. Projecting their voice, they confirm, "It's not."
    
    But rather than open fire, they take advantage of the hand over their face to set their mask ablaze with blue fire. (They keep their gloved hand where it is not just to shade their face but to hide it. They don't understand why Akechi is immediately recognizable despite his apparent Will of Rebellion, and they don't want to risk him recognizing them back.) "Arsène!!" they cry, summoning their other self with the great black wings and the outrageous top hat mask face head. As they whirl up into existence behind them, the red-clad Persona cackles and spreads their clawed hands to call up a wave--no, a tide of darkness that roils forth not just at Akechi himself but at the floodlights in an attempt to darken their glare.
    
    It's only a temporary measure, that Maeiha. They'll need something more decisive to deal with those floodlights, and it won't cure that initial blindness they would've given everyone. However, it should give everyone else the opportunity they need to make that "something more decisive" happen.

AS: Take! Ren Amamiya takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Spotlight!.
AS: Atk_Dn added!
AS: Take! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Spotlight!.
AS: Atk_Dn added!
AS: Take! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Sleuthing Instinct.
AS: Detective Prince PenPen's Strength Scan! Kasumi Yoshizawa resists Light!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen's Weakness Scan! Kasumi Yoshizawa is weak against Dark!
AS: Persona! Ren Amamiya has used the Dark skill Maeiha on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Ruin: Ren Amamiya gains 1 Limit!
AS: Ren Amamiya's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Ann Takamaki takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Spotlight!.
AS: Atk_Dn added!
AS: Block Best! Detective Prince PenPen takes 38 Dark damage from Ren Amamiya's Maeiha. Weak!
AS: Blast added!

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    It feels very weird to be going back into that world again. Kasumi's only seen it the one time and there were parts of that trip that weren't very enjoyable. But she steels her resolve. She needs to see for herself how the Phantom Thieves operate.

    And she also has some unfinished business with the Shadow version of Principal Kobayakawa.

    The transition into the Palace gets Kasumi looking around in mild wonder and curiosity. It's almost like something out of a fairy tale! Which is appropriate given the theming of her Persona. It's also how her new codename came to be about. 'Belle'. Another French fairy tale name to go with 'Cendrillon'.

    She wasn't actually aware of Noir's claim to the title of Beauty Thief. Sorry Noir, she's not trying to steal it, honest!

    There is equal interest in the appearance of her thief attire once they've entered the cognitive world. She hadn't had a chance to really examine it during the hectic escape last time. The leotard is of course an appropriate component for her. She quite likes the jacket with the long coat tails. And while she doesn't usually wear much black, it seems to suit her!

    After a quick twirl to get a feel for how easy it is to move in this outfit, Belle quickly follows after the other Phantom Thieves into Palace proper, saying, "I'll make sure to watch closely how you experts handle yourselves in these situations. I'm counting on you, senpais!"

    Annnnnnd she counts on them right into a trap.

    Belle raises an arm to try and shield her eyes from the light as it floods them. Maybe she should have not agreed to this route when Joker asked!

    It's hard to see anything through the light... But Belle quietly gasps at the voice. Of course she recognises it. She's had a number of conversations with Goro Akechi in the past. She didn't know he was a Persona user too!

    Just how many people does she know who are Persona users?

    Also what kind of luck does she have to get caught on her first mission!?

    Though it's not quite a game over yet, as Joker reacts quickly, calling out Arsene to darken the area and lighten the burden shining on them. Pun intended. Joker gives them an opportunity to do something more decisive.

    Belle clearly didn't get the memo as she confusedly asks the others, "W-What do we do now?" Definite newbie here. Though to be fair, she hadn't expected to be going up against Akechi!

AS: Take! Detective Prince PenPen takes 62 Recovery healing from Detective Prince PenPen's Detective Prince.
AS: Eclipse added!
AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 8 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Spotlight!.
AS: Atk_Dn added!
AS: Take! Haru Okumura takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Spotlight!.
AS: Atk_Dn added!
AS: Take! Makoto Niijima takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Spotlight!.
AS: Atk_Dn added!

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

Here they are back in Kobayakawa's Palace - not the most pleasant place to make a repeat visit, but now that they have Kasumi on temporary call, they'll have to scope it out once more - not just because of the owner of the Palace, but also because of who else may be lurking inside. Haru has been quite the active member of the Thieves of late, and tagged along on the expedition.

"Hehe... perhaps I should have gone with Voleuse Belle in the first place?" Haru jokes, at the similarity between her original codename and Kasumi's temporary one. "Either way, it's great to have you with us, Belle!" Despite her cheerful demeanor, Haru can tell there's something strange about the Palace this time. It's like someone came in and ransacked it before they could even make a move. No Shadows, nothing... could it be another Persona user?

Joker's hunch was correct, in the end. "Goro Akechi..." Haru whispers, as a princely masked man approaches them, someone who could only be the Second Coming of the Detective Prince. She realizes, they haven't been playing him - he's been two steps ahead of them all along. And now they're surrounded. Haru had been told that their thief attire protects them from being recognized as themselves, but if they can somehow recognize Akechi, she's a little worried about that, now. So she invokes her right to remain silent, as one should when apprehended by a detective, and doesn't say a word at his offer of surrender - only a defiant look through her mask.

She does answer Kasumi's scared question, however. "It's so bright... but there's not much we can do except fight our way out! Stay sharp, Belle!" Haru warns, gripping her axe with both hands. "To me, Milady! Makarakarn! She calls, keeping her axe held in counterattack stance as Milady envelops her with a shield. In a situation like this, surrounded by spotlights, just attacking won't do her much good. She'll wait for Akechi to make his move and catch him the first chance she gets!

AS: Persona! Haru Okumura has used the Almighty skill Makarakarn on Haru Okumura!
AS: Pressure: Haru Okumura gains 1 Limit!
AS: Haru Okumura's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Haru Okumura takes 0 Almighty damage from Haru Okumura's Makarakarn.
AS: Reflect_Magi added!

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

Should they steal the Principal's heart?

For Ann Takamaki, the answer to that question was fairly simple. She knows firsthand what Kobayakawa was complicit in covering up. ... But she's at least managed to move on enough to not just press the issue, now. She knows -- they're not here today for that. They're here for something potentially more important: answers about one Goro Akechi. She doesn't forget that.

Even though technically they -all- did the last time but HEY that's neither here nor there, everyone knows the second attempt is always better than the first!! That's basic heist philosophy, she's pretty sure!

(It is not.)

But ANYWAY -- they can be forgiven for not quite remembering to interrogate Kobayakawa's Shadow. After all -- they was a lot going on. Like...

"Wow, y'know, I didn't get a good look last time, but you are styling, Belle!"

Like their newest maybe-member-that-didn't-even-blackmail-them(-which-is-a-super-hopeful-sign!!): Kasumi -- err, Belle!

This is Ann, enthusing supportively for their new guest party member as she scopes out her new cognitive threads. "You and Joker have kinda a theme going, huh? ... And Queen too, kinda. ... And Skull... and Noir a little..."

Ann scratches her cheek, frowning. "... Huh. I guess Fox and I are the only ones with really colorful costumes, huh...?" Does that mean -- she and Yusuke are... the same kind of weirdo...?!

"..."

Panther looks down on herself, frowning greatly.

"... I swear I will never give up my food budget for a new pair of shoes," she quietly vows. With great conviction.

She's not that far gone--!

Still; Kasumi remarks about how she's relying on them, and Ann just about breaks into the biggest of all possible grins, hands on her hips as they make their way to the Parade Grounds.

"Hee hee, you got it, Belle! Don't worry, when we clear out big nasties like that creeper tank the path around it clears out nice and simple! It should be just fine--"

Something's wrong.

"Gerk. D-did I just totally jinx us--"

Floodlights erupt, the sudden flash of blinding lights all igniting dramatically one by one making Panther yelp reflexively as she sweeps up to leather-clad forearms to try to cover her eyes already swimming with blinding stars.

"WAH! I SO JINXED US!"

But whether it was Ann Takamaki's reckless knocking upon wood, or fouler forces still, one thing is certain:

I wouldn't take another step if I were you.

They're not alone here anymore.

A figure steps out from behind the endless glare of a dozen dozen spotlights igniting their singularly dramatic moment. Snappily dressed. Smarmily voiced. And wearing--

-- a mask--

"N-no way..." Ann half-gasps. "Another Persona-User?!"

Upon reflection, maybe it's not that weird, she realizes; they just ran into like a dozen other ones at Kaneshiro's Palace. But there's something about this one. His voice is so gratingly familiar, like one she's heard on all those TV spots, like the one who made her briefly second-guess what they were doing--

--like the one they were in this Palace to investigate to begin with--

Sky blue eyes fly wide. With realization.

"Hey, waitaminute! You're the guy!" Panther declares, shocked and aghast! She points an accusatory finger Goro Akechi's way, and gives name to the face of evil!

"The second-rate Detective Prince!!"

--

or, well. close enough.

It's partly natural, kneejerk reaction, and partially distraction, because a second later, Joker is manifesting an outswell of darkness, and Ann, like she was operating in perfect sync with their leader, -also- reacts a second later:

"Dance, Carmen!"

The servant-stepping silhouette of the ur-femme fatale Carmen Manifests, her parting lips puffing delirious, panic-inducing cigar smoke across the field to disorient and distract even as Ann, still trying to blink the stars out of her eyes, cries out:

"H-hey! Weren't we here to figure out if this guy was a Persona-User?! Mission accomplished, we should get the heck outta here!!"

At least she's pragmatic.

AS: Persona! Ann Takamaki has used the Almighty skill Pulinpa on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Pressure: Ann Takamaki gains 1 Limit!
AS: Ann Takamaki's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Detective Prince PenPen takes 6 Almighty damage from Ann Takamaki's Pulinpa.
AS: Panic added!

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    For the previous incursions into Kobayakawa's Palace, Queen had been on the backlines. This time, though, she's with vanguard and is able to see the state of everything up close.

    Indeed, the palace is on such heavy lockdown one might think someone had sent a calling card, and that in turn makes the lack of Shadows on their approach concerning. Joker seems to be on the same wavelength as Queen, at least.

    But that doesn't stop the trap being sprung, or the voice that comes through.

    Makoto might not know it as well as Ren does, but it does confirm one of Makoto's biggest concerns. Her sister's most reliable coworker is a Persona user, and has eyes on them.

    Later, she might be able to spare the mental resources to be surprised by his choice of weapon. For now, it's pointed at them and a threat. The Parade Grounds don't offer much by way of cover, either. But not much is still better than nothing. "Scatter and take cover!" Queen yells, providing the tactics to Joker's action, already moving once he is, Joker answering Akechi's call for surrender with a response she agrees with.

    Still, the lights are disorienting and it makes it harder for them to work as they normally would, not to mention their newest member asking for what to do. "Belle, Fox- take out the spotlights! Noir, cover them! Panther, support Joker!" The Phantoms advisor lays down her plan instantly, focusing on making sure the team turn around the ambush as quick as possible before offering any retorts.

    Her plan for herself, however, is far more direct. "Johanna!" She yells, starting into a run and jumping onto her Persona as it pulls alongside her, gunning it towards Akechi. He claims he removed all the landmines, admittedly, but there's the chance that Akechi-kun missed one- or, perhaps, left a few- that makes riding Johanna in the parade grounds extra risky. But Makoto's goal is not, in fact, to just make a beeline for Akechi and run him down.

    Instead, as she closes, she slides into a drift, the personacycle angling low to the ground as Johanna kicks up debris under her tires toward him, Makoto waiting for exactly the right moment-

    When she hits the gas and a sudden flare of Nuclear Light goes off in close proximity to Akechi- not to damage, but to momentarily blind him instead, even as it puts Makoto closest in the field of fire.

AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Strike skill Flash Bomb on Goro Akechi!
AS: Makoto Niijima's turn has ended.
AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Strike skill Flash Bomb on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Makoto Niijima's turn has ended.
AS: Avoid Best! Detective Prince PenPen takes 13 Strike damage from Makoto Niijima's Flash Bomb.
AS: Haze added!
AS: Makoto Niijima cancels 1 attacks on Goro Akechi.

<Pose Tracker> Yusuke Kitagawa has posed.

"Gah!" Fox shields his eyes from the sudden bathing the floodlights give the Phantom Thieves, staggering backwards. The man who has rigged the trap steps forwards, gloating, and as Fox recovers his composure, he tries to look in that direction with shaded eye.

"... Is that him? ... He has a familiar voice."

Surely, not even he can fail to recognise Goro Akechi's silken tones???

    (don't take it personally, Akechi-kun, Yusuke doesn't watch TV)

But it seems as though a fight has fallen upon them, and Fox finds his footing. "Come, Goemon! Bring us swiftness!"

A spritz of wind pools under his own, Belle, Joker and Panther's feet to spur them forwards.

AS: Persona! Yusuke Kitagawa has used the Almighty skill Masukukaja on Yusuke Kitagawa, Ren Amamiya, Kasumi Yoshizawa,
and Ann Takamaki!
AS: Yusuke Kitagawa's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Ren Amamiya takes 0 Almighty damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Masukukaja.
AS: Spd_Up added!

<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.

Indeed, his mask is quite red isn't it? Nor even the right shape. It's like the polar opposite of everything Joker and Mona saw that day, that all of them saw during Kaneshiro's Palace. Belle asks what to do, and the Detective continues scrutinizing her for a moment, like he's trying to figure something about her out. The Will of Rebellion keeps her identity a secret, but she does seem quite new, doesn't she?

"Bad luck joining them so recently." He says as if sympathetic, "If you surrender... I'm certain we can work out a deal for leniency with the prosecutors."

'The second-rate Detective Prince!' says Panther, pointing an accusatory finger at him.

"Sticks and stones..." He feigns being unaffected, even when he's clearly irritated, "... will you say the same once I have you in custody?"

Arsene erupts forth, brilliantly, as the lights are briefly dimmed by the cursed energy and the Princely figure before them tries to parry the energy with a quick cut of his blade... and is forced to take a knee as the cursed energy strikes the silhouetted figure's weakness. "Mmph... Joker, right? Point to you. You can have that one."

Whereas Carmen puffs delirious smoke right over him. "Nnngh... that won't work...!" He says, with a hand upon his brow like he's warding off a migraine, and a sudden spell of dizziness all at once. A silhouette of a hand, but by now the light has likely cleared up enough that they can see peeking through his fingers with an eye at Panther declaring they should go.

BGM Change: Dark Sun (Spanish Electro Arrange) - Persona 5 The Animation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZSwdLIxC9Y

"Quick thinking. That would be a fine plan." He says, as if complimenting Queen. But as she starts to rush he gets up in a posture like he was merely stretching before he raises a hand with an slim rectangular object within it then leaps away from the Motorcycle Drift hooking his arm to shield his own eyes. "If I were to allow that."

The Detective presses a button on a controller! There's a swish overhead, a shadow in the glare of the lights, before a giant weighted net just falls down over Belle, Joker, Noir and entangles them. "But I didn't come here unprepared."

Without missing a beat, he draws that toyetic looking gun, and pulls the trigger- LASERS erupt from its barrel!? How is that possible! OR FAIR? He fires a salvo of several grazing, warning shots towards Joker, trying to make each one as 'close a shave' as possible, before he places a hand to his mask and calls out, "Take aim - ROBIN HOOD!"

With a burst of blue cognitive flames, the figure who looks like an amalgamation of robot media, Tokusatsu and Superheroes of the West bursts forth, pivoting around with a sweep of his cape, before raising a Golden Bow and firing, arrows suddenly descending in waves upon the pinned down Phantoms in Noir, Panther, Belle, and Fox.

It's so difficult to see the ground in here, especially while fighting Akechi, but as Queen moves atop Johanna, all it takes is one turn while recovering from the drift, and their wheel makes contact with something with give, that doesn't bear their weight. It's a tarp!?
 
OVER A SUDDEN PITFALL!?
 
It's somehow about 5 meters deep and nearly as wide. And as Queen struggles to either avoid the fall or roll with it riding their Persona, Akechi fishes into his pockets then casually tosses an object towards the pit. It's... a can? Briefly they might catch that what's written on the side is:
 
     Jack's Famous Hee-Hold Up Custard:
       Fun for the Hee-Hole Family!
 
It bursts into a truly implausible amount of sticky custard, filling the entire pit trap with goo that might make efforts to get out a little difficult.
 
"Best of luck finding a way out!" He calls out, smug as ever.

AS: You can't pay the cost for Exploit.
AS: Detective Prince PenPen spends Limit on Exploit! Detective Prince PenPen can use another Weak skill this round!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Comically Oversized Net on Kasumi Yoshizawa, Ren
Amamiya, Haru Okumura, and Ann Takamaki!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen takes 60 damage from Panic!
AS: Pressure: Detective Prince PenPen gains 1 Limit!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Comically Oversized Net on Yusuke Kitagawa!
AS: Weapon! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Pierce skill Warning Shots on Ren Amamiya! 3 Hits!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Pierce skill Arrow Rain on Kasumi Yoshizawa, Haru Okumura, Ann
Takamaki, and Yusuke Kitagawa! 3 Hits!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Strike skill Implausible *~Pit Trap!~* on Makoto Niijima!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Ann Takamaki takes 0 Almighty damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Masukukaja.
AS: Spd_Up added!
AS: Take! Ann Takamaki takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Comically Oversized Net.
AS: Spd_Up removed!
AS: Take! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 0 Almighty damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Masukukaja.
AS: Spd_Up added!
AS: Avoid Worst! Ann Takamaki takes 52 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Take! Ren Amamiya takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Comically Oversized Net.
AS: Spd_Up removed!
AS: Take! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Comically Oversized Net.
AS: Spd_Up removed!
AS: Block Worst! Ann Takamaki takes 47 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Best! Ren Amamiya takes 25 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Warning Shots.
AS: Avoid Neutral! Ann Takamaki takes 44 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Worst! Ren Amamiya takes 42 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Warning Shots.
AS: Avoid Worst! Ren Amamiya takes 42 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Warning Shots.
AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 6 Almighty damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Masukukaja.
AS: Spd_Up added!
AS: Avoid Worst! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 38 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Best! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 22 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Neutral! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 32 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 8 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Comically Oversized Net.
AS: Spd_Up removed!
AS: Avoid Best! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 21 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Neutral! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 29 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Take! Haru Okumura takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Comically Oversized Net.
AS: Spd_Dn added!
AS: Avoid Best! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 21 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Best! Haru Okumura takes 28 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.
AS: Avoid Neutral! Haru Okumura takes 52 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain. Critical Hit!
AS: Avoid Best! Haru Okumura takes 28 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Arrow Rain.

<Pose Tracker> Yusuke Kitagawa has posed.

Before Fox can even begin to move from Goemon's gift of speed, he's among the group of Phantoms caught in the Giant Net and knocked to the ground.

"Curses...!"

Struggling under the net, he catches a glimpse of Akechi's mask wreathed in blue flame, and then comes forth -

"Robin Hood!?"

The shining spectacle of superheroic archery pulls back his golden bow, and Fox realises he has only moments to react.

He grabs his saya, and click goes the blade in the sheath. A flurry of slashes bursts the net apart around him, allowing him to roll away from the first volley, get to his feet, and spring away from the worst of the barrage towards the so-called Detective Prince. "Enough showboating!" He barks, black blade gleaming. "Draw steel!"

He strikes in a blur, a one-two cut intended to force Akechi back and allow his teammates to find their footing.

AS: Weapon! Yusuke Kitagawa has used the Slash skill Katana Combo on Detective Prince PenPen! 2 Hits!
AS: Aggression: Yusuke Kitagawa gains 1 Limit!
AS: Yusuke Kitagawa's turn has ended.
AS: Block Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 40 Slash damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Katana Combo. Critical Hit!
AS: Block Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 37 Slash damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Katana Combo. Critical Hit!
 Hitomi Mandai says, "I could come hang a li'l if you would like Myung"
 Myunghon Yeo says, "ooh, of course"

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    Ah, Noir's right! They're thieves. They need to try and escape. Which means fighting back against Akechi. That makes sense. Of course, Belle doesn't want to hurt him...

    ... Oh! Queen comes up with a good plan! Take out the lights. She can do that... Probably!

    "Got it!" Belle's antique rifle appears in her hands and she grips the unfamiliar weapon tightly. Last time her instincts were in full swing following her awakening. Now she's feeling a little unsure of herself...

    But thankfully she's not alone as an empowering wind swirls around her. And just in time too as Akechi presses a button. Belle hears the swishing and looks up to see the falling net. She reacts quickly, diving out of the way with unnatural speed! She just manages to clear the edge of the net, rolling across the ground a couple of times.

    Rising to her feet again, Belle lets out a sigh of relief. That was close! She never would have been able to make it without help, "Thanks, Fox!"

    Akechi has clearly prepared for this encounter. Such elaborate traps. Such forethought into how the Phantom Thieves will react. This is clearly why people call him a Detective Prince! Belle can only hope she'll be able to provide some small help in this thrilling battle of wits and Personas!

    To that end, Belle raises her rifle and starts taking pot shots at the light sources. She's got no concerns about shooting out a few lights... But when the time comes, will she be able to shoot at Akechi?

AS: Weapon! Kasumi Yoshizawa has used the Pierce skill Second Routine on Detective Prince PenPen! 2 Hits!
AS: Aggression: Kasumi Yoshizawa gains 1 Limit!
AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa's turn has ended.
 Hitomi Mandai says, "also can i slip saika over to watch the shujinology"

AS: Block Best! Detective Prince PenPen takes 20 Pierce damage from Kasumi Yoshizawa's Second Routine. Critical Hit!
AS: Block Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 29 Pierce damage from Kasumi Yoshizawa's Second Routine. Critical Hit!
 Miho Ijuuin says, "observers were welcome earlier! probably still are!"

AS: Avoid Neutral! Makoto Niijima takes 92 Strike damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Implausible *~Pit Trap!~*.
Critical Hit!
Saika Kikuchi has arrived from Electric Town - Gigolo Arcade.
GRID: Saika Kikuchi has joined Goro Akechi.

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    There's no helping it; this was the only way forward, after the lockdowns on various other parts of the Palace. That's what made this trap so effective: their only choices were to fall into it or turn back. Given their goals, turning back was not an option.
    
    Ironically, now even without questioning Shadow Kobayakawa, they've now had their suspicions confirmed.
    
    "We're not getting caught, and we outnumber him," Joker says over their shoulder to Belle. Queen barks out more actionable tactics in response--from taking out the spotlights (they are on the same wavelength, because Joker was going to say that) to assigning cover duty. Joker is the one with the Dark-elemental spells, so putting them on point only makes sense.
    
    Hey, waitaminute! You're the guy! The second-rate Detective Prince!!
    
    Joker just manages to choke back a snort-laugh. Panther remains the funniest friend they have without even trying.
    
    But she does make a practical suggestion. It's a logical one--smart, even. But... "It's not just him anymore. Remember the one in the black mask?" they remind her. "Besides--" They turn a smirk back at Akechi, whose irritation they recognize. He says they can have that one, but that doesn't stop them from retorting, "No second-rate Detective Prince is going to tell The Phantoms where we can and can't go!"
    
    Even if it's confirmed that Akechi is a Persona User who has been using this Palace to try to get more intel on the Phantom Thieves, there's still other things Shadow Kobayakawa could tell them about... like what or who he's so afraid of, and how the One in the Black Mask ties in with that.
    
    Besides, they'll learn a lot more by taking Akechi on than by running away here--and Joker once again finds they don't want to lose to him.
    
    So naturally, that's when a giant weighted net falls down from the ceiling, right before opening fire on Joker with a series of lasers. Joker moves swiftly to evade the blasts--but in evading those, Akechi herds them right where he wants them, under that net to get trapped. Joker cries out in loud frustration. A point to the Detective Prince!
    
    Or is it?
    
    To their friends who've also been trapped or close to it, they murmur, "Once the spotlights are out, move past them and surround Akechi." They smirk and hold up a length of the net. "We'll tie him up in his own ropes and question him too."
    
    After all, they've got a master swordsman with them--and sure enough, Fox slices the net apart with his katana, then springs forward to take Akechi on directly. Joker shoots a wink at Belle and Noir, then calls forward, "Nice work, Fox! Keep him busy!"
    
    But then there is a pitfall under Queen's Persona, and Akechi tosses in a can of sticky custard? Joker grimaces, for real this time. "Noir, go help Queen!" Belle's already on taking out the spotlights, so-- "Panther--" They gesture to her--and to one end of the net. They take the other side.
    
    "Let's do this quick," they murmur to her. "I go left, you go right. Watch your step--he's sure to have more traps."
    
    Arsène rises above them again, whirling in midair to call up misty darkness that shoot down towards Akechi in a whorling rain. Belle may be reluctant to hurt him, and Joker commends her for that, but they know well how resilient a Persona User is; they don't need to worry too hard. Between that Multi-Eiha and Fox, it ought to keep Akechi busy while Joker and Panther attempt to use his own trap against him by closing that cut-up net around him.

AS: Persona! Ren Amamiya has used the Dark skill Multi-Eiha on Detective Prince PenPen! 3 Hits!
AS: Ruin: Ren Amamiya gains 1 Limit!
AS: Ren Amamiya's turn has ended.
AS: Block Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 39 Dark damage from Ren Amamiya's Multi-Eiha. Critical Hit! Weak!
AS: Blast added!
AS: Block Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 26 Dark damage from Ren Amamiya's Multi-Eiha. Weak!
AS: Block Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 23 Dark damage from Ren Amamiya's Multi-Eiha. Weak!
AS: Ren Amamiya spends Limit on Shift! Haru Okumura can use another Weak skill this round!
AS: Ren Amamiya spends Limit on Shift! Ann Takamaki can use another Weak skill this round!

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

It seems Akechi didn't quite take the bait the way Haru was hoping, but the Phantoms do manage to recover their footing just a bit, even through Akechi's trap. Still, they can't keep their guard down. Akechi may not be the Black Mask, but he will do whatever it takes to close this case.

Haru remains stanced - prepared to follow along with Queen's plan, when... he brings out an oversized net?! At the same time, arrows rain in from his Persona, so Haru has to think fast. Throwing her axe through the net like a hatchet to cut an opening, she rolls out and away from at most of the arrows - though once lands its mark through her shoulder as she rises back up.

"Is that how you present yourself when the cameras stop rolling?" Haru asks, as he taunts the victims of his.. pitfall trap. "I'm starting to dislike your attitude!" Haru points an accusing finger Akechi's way. Joker suggests helping Queen out and Haru quickly nods. "Got it, Joker. Don't worry, Queen... I'm coming! She swings her axe around. "Might be a little rough, though~" She swings, and swings - and sure enough, with enough effort, she gets through the sticky custard - and reaches a hand out for Makoto to help her out. "Now, let's give him a little payback, shall we, Queen?

While she's doing that, Haru keeps Milady focused on Akechi. "His Persona has plenty of firepower in its own right... but we can match him in marksmanship, can't we, Milady?" Haru asks, with a flourish of her arm. "Fire away!" Milady's dress twirls, and from it, comes a deadly dance of bullets headed straight for Akechi and Robin Hood!

AS: Weapon! Haru Okumura has used the Slash skill You shouldn't annoy a girl with an axe! on Goro Akechi!
AS: Persona! Haru Okumura has used the Pierce skill Triple Down on Detective Prince PenPen! 3 Hits!
AS: Haru Okumura's turn has ended.
AS: Avoid Best! Detective Prince PenPen takes 27 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's Triple Down.
AS: Avoid Best! Detective Prince PenPen takes 27 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's Triple Down.
AS: Haru Okumura spends Limit on Shift! Makoto Niijima can use another Weak skill this round!
AS: Avoid Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 45 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's Triple Down.

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

Sticks and stones...

Panther, professional Phantom Thief with three - three - successful heists to her name, responds with the eloquence and grace of a femme fatale:

"Blehhhhhhhhh."

By sticking out her tongue at Goro Akechi, Detective Prince.

And of course as is the way of things--

"GACK! NET!"

--she pays for it immediately.

But, it's -so- worth it.

FLUMPF goes Ann, caught within the weighted ropes of Akechi's cleverly cartoonish cognitive capture. Sprawled out in an inelegant splay of limbs, the blonde cat burglar groans in annoyance and some mild confusion as she pulls against that netting.

"Wh-what the heck," she complains, "is this some kind of cartoon thing--?!"

The magics of Yusuke's Persona, however, are coursing through her. She pushes against those ropes, trying to pry an opening as vigor and speed within her redouble--

just in time to see

    A) A FRIGGIN LASER GUN ("W-wait, is that a toy gun--!?")

    B) A friggin Persona which, despite not meriting the All Caps of Alarm, is still very much pointing a giant bow at her

She'd muse as to the weirdly childish nature of that Persona - it DOES stand out, especially with how it reminds her of a certain Kansas-raised alien superhero - but, well.

"Oh crap oh crap oh crap crap crap--!!"

THOK!

THOK THOK THOK THOK THOK!

She's a bit preoccupied.

Arrows rain down. And Panther cries out in sharp pain even as Carmen protects her physical body from the brunt of the assault, her (and her servants) shoving forward to shield her. Pink lips twisting in a grimace, she clenches tightly onto that netting just as Joker does.

"Oh -- that is IT!"

And then it all just IGNITES.

Rope catches fire, and spreads RAPIDLY throughout the netting, intent to burn it ALL away as Ann pulls herself up in narrow-eyed frustration and anger, pushing stray locks of platinum from her narrow-eyed glare. Did she hear Ren?

"Let's GO, Joker!!"

Apparently so -- considering she -immediately- starts to break into a rightward run, becoming a smear of red leather and angry blues. She's about to mount an offensive, when--

"W-- watch out!!"

That TARP TRAP gives way underneath Makoto. Ann's eyes widen. And, without hesitation, she suddenly pivots, breaking out into a slide across the Parade Grounds. Her whip manifests as she drags across the hard grounds that was so recently the site of a hard-fought battle against a cognitive cohort of war machines.

"Queen! Catch!!"

And as Noir cuts away at the custard, with a snap-CRACK Panther swings that whip outward, intent to try to snare Makoto by the waist. "I'm so so sorry about this -- NNNGGAH!!"

And YANK, to help drag her -straight- out of that sticky-custard hellhole before she can get well and truly stuck. It's not quite a success -- but she does at least manage to get keep Queen from falling -completely- into the pit, just in time for Noir to clear away the custard and get her out.

In the meantime:

"Hey! You jerk!"

Ann comes to a rolling stop, just in time to swing her hand out, SMG suddenly in hand. And any floodlights the others -don't- get?

She's firing on, liberally, in that usual, SHOOT THE ENTIRE AIRSPACE way of hers. Akechi better watch where he's stepping!!

"What the heck is your problem, anyway?!"

Joker's right. This guy needs to be taken down a peg or ten.

Who uses custard for evil...?!

AS: Persona! Ann Takamaki has used the Fire skill Agilao on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Weapon! Ann Takamaki has used the Pierce skill Trooper SMG on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Ann Takamaki's turn has ended.
AS: Ann Takamaki spends Limit on Shift! Makoto Niijima can use another Weak skill this round! SP +8! Healed 20!
AS: Avoid Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 90 Fire damage from Ann Takamaki's Agilao.
AS: Block Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 9 Pierce damage from Ann Takamaki's Trooper SMG.

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    The good news is Akechi did not, in fact, leave the landmines intact. The bad news is he had something else of the sort lined up, and if it was set up to catch anyone, it was definitely Queen with Johanna's focus on mobility. Akechi leaps away from her attack, and her momentum carries her past him, but as Makoto tries to pull up Johanna's wheels lose traction and Queen lets out a gasp of shock. "What?!"

    Johanna is falling, and at the same time a can is hurled toward her and Makoto lifts an arm to protect her eyes. This turns out to be a mistake, as she is covered in... custard? Very sticky custard. She hears Ann call, and flails her free arm behind her, managing to grab onto the whip and is yanked clear of the pit and lands roughly on the ground, stuck, while Johanna shatters apart at the bottom of the pit trap, and Makoto winces. The rough landing hurt, and now she's trapped-

    But not for long, as Noir comes and brings her axe and cuts her free, and she takes Haru's offered hand.

    "Thanks, both of you. I can't believe I fell for that..."

    Still, for all the lightheartedness of his approach, it's clear Akechi isn't purely joking around. Haru and Ann are both already hurting, she can tell. She frowns, it's six to one, but they can't get cocky.

    "Right. Payback sounds great right now... but let's not get ahead of ourselves. Johanna!"

    The bike manifests again, and Makoto does not get on this time, in case the remaining custard sticks her to her Persona, but she reaches to rev her engine. "Rakukaja! Diarama!"

    A defensive aura washes over Haru, while a healing one rains down on Ann, hoping to keep them both in the fight a little longer, before Makoto focuses her eyes on Akechi. "As for you, Detective..." Makoto casts a look toward the master of Robin Hood, her eyes full of anger and fire.

    Fire that her eyes lacked, not so long ago.

    "Take this! Frei!"

    With that, Johanna's engines rev again, and a plume of nuclear fire descends toward Akechi, while Makoto watches how he reacts. "Noir... Get ready to intercept when he dodges." Her voice is a whisper to Haru alone. She knows how athletic Akechi is now... may as well take advantage of it.

    After all, if Akechi has the advantage of preparation, the Phantoms have the advantage of teamwork.

AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Recovery skill Diarama on Ann Takamaki!
AS: Support: Makoto Niijima gains 1 Limit!
AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Almighty skill Rakukaja on Haru Okumura!
AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Fire skill Frei on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Makoto Niijima: Atk_Dn removed!
AS: Makoto Niijima's turn has ended.
AS: Makoto Niijima spends Limit on Shift! Haru Okumura can use another Weak skill this round! SP +8! Healed 20!
AS: Avoid Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 26 Fire damage from Makoto Niijima's Frei.
AS: Blast added!
AS: Take! Ann Takamaki takes 65 Recovery healing from Makoto Niijima's Diarama.

<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.

Joker is correct, they absolutely outnumber him. Which is perhaps why he thought to even the odds in his advantage as much as possible. He is strong, apparently, but certainly not so arrogant as to think he can best them straight up. The snort-laugh from Joker does cause an eye to twitch, not that anyone can see it right now. Not even to mention Panther sticking her tongue out. "... Childish to the last, I see."

The net however burns, and Akechi has to leap backwards, shielding his eyes against the hot flash of Panther's being done with this.

Fox calls out his challenge and the Detective Prince turns to face him. As Fox gets closer, he'll see that his blade hardly seems a blade at all. More like something Space Pirates from science fiction might wield. A glowing saber of light. A cut of his katana slips in to stab at an epaulette, before he bats his saber up to lock with his katana. "Certainly." He smiles under the mask.

Joker stays back, trying to articulate a later phase of the plan, and Akechi smiles at that, "I'd like to see you try." His eyes, not facing the 'sun' aren't so hindered as theirs are, but as he moves, Akechi then clashes back against Fox Fox, before angling his strike and suddenly shoving him back with the pommel.

All it takes is a misplaced step, as they feel something underfoot which they couldn't see at all before. They may have time to look down and see- a Crimson Magatama with a Kanji for what's that symbol? Is it... HELL!? Which is now glowing red hot, before it detonates into a wave of roaring flame.

"No appreciation for the time I spent putting this all together, just for you?" Akechi says towards Fox, at the idea of 'showboating'. "I'm disappointed." Before Akechi cheerily responds to Noir, "It's how I present myself to wanton criminals who would deny others their free will."

Meanwhile, Belle surges forward, rifle in hand, as she takes shots at the flood lights. The glass breaks in one, sputtering, before another goes out entirely. It's working! Then a foot snags against a hidden wire, so delicately thin, as it snaps.

And an object just falls. It looks like a strange metallic slinky atop a small pole, but as it does, it begins to spark and then, ZAPPPPPPPPPP as a Tesla Coil just sparks lightning all over for an attempt to rudely taze Belle, "It seems you found your motivation after all. A shame." Is he really disappointed by it though?

One would swear he's enjoying the challenge of them fighting back.

And then Arsene unleashes his tri-fold burst of cursed magic. The first staggers him, as the second is sliced by his saber, and the third causes the light to dim, as he nearly falls from the repeated assault against his weakness.

But Joker by going left, feels something under his foot. Look down Joker. You just stepped on an object with a smiling happy face. "One of my favorites." Akechi says, strained as he's recovering, "That would be the Happy-" He says with a cheerfully smug tone, as suddenly light energy streams out into a detonation of happy faces that tries to take Joker by storm. "-Bomb. Though I can't imagine you're all that thrilled at the moment." He knows he is though, and that's what's important.

<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.

Then as if in retaliation, Milady begins firing with its gatling guns, and Akechi is suddenly like a shadow against the brightness of the light. He's here - then there as he zips from place to place across the field of traps he set up.

But at the last moment, Robin Hood comes out and has to defend him against the final salvo. The bullets pepper his muscular form, as he shakes at the solid hit. "Aha, did you think I came here afraid of a little roughhousing?" He says with a soft chuckle, as a hand is placed to his Mask, "ROBIN HOOD!"

And the Persona reasserts himself, pivoting around, his Golden Bow sporting two arrows nocked at once, that they fire straight at Milady, trying to impale the Persona outright.

'Hey! You jerk!'

"Ah." And Panther does the time honored spray and pray towards the floodlights, as more and more of them gutter out between Panther and Belle's efforts. Akechi does in fact have to raise his saber, slicing into the sudden stream of bullets to keep himself out of harm's way as they seem to melt against the blade. Or do they? It's hard to say right now. It at least doesn't seem to be acting like a true blade of light, as in it was solid enough for Fox's Katana to clash against, and didn't melt it outright.

A hiss. What even triggered it? Proximity? A trip wire? It's hard to even say, but one might get a glimpse of a pressurized bottle of air, before a sudden intense blast of wind attempts to buffet Panther with the force of a Cannonade. "Problems? I wouldn't say I have any problems at the moment." He chuckles, smugly before he asks back, "Can you say the same?"

What a prick.

Queen newly freed from the efforts of others immediately sets about with the support, indeed showing that while he has the advantage of preparation, their teamwork sets them apart. "You're just delaying the inevitable." He remarks, before suddenly she sends Nuclear Fire his way. The flash of nuclear energy is something he has to shield his eyes against again, as he quickly tries to leap away.

Landing solidly, he suddenly grabs his toyetic ray gun again, and this time fires at- Fox?! Wait no. It strikes his katana blade, and against the metal, the blast is diverted towards Queen to attempt to strike her flanks! "You say that as if I'm already cornered."

With the lights gone, that crate now stands as the only prominent landmark. Others will come into view soon, perhaps, to make dodging the traps easier. But is that large crate something he's using for storage for all of his Cognitive objects? Or is it another enticing trap?

"Well come on then... show me what you've truly got, Phantom Thieves. And I'll show you just how my skills exceed yours."

AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Fire skill Quite the mistake stepping on my: Hell Magatama on Yusuke
Kitagawa!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Elec skill Aha that certainly was my: Tesla Coil on Kasumi Yoshizawa!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Light skill Well well you've set off my: Happy Bomb! on Ren Amamiya!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Pierce skill Double Shot on Haru Okumura! 2 Hits!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Wind skill Oh dear I believe you triggered my: Air Cannon! on Ann
Takamaki!
AS: Weapon! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Pierce skill Moebius Blast on Makoto Niijima! 2 Hits!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen: Blast removed!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen's turn has ended.
AS: Avoid Best! Ren Amamiya takes 38 Light damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Well well you've set off my: Happy
Bomb!. Weak! Avoid Light!
AS: Haze added!
AS: Avoid Worst! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 55 Elec damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Aha that certainly was my: Tesla
Coil.
AS: Paralyze added!
AS: Avoid Worst! Ann Takamaki takes 82 Wind damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Oh dear I believe you triggered my:
Air Cannon!.
AS: Counter Best! Makoto Niijima takes 37 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Moebius Blast.
AS: COUNTER! Detective Prince PenPen takes 19 Earth damage in return for their attack! 
AS: Counter Worst! Makoto Niijima takes 67 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Moebius Blast. Critical Hit!
AS: COUNTER! Detective Prince PenPen takes 14 Earth damage in return for their attack! 
AS: Avoid Worst! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 73 Fire damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Quite the mistake stepping on my:
Hell Magatama. Weak!
AS: Haze added!
AS: Take! Haru Okumura takes 0 Almighty damage from Makoto Niijima's Rakukaja.
AS: Def_Up added!
AS: Block Worst! Haru Okumura takes 42 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Double Shot.
AS: Bind added!
AS: Block Worst! Haru Okumura takes 42 Pierce damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Double Shot.
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes on Yusuke Kitagawa,
Ren Amamiya, Makoto Niijima, and Haru Okumura!
AS: Persona! Detective Prince PenPen has used the Almighty skill Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes on Ann Takamaki and
Kasumi Yoshizawa!
AS: Detective Prince PenPen's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes.
AS: Atk_Dn removed!
AS: Take! Ann Takamaki takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes.
AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 8 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes.
AS: Take! Makoto Niijima takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes.
AS: Take! Ren Amamiya takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes.
AS: Detective Prince PenPen has set a trigger!

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    Robin Hood is a name Joker will have to remember. They've been reading a lot about the Personas they and their friends have lately. If they can find some literature about Akechi's, maybe they can learn something new about him. ...Honestly, just the look of Robin Hood says a lot, with that tokusatsu-meets-Western superhero vibe to him... Not to mention the ray gun, the almost comical traps...
    
    ...For all that Akechi likes to present himself as cool and mature and grown-up--for all that he calls them childish, not unfairly--he has a surprisingly childish side of his own, huh? Maybe that's why he's so eager for a rivalry...
    
    There is a feel of something under his foot. Joker doesn't even look--that smugly cheerful smile of Akechi's prompts them to leap forward into a forward roll as the 'Happy Bomb' explodes. A good thing for them; even an indirect blast of light energy burns at their coat. The net is burned in their wake. So much for that idea, but it's now time for the next. They shoot a glance across the parade grounds as their friends struggle. Akechi's very well-prepared, and if this is a game to him, it's clearly one he plans to win. But as Joker is trying to figure out their next move...
    
    I'll show you just how my skills exceed yours, Akechi boasts, while moving that light saber of his so quickly he cuts down Panther's spray-and-pray bullets.
    
    Joker's eyes narrow. He isn't the one in the black mask. That's obvious now. Even Joker, with the power of the Wild Card, doesn't change the way they look when they call up alternate Personas, so with not just completely different cognitive costumes but also completely different Personas, there's no reason that Akechi and the Black Mask are the same. Except--
    
    They continue to sound just like each other... and now Joker's seen them use the same technique, too. And both with swords... ...though Akechi is, for some reason, choosing to wield his in his right hand.
    
    They shelve that thought. Focus. The floodlights are out, so it's easier to see now--and one thing that comes into view is that crate from earlier. Joker hadn't given it a second thought at the time, thinking it something along the lines of what Shadow Kobayakawa had hidden in before, but when they look at it again with their Third Eye, it glows...
    
    ...and within that glow is the contours of a Psycho-Bomb, set to go off once the crate is opened.
    
    Joker shoots a glance at Fox dueling with Akechi, with Belle hit by that Tesla trap, at Robin Hood arrowing down Milady, at Akechi firing his laser gun at Queen, at Panther getting blown by that Air Cannon, all while Akechi smugs it up at all of them. Giving out orders had the obvious downside earlier of Akechi overhearing and being able to counter. But if they can take him by surprise...
    
    They clutch their mask, whirling in place as a new Persona crashes into the forefront of their mind. Mona might not be here, but the representation of their bond comes forth all the same as Joker calls, "Cait Sith!!"
    
    An orange Puss-in-Boots materializes, waving a sword of his own. But rather than slice at Akechi with it... he sweeps it back, and with a grand swing, SLAMS the flat of it into the crate with the intent to send it hurtling towards the second Detective Prince.
    
    "Clear!!" Joker shouts to his friends.

AS: Persona! Ren Amamiya has used the Slash skill Mighty Swing on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Ren Amamiya regains 10 HP from Regenerate!
AS: Ren Amamiya's turn has ended.
AS: Persona! Junes has used the Elec skill ~Psycho-Bomb~ on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Junes's turn has ended.
AS: Avoid Best! Detective Prince PenPen takes 61 Slash damage from Ren Amamiya's Mighty Swing. Critical Hit!
AS: Block Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 81 Elec damage from Junes's ~Psycho-Bomb~. Critical Hit!
AS: Bind added!

<Pose Tracker> Yusuke Kitagawa has posed.

Fox's eyes widen behind his mask as he sees Akechi draw laser instead of steel, and is inwardly relieved when their blades cross instead of his being cut clean through. He might have an eloquent response to the other's banter, but the pommel to his chest reduces that to a grunt as he stumbles back, wind forced from his lungs. As he catches his breath, he glances down in time to see the magatama at his feet begin to glow alarmingly, and tries to throw himself to the side of the blast, instead being picked up and flung aside by it.

He coughs, struggling to his feet - and then the last of the floodlights is shot out, and darkness plunges over the arena. Blinking the spots out of his eyes, Fox looks around - in time to hear Joker call for them to clear out.

He acceeds to the order, stepping sharply backwards from where Akechi's white-and-gold spectacle stands and dropping his hand to his now-resheathed blade. He exhales, forcing himself to wait for their foe to advance.
Junes has left for Staff Lounge.

AS: Persona! Yusuke Kitagawa has used the Almighty skill Iaijutsu Stance on Yusuke Kitagawa!
AS: Yusuke Kitagawa's turn has ended.
AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 8 Almighty damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Iaijutsu Stance.
AS: Atk_Up and Reflect_Phys added!

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    With many of the spotlights taken out, Belle's eyesight finally begins to clear. Queen is being rescued from that pitfall, with help from Noir and Panther. While Fox and Joker are focusing on keeping Akechi occupied. Though not so occupied that he doesn't address Belle directly.

    Her motivation? A shame? "Well it's not like I was just going to stand around and wait for you to arrest her! That wouldn't be very thief-like." Probably, she thinks. Unless there was some sneaky ulterior motive to getting caught. But that's probably not what's going on here.

    Although if Belle had considered that motive beforehand, she might have anticipated a tazing. But as it stands, the tripwire initially surprises her. The strange object falling towards her even more so as Belle has no clue what it is. So she simply jumps back to try and avoid a direct hit.

    The blast of electricity didn't need a direct hit though, zapping the area around it and catching Belle at its edges. Belle shakes under the brief, intense electrical shock, before it passes and she's left slightly smoking.

    Belle stumbles for a moment, shaking her head a little as she still feels a light tingle throughout her body. As she takes a moment to recover, she asks Akechi, "Is this really all that your plan involves? It's like you're more interested in playing with us instead of trying to take us in!!"

    There definitely has to be more to this. This is Goro Akechi!

    And that's when Belle spots the ominous looking crate, "Is that...!?" Maybe that's the secret to Akechi's ingenious plan!? They should take care of it, quickly!

    Joker's already on it though, aiming to send the crate flying at Akechi. Belle can't see what it is, but she trusts that they have a good reason for doing so! And at this point, trying to limit Akechi's movements to make dealing with it harder is her best bet, "Cendrillon!"

    As Belle calls out the belle of the ball, the ornately dressed Cendrillon appears in a burst of blue flame. She rises into the air above Belle, arms crossed in front of her. Before she twirls, stretching her arms out as bolts of golden light appear in the air around Akechi, before darting in towards him from multiple directions.

AS: Persona! Kasumi Yoshizawa has used the Light skill Makouga on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa's turn has ended.
AS: Avoid Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 57 Light damage from Kasumi Yoshizawa's Makouga. Resist!
AS: Haze added! Bind removed! Explosion! 50 damage!
AS: Yusuke Kitagawa spends Limit on Shift! Ren Amamiya can use another Weak skill this round!

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

"He must be feeling quite desperate against this many of us, if he's willing to resort to such cheap tricks, don't you think?" Noir can't help but smile. "But that won't stop us~ Nice save, Panther!" Queen responds by firing off a nuclear blast towards Akechi, and telling Haru to be ready to intercept. "Right... I won't keep my eyes off him for a second." She nods, resolutely.

Milady fires, and it's as if Akechi phases from the shadows to the light in dodging them. "He's fast!" Haru's eyes widen. The Phantoms might have teamwork going for them, but Akechi can match them in every area of combat, handling this many opponents at once. "Is that what this is to you?" Noir shoots back, when Akechi calls it roughhousing. "A game?"

Unfortunately, Akechi's mockery proves to be quite effective - his shot is already lined up for Milady, and there's little Haru can do to defend against it. The arrows fly directly through the Persona, robbing her of her corporeal form for the moment. "Milady!!" Haru calls, feeling the pain of her 'other self' course through her own body...

But she can still fight. With the headlights shot out, Akechi no longer holds the same advantage he had before. She swaps her axe for her grenade launcher, waiting for just the right time, when he's most vulnerable after Joker's gambit with the Psycho-Bomb within the crate - and then firing off a large satisfying BOOM directly for the Detective Prince! "Satisfied yet, Detective Prince?"

AS: Take! Haru Okumura takes 0 Almighty damage from Detective Prince PenPen's Clear the Spots Out Of Your Eyes.
AS: Weapon! Haru Okumura has used the Pierce skill How's this? Painful? on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Weapon! Haru Okumura has used the Pierce skill How's this? Painful? on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Haru Okumura's turn has ended.
AS: Block Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 87 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's How's this? Painful?. Critical Hit!
AS: Block Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 46 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's How's this? Painful?.

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

Problems? I wouldn't say I have any problems at the moment.

"Oh yeah RIGHT--"

Ann Takamaki's tirade never quite gets the chance to get off the ground. Because as soon as she takes a defiant, heel-clicking -stomp- forward, she hears a

*hss*

and immediately grimaces.

"Aw, come on--!"

Which is about when a big bundle of pressurized air hits her in the gut like an invisible runaway ram, forcing the air and any expletives Panther may have for the Detective Prince straight out of her lungs just as efficiently as it forces her footing straight off of the earth. With a strangled gasp Ann gets to learn the exquisite joys of being on the end of a ragdoll physics moment, of which there's really only debatably one:

"ghh--"

WHUD

"--hk!"

It has to end -eventually-.

Ann hits the ground shoulder-first in an ugly impact, rebounding with one brief bounce before she goes spinning out into a rolling stop across the Parade Grounds, dust and dirt kicked up in her wake. It -hurts-; for a second, she can't even breath, sucking air back into her lungs with a burning gasp. But as her vision stops swimming, as her gloves slap against pavement, the Phantom Thief--

"h-hah... haha..."

--laughs?

"Nnngghh... saying... saying you don't have a problem... and then g-going... through all this trouble and effort... j-just to try to catch us...?"

Panther stands up, despite the pain, and shows her defiance -- by giving the most dismissive of all gestures:

The hair flip.

"Give me a break, you are so full of it!"

The crate. She notices immediately. Maybe there are more traps, maybe -that- is a trap too -- but Joker has their eye on it.

And that means it's time to follow their play and improvise on the fly. Like all the best heists.

"You're totally right, Noir," says Panther, eyes narrowed, bearing up full of fiery wrath. "He's not fooling anyone. And, you know?" Cait Sith manifests. Fox prepares himself in that ready stance, aiming to counter whatever Akechi might throw his way; Belle is already backing Joker's move. And Panther follows suit, blue flames roaring around her as she takes a firm grip of her mask.

"High strung guys who try to act like they're above it all--"

And as Carmen manifests beside Cendrillon, she blows Akechi a kiss -- and then swings both her servants forward on their viny, thorn-riddled leashes. The crate is crushed by Cait Sith's powerful swing -just- about the time Carmen's servitors SMACK together, heart-head to heart-head, the clash of those heavy metal skulls creating a spray of sparks--

--sparks that manifest in a billowy gout of flame to flow through and -around- Akechi, intent to keep him from just -escaping- a taste of his own medicine.

"--are the WORST!"

And it must be said, Ann remains in the background, giving a big thumbs down.

"And ray guns? So lame!"

She'd be completely confused and dismayed about how Akechi has functioning ENERGY GUNS and LIGHT SABERS but well

she's just so honkin' mad right now you guys

AS: Persona! Ann Takamaki has used the Fire skill Maragi on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Ann Takamaki's turn has ended.
AS: Block Neutral! Detective Prince PenPen takes 55 Fire damage from Ann Takamaki's Maragi.
AS: Haze added!

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    "...You're enjoying this." Makoto says, sharply towards Akechi. The same way he seemed to enjoy cornering her earlier- and how she imagines he enjoys harassing Ren. "At least you'll get something out of this, then." Still, Queen sounds angry. Angry that she once again fell for another of Akechi's simple, blatant traps. She's sure if he knew he were Makoto, he would be mocking her for being so easy to catch.

    On the upside, now understanding how much of a trickster Akechi is proving to be, she's not caught totally by surprise by Akechi's shots reflecting off Fox's katana, turning quickly to flip her scarf to deflect some of the blast- suddenly enchanted by earth magic. That armour she picked up in Kaneshiro's palace is coming in handy already, but it's not perfect. She deflects the worst of the first shot, but doesn't do as well against the second, as that shot pierces cleanly, forcing Makoto to stumble back as the shot draws blood. Tsk...

    "Maybe. But you can only outlast us so long, and you can only have so many traps. Your edge is limited- you're going to have to make a decisive move soon. If you don't, you don't have a chance of winning."

    But she can hear that he's getting under their skin. "Noir. He wants us angry, to get sloppy. Stay angry but stay focused, got it!?"

    But she also watches as Panther gets hit hard again, and Queen grimaces. "Panther!? Are you okay?" ...Outlasting is, after all, reliant on outlasting him, especially if the team are taking their share of beatings. She can't risk getting as close as she'd like, either, given the traps across the battlefield.

    And so she reaches for her hip and her revolver manifests in her hand, as she suddenly draws it and fires from the hip at Akechi, hoping to catch him off guard.

    "...We're about evenly matched right now, but Belle is still new and we don't know what else he has up his sleeve." She murmurs to Joker, when the opportunity arises. "How do you want to play this? Take him down, or get us out?"

AS: Weapon! Makoto Niijima has used the Pierce skill Fast Draw on Goro Akechi!
AS: Makoto Niijima's turn has ended.
AS: Makoto Niijima cancels 1 attacks on Goro Akechi.
AS: Weapon! Makoto Niijima has used the Pierce skill Fast Draw on Detective Prince PenPen!
AS: Makoto Niijima's turn has ended.
AS: Block Worst! Detective Prince PenPen takes 70 Pierce damage from Makoto Niijima's Fast Draw. Critical Hit!

<Pose Tracker> Goro Akechi has posed.

"Hardly!" Is his answer to Noir, but does it sound like he's losing composure some? Perhaps he is growing a little desperate, "I'm only leveling the playing field." He says of his 'cheap tricks.' The dismissive hairflip... telling him he's full of it. "Shut up." He snarls at Panther.

Perhaps he does have a childish side at that. After all, is proving his skills exceed theirs so important? A matter of pride? Unfortunately, Akechi couldn't have counted for Joker's Third Eye. And thus when Joker switches to Cait Sith, complete with Puss-in-Boots, Akechi turns to face him.

Only to see a crate hurling right at him. His eyes widen in alarm, and suddenly he leaps backwards! Far enough that the swing almost misses him. Almost.

Because at that moment, a Psycho-Bomb trap that he'd hidden springs, with swirls of psychic energy with eyes, suddenly blasting him backwards, far enough to hit the wall. Growling, he stumbles to his feet. "Joker-!" Another point to Joker, it seems. Before Belle accuses him of being more interested in playing with them, which Noir follows up on in accusation. "... Just keep believing that." He seems to be catching his second wind, from the moment of that, when Belle blasts him with bolts of Golden Light.

And to this he grunts, as the light more than simply scours his uniform, but he looks mildly discombobulated from the combination of back to back to back attacks, one after another. "But I'll have you in custody yet."

Which is when Noir fires a grenade at him. And he tries to shoot it out of the air, succeeding instead only at detonating it far too close, as the shockwave slams him against the wall again, right as Panther's wave of flame strikes the side of his blade but as it splits, he finds himself down on a knee. "As if YOU could ever manage it!" He shouts back right as Queen's bullet hits the side of his red mask. He's not even shouting at the rest of what Panther said, not at being full of it, not at being a high strung guy acting like he's above all. (Even if that stings)

But calling his ray gun lame.

And Queen's words, evaluating his plan, dissecting his advantage are getting under his skin quickly.

"I'll show you just who you're messing with...!" He sounds, actually angry? Well Ren knows how competitive he is. And indeed, despite knocking him down, and having him surrounded now, he tries to get up again, like he's going to try and ignore the sudden turn of fortune and attempt to power through.

<Pose Tracker> The Real Black Mask has posed.

And then, out of nowhere, a sudden gunshot rings out. The Detective Prince pivots abruptly, as if to parry it with his blade. Only to gasp, and stagger, his blade dropping from his hand. His outfit, normally white in most places, has another spot of red near his left shoulder, right above his heart. "W... Who?" As he stumbles, then wavers, then falls to a knee, clutching the wound with a white gloved hand.

Blooming Villain (Strikers Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jERcvK8Sb90

That's when he descends, like a wraith wreathed in crimson and black, eyes gleaming through scarlet lenses. In one hand, a pistol, still smoking. In the other? A saw-toothed blade. "Ahaha-! AHAHAHA-! It's almost too funny." As he turns to look at Joker, "That you actually came back here, after the beating I gave you."

A wide grin can be seen beneath the wellspring of cognitive flame beneath it. "Alright then... I'll play with you again. It'll be more fun with everyone else too. Two minutes... I'll give you two minutes to impress me."

Then it moves, like an ink smear against the background of reality, upon Joker in seconds, saw tooth blade swinging to smash his dagger away from his guard, before raising his pistol, firing twice, then casually swinging his gun around he fires at a nearby wall as it the bullet ricochets around towards Belle. "But I doubt you'll last THIRTY SECONDS!"

Vaulting off of him, he dives towards Fox with a chaotic rush of sword-work, before seemingly vanishing then reappearing, behind Panther. "Peekaboo." He smiles, as he fires at point blank range to try and catch her off-guard, before zipping over to Noir, forcing her to put her guard up quickly if she doesn't want to be cut down by that serrated blade.

And his other arm swings up, firing twice at Queen with deadly accurate shots, before he quickly moves over near...

The Detective Prince seems to be staggering to grasp his blade again, right as Black Mask stands right over him, "Here let me help you with that." He says with a wicked cheer, as he raises his blade, as if to impale him right through.

Objective: Secure Your Escape! This isn't a fight that can be won.
Sub-Objective: Save Akechi(???) If you want. He has been kind of a jerk.

AS: The Real Black Mask sets off Detective Prince PenPen's trigger! 1800 damage!
AS: The Real Black Mask has readied for combat as Commandant Kobayakawa's Worst Nightmare: The One in the Black Mask! He
is now fully healed! Atk_Up added! Ready for 6 opponents!
AS: Weapon! The Real Black Mask has used the Pierce skill Double Tap on Ren Amamiya! 2 Hits!
AS: Aggression: The Real Black Mask gains 1 Limit!
AS: You still have 5 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: Weapon! The Real Black Mask has used the Slash skill Wild Abandon on Yusuke Kitagawa! 2 Hits!
AS: You still have 4 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: That attack doesn't seem to match one on your list.
AS: That attack doesn't seem to match one on your list.
AS: Weapon! The Real Black Mask has used the Slash skill Saw Through on Haru Okumura!
AS: You still have 3 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: Weapon! The Real Black Mask has used the Pierce skill Double Tap on Makoto Niijima! 2 Hits!
AS: You still have 2 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: Persona! The Real Black Mask has used the Recovery skill Camouflage on The Real Black Mask!
AS: You still have 1 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: The Real Black Mask's turn has ended.
AS: Avoid Best! Ren Amamiya takes 51 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Double Tap.
AS: Avoid Neutral! Ren Amamiya takes 63 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Double Tap.
AS: Block Neutral! Makoto Niijima takes 56 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Double Tap.
AS: Block Neutral! Makoto Niijima takes 76 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Double Tap. Critical Hit!
AS: Counter Best! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 45 Slash damage from The Real Black Mask's Wild Abandon.
AS: COUNTER! Reflect Phys! The Real Black Mask takes 54 Slash damage in return for his attack! 
AS: Counter Neutral! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 51 Slash damage from The Real Black Mask's Wild Abandon.
AS: COUNTER! Reflect Phys! The Real Black Mask takes 49 Slash damage in return for his attack! 
AS: Block Best! Haru Okumura takes 166 Slash damage from The Real Black Mask's Saw Through. Critical Hit!
AS: Take! The Real Black Mask takes 99 Recovery healing from The Real Black Mask's Camouflage.
AS: Eclipse added!
AS: Weapon! The Real Black Mask has used the Pierce skill Relentless Ricochet on Kasumi Yoshizawa!
AS: Aggression: The Real Black Mask gains 1 Limit!
AS: You still have 5 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: The Real Black Mask's turn has ended.
AS: Weapon! The Real Black Mask has used the Pierce skill Dispose on Ann Takamaki! 2 Hits!
AS: Aggression: The Real Black Mask gains 1 Limit!
AS: You still have 5 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions!
AS: The Real Black Mask: Atk_Up removed!
AS: The Real Black Mask's turn has ended.
AS: Block Neutral! Ann Takamaki takes 63 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Dispose.
AS: Avoid Best! Ann Takamaki takes 49 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Dispose.
AS: Counter Neutral! Kasumi Yoshizawa takes 78 Pierce damage from The Real Black Mask's Relentless Ricochet.
AS: COUNTER! The Real Black Mask takes 21 Pierce damage in return for his attack! 

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    It's like you're more interested in playing with us instead of trying to take us in!! Belle shouts, and Joker silently agrees. So it's not just them who sees it. Noir likewise calls him out on just messing around while Makoto observes that he's enjoying this, and Panther goes even further, saying he's full of it.
    
    It must be said, Joker grins broadly when Panther calls Akechi 'high strung' and 'lame.' She's still the funniest friend they have.
    
    Still, during the counter-assault, Queen comes close and murmurs to them. "We can't let him push us around. It'll just embolden him for next time," they murmur back as fire entraps and grenades fly and bombs explode. "If this knocks him down, let's move in for a hold-up."
    
    It doesn't happen that way--but Akechi is losing his composure rather rapidly now that he's being repeatedly called out. Did he think he'd be able to take all of them out so easily that he'd be done by now? Even knowing how outnumbered he is? Or did he overestimate how effective his traps would be?
    
    Joker is already thinking of an alternate idea when--
    
    BANG.
    
    Their eyes fly wide behind their mask as crimson blooms on Akechi's shoulder. Who?! he gasps--but Joker already knows. Even before they descend. Even before they cackle. Even before their eyes meet across the battlefield.
    
    The one in the black mask. Who gives them all two minutes to "play" with them, but predicting not even thirty seconds.
    
    "RUN!!" Joker roars to the others, already calling their Persona forward. That saves their life; the one in the black mask knocks their dagger aside and opens fire on them just in time to gun down Cait Sith. Joker snarls in pain from the psychic resonance, but they'll take this over the alternative.
    
    "Pour everything you've got in a fighting retreat! Just GO!" Joker reiterates, already reaching for tools of the Phantom Thieves trade to help with this. The Black Mask is already mowing through them all, and they honestly completely believe their prediction.
    
    Before they can unleash them, though, the Black Mask looms over Akechi, struggling as he is. They draw their sawblade back as if to run him through--and in the moment, Joker completely believes that he will. That, once again, he will deal death here. It's that aura of theirs--that diabolical, maddening, hateful resonance. It doesn't allow for any of the doubt that will creep in later.
    
    "Akechi!!" Joker calls, a sharp note of fear in their voice. They don't bother with a 'watch out!'; they don't even think; they act, diving towards him as the one in the Black Mask aims to skewer him on their serrated sword. As they turn, Cait Sith rematerializes and swoops in with them, bringing down his curved sword in sync with Joker's dagger to block the Black Mask's vicious thrust--
    
    In one hit, the Persona is shattered. Joker snarls in pain, physically thrust back along with the blow--but they're not impaled, and neither is Akechi. The two of them are merely sent hurtling across the floor, dust billowing in their wake.
    
    Mostly Joker's wake. Since he's holding Akechi close enough to bear the brunt of the attack on his own.
    
    He'll jump to the defense of even the most detestable enemy if it means preventing a murder--
    
    clink, clink clink click
    
    --and to that end, Joker hurls out every single smoke bomb they've got towards the one in the Black Mask. When they explode, that'll be everyone's chance to give a parting shot and run for it.
    
    "GO!"

<Pose Tracker> Kasumi Yoshizawa has posed.

    It does feel like they're getting the upperhand against Akechi! His efforts started out strong with the trap. But now that the Phantom Thieves have managed to get their footing after those initial problems, things are looking up!

    A gunshot echoes through the large enclosed space of the Parade Grounds.

    Belle glances around in surprise, as it clearly didn't come from any of them. So where did-

    Belle's eyes are drawn back to Akechi as he groans in pain. Her eyes go wide at the sight of red blooming on his outfit, "Akechi-san!"

    But before Belle can do anything, a new foe appears. Maniacal laughter echoing from behind the black mask. Still new, Belle has no idea who this person is...

    But from the unease permeating her entire being, she can tell this person is DANGEROUS.

    Which is only confirmed as he reveals himself as the one who gave Joker his recent injuries.

    Belle is starting to sweat and she glances around rapidly, unsure of what they should do in this position. But her attention is brought back to Black Mask as he fires off a shot. Not directly at her, but the bullet amazingly ricochets off the wall. Belle is able to bring her rapier up to intercept the attack, but stumbles under the force. A single shot was that powerful!?

    She can't fight this thing!

    Joker says as much as they tell the group to run for it. Belle glances at the others, some looking a little worse for wear. Belle needs to help them... It's not her strong suit, but she says, "Cendrillon, help them out!"

    The ashen Persona appears again, raising her hands in Queen and Noir's direction. A soft light envelops them for a moment, restoring some of their strength to make an escape easier.

    Hopefully that's enough, as for now, it's all Belle can do as she sheathes her rapier. Joker's smoke bombs go off, providing some brief cover for them. Belle doesn't question it, her instincts telling her to turn and run!

AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa spends Limit on Exploit! Kasumi Yoshizawa can use another Weak skill this round!
AS: Persona! Kasumi Yoshizawa has used the Recovery skill Dia on Makoto Niijima!
AS: Persona! Kasumi Yoshizawa has used the Recovery skill Dia on Haru Okumura!
AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa: Paralyze removed!
AS: Kasumi Yoshizawa's turn has ended.

<Pose Tracker> Yusuke Kitagawa has posed.

Fox watches Akechi as he responds to their barbs with increasing ire, and forces himself to maintain his cold patience as the Detective Prince advances towards them - but then --

-- There's another combatant. The Black Masked Man. Shooting Akechi.

This has turned bad very quickly, and it's only Fox's focus on his observation and reaction that saves him as the Black Mask descends upon him, sawblade-sword promising to make a tasty kitsune carvery -

- there is a resounding CLANG-CLANG as Fox's katana intercepts Black Mask's strikes twice - though by the clenching of Fox's teeth, he did not enjoy the exchange of blows. As their foe flickers away from him, he gasps in relief and starts to move towards Belle as their newest and most inexperienced teammate, to try and protect her. "Goemon, unleash your power!" He calls out, and the painted Ronin swings his kiseru like a blade towards Black Mask.

It's a grand, wide strike that could cleave a field of tall grass in a single strike. Fox falls back near Belle, covering her retreat, before disappearing into the smoke cloud himself.

AS: Take! Makoto Niijima takes 63 Recovery healing from Kasumi Yoshizawa's Dia.
AS: Persona! Yusuke Kitagawa has used the Slash skill Blade of Fury on The Real Black Mask! 3 Hits!
AS: Yusuke Kitagawa's turn has ended.
AS: Counter Best! The Real Black Mask takes 36 Slash damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Blade of Fury.
AS: COUNTER! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 23 Slash damage in return for his attack! 
AS: Counter Neutral! The Real Black Mask takes 41 Slash damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Blade of Fury.
AS: COUNTER! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 19 Slash damage in return for his attack! 
AS: Counter Worst! The Real Black Mask takes 46 Slash damage from Yusuke Kitagawa's Blade of Fury.
AS: COUNTER! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 14 Slash damage in return for his attack! 
AS: Take! Haru Okumura takes 68 Recovery healing from Kasumi Yoshizawa's Dia.
AS: Makoto Niijima spends Limit on Exploit! Makoto Niijima can use another Weak skill this round!

<Pose Tracker> Makoto Niijima has posed.

    ...Has she really annoyed Akechi that much? It couldn't have been that easy, could it. Joker states that they need to teach Akechi that they won't be pushed around, and she nods. Queen is already preparing to act on Joker's goal-

    When a wildcard emerges, and violently.

    Makoto lets out a shocked gasp as the man who tried to kill Kaneshiro emerges. The sheer, overwhelming strength of the Black Mask. "No..."

    As much as Akechi sucks, she didn't want him dead. He's doing good, even if his justice isn't hers... Even if they don't agree, they both want justice, right?

    The moment of shock leaves her open, and a pair of bullets pierce her armour, with a terrifying accuracy. She moves her arm up to block, and as a result both bullets pierce her arm and shoulder, one landing far closer to her heart than Makoto would have liked, as she drops to her knees. If it weren't for Johanna's power.... she'd definitely not survive that. And that's not even using a Persona...

    Joker moves, and Makoto has to follow the new plan without any communication. Fortunately, it's a simple one.

    "MOVE! Panther, Belle, Fox, cover Joker and Akechi-kun! Noir, with me!" Despite the terror, Makoto is keeping her calm- but Fox moves to buy them time with a clash of blades. That's not good. "Johanna, lend me your strength!"

    And once again, shielding and restorative magics flow over him, as the smoke bombs hit. "FOX, GO!"

    Wait, is Makoto's plan for the Senpai to buy time for the others to escape, and hold off the Black Mask?

    Fuck no. She's just the fastest mover of the bunch. She flips onto Johanna, and reaches out to grab Noir's arm and haul her bodily onto the persona- either behind her or awkwardly in front of her, whichever is easiest for Haru right now. "Don't let go of me. We're all getting out of here, got it? If you can, though... collapse the hall after us. I'm counting on you to watch our back." She has faith in the sheer explosive power Milady and Haru's grenade launcher can bring to bear."

    Johanna's engines roar, as Makoto pushes her Persona to the limit to get them both out of there. She doesn't have a strategy for if the Black Mask can smash his way through a collapsed hallway AND keep up with her.

    That may be when operation self sacrifice comes into play. She's hoping it doesn't come to that.

AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Recovery skill Diarama on Yusuke Kitagawa!
AS: Support: Makoto Niijima gains 1 Limit!
AS: Persona! Makoto Niijima has used the Almighty skill Rakukaja on Yusuke Kitagawa!
AS: Makoto Niijima's turn has ended.

AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 104 Recovery healing from Makoto Niijima's Diarama.
AS: Take! Yusuke Kitagawa takes 8 Almighty damage from Makoto Niijima's Rakukaja.
AS: Def_Up added!

<Pose Tracker> Ann Takamaki has posed.

They have him on the ropes. Ann can tell.

Maybe if they corner him they can get some answers out of -him-. Like how he even has a Persona -- or just what exactly he's been doing in Kobayakawa's Palace. Was it really just to try to ambush them--?

Carmen dissipating, Ann's whip unfurls. Eyes narrowed, she starts to approach Akechi.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," she says lowly. She doesn't want to think Goro Akechi is a bad guy. Annoying, sure. Kind of an ass? Definitely. Not as cool as Naoto? Ann Takamaki, president of the Detective Prince Fanclub, would have to agree there. But every time she's heard him talking on TV, he sounds so genuine.

And that almost childlike heroism about his Persona and his weapons. What does it say about him?

"So just... stop already. Seriously, you're gonna get yourself--"

    BANG

"--hurt?"

And there is Panther, left wide-eyed and completely bemused as Akechi falls to his knee, scarlet blooming at the white of his shoulder.

It's just like last time. It's just like--

Ahaha-!

"Oh no. No no no--"

That feeling. That WRONG feeling. It's him--!

The Black Mask - THE Black Mask - lands, offering them a caveat: entertain him for two minutes. And Ann Takamaki's immediate response?

"Yeah to heck with that!! Guys, we REALLY NEED TO LEAVE LIKE RIGHT NOW GO GO G--"

Peakaboo.

She's still turning with a sharp and wise pivot towards the exit when the black mask appears. A shot fires. Her eyes widen.

A spark of blue.

And Carmen catches the first shot, shattering not even half-a-second after manifesting from the impact. Ann is diving on reflex already.

Too late; the second bullet wings her hip, slicing through leather with a spatter of blood across the Parade Grounds. She stumbles, her balance thrown off by the force of being shot near point-blank.

"AHH!"

That barely-second delay Carmen afforded her might very well have saved her life from a much worse, much more fatal shot. But she still pays the price: having the mask of her psyche just -shatter- sends ringing reverberations through her skull; Ann coughs, blood drooling out her right nostril as she fumbles for footing.

Her whole world is a tinny ring of confusion drowning out the shouts and sounds of panic. Her vision is swimming, making it hard to see the others as she clutches her side. The others. The others! Are they okay?? Are they--

"Guys--" Ann chokes out, just in time to hear those roared words.

RUN!! Pour everything you've got in a fighting retreat! Just GO!

"J-Joker--?"

Sky blue eyes find focus just in time to see Ren.

Moving away from them.

Towards Akechi.

"Joker, no--!"

She wants to protest; but the wince of pain cuts her off. She wants to -stay there- and protect the first person to see her for her since Shiho.

Cendrillon, help them out!

She can't just go.

Goemon, unleash your power!

She can't just leave them!

She can't! She can't --

MOVE!

she can't--

Panther, Belle, Fox, cover Joker and Akechi-kun!

she-- she--

"I -- I know! I... know...!"

            She has to.

Blue fire ignites around her, as she shouts, plaintively.

"JOKER! We're meeting up at the usual place after this, okay?!"

Carmen manifests, drawing forth all the heat suffusing the Parade Grounds.

"So you -- you need to be there!! Or else--!"

All of it sparking towards a big, gobbling ball of fire.

"LIGHT HIM UP, CARMEN!"

And with one forward fling, Carmen hurls that ball like a ace pitcher, the broiling spheroid becoming a screaming lance of flame that bursts outward into an all-encompassing, all-concealing wall of broiling flames.

Ann doesn't stop to see if it works or not. She can't. Her whip is already hooking into the scaffolding above, sending her yanking towards the cover of the high ground to find her own escape route; it'll be more dangerous for all of them if they try to stay clumped. She knows the way. She just can't look back.

She just... needs to have faith.

<Pose Tracker> Haru Okumura has posed.

"You said it, Panther!" Haru chimes in. About Akechi not fooling anyone? About high-strung know it all guys being the worst? About ray guns being lame? Any of them, really! "I have to admit, he's getting under my skin a bit..." Haru says, when Makoto tells her to keep her anger focused. "But you're right! We can't let someone like him get the best of us~" And indeed, it seems like they are pushing back Akechi - with all luck, they'll be able to escape unscathed.

...Unfortunately, that luck has run out. Akechi is shot - but not just by her own hand. Another familiar figure approaches, the one from Kaneshiro's Palace. "That's... the Black Mask!" Haru gasps. The one who nearly killed Joker. And now he's here! His swordplay is certainly impressive - Noir manages to grip her axe in time to parry his strike, but the exhaustion of battle is getting to her, especially with her Persona as wounded as she is - and he still manages a gash. "Ghhh...!" Noir grimaces, the only thing truly saving her is the fact that the Black Mask has moved on to new prey.

There's a malice here she had never felt from Akechi, and every member of the Phantoms is thinking the exact same thing right now. Run. Anything they can do to survive right now, they must. "Thank you, Belle...!" Haru calls, cradling her wounded arm, before climbing onto Johanna with Makoto. She'd never had the opportunity to ride the back of a motorcycle before, but unfortunately now is not really the time for a thrill ride...

"I'm right with you, Queen!" Haru nods, calling Milady back to her. "If it's firepower we need... Milady, bring it to bear!" Above Johanna rises the elegant ballroom lady Persona - who is quickly obscured by so many missiles and gatling bullets collapsing the hall behind them to make Black Mask's hot pursuit all the more difficult. Haru can feel her strength fading with each shot... but they need to survive first.

AS: Persona! Haru Okumura has used the Pierce skill Triple Down on Detective Prince PenPen! 3 Hits!
AS: Haru Okumura's turn has ended.
AS: Block Neutral! The Real Black Mask takes 36 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's Triple Down.
AS: Block Neutral! The Real Black Mask takes 45 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's Triple Down. Critical Hit!
AS: Block Neutral! The Real Black Mask takes 36 Pierce damage from Haru Okumura's Triple Down.

<Pose Tracker> The Real Black Mask has posed.

Akechi has time to glance in alarm, looking utterly startled at the sword pointed at his back like a Sword of Damocles.

Which then falls far too swiftly for him to react. But not too swift... for someone. Joker grabs him, and hurtles him to the side.

Black Mask cleaves through Cait Sith with a precision that causes the Persona to bisect. Something which... Joker may remember from when Black Mask cleaved Angel in twain, but the blade swing cuts his Persona and he feels the indirectness of the slice from mere proximity.

"You... What are you doing?" Akechi asks Joker as if equally surprised by this outcome. It's like the anger has been fully replaced by confusion, even as Joker hurls out Smoke Bomb after Smoke Bomb. "I ambushed you!"

"What is this?" Black Mask says as if rage were building from them trying to escape, "You think you can get away from ME?!" And even in the thick smoke, there's the dimness of a single red eye, and the motion of a sword swinging as if to try and clear the smoke around him. "I'LL GUT YOU LIKE A GODDAMN FISH!"

And indeed he seems like he'll prove it, because even as Goemon swings at him, his blade arcs and Fox in his retreat feels the pain of every single swing of his Persona met by waves of berserker fury.

Thus it's a good thing that Belle and Queen are covering the retreat with the healing magic, they're going to need it. And the others cover Joker helping Akechi get away.

The smoke however, isn't thick enough, and the Black Mask leaps out, blade extended towards Joker, with a bellow of rage, "COME BACK HERE YOU LITTLE S-!"
 
Right as that broiling spheroid from Carmen intercepts his movement, his words drowned out by the sudden all encompassing flame, and the gunfire salvo that collapses the hall behind Joker and Akechi.

It's long enough for the two to get away, just long enough.

While Akechi doesn't protest the save, perhaps as a practical matter. He does look a little put out, but his expression smooths out from the agony of the gunshot wound, like he's reminding himself slowly, that this is what Joker - and the Phantom Thieves are like. As Panther proved trying to talk him down back there.

It's upsetting, infuriating, but he has to accept that he cannot say 'I refuse to be saved by you' because, as a matter of fact... he was saved by all of them.

It's only once they're so far away that the presence of Black Mask is so distant as to vanish, that Akechi tells Joker (perhaps sounding a little flustered), "I can... stand on my own. It wouldn't be... sporting for you to give yourselves away, taking me outside the Palace."

What does he mean? That taking him out would give away their identities. Even injured as he is, he won't accept that. Winning by taking advantage of his own vulnerability to have them reveal that.

And once he's on his feet, still holding his wound, he stares at Joker and any other Phantoms who are still closeby, "When we meet again... I won't lose to you."

As that competitive nature burns in his eye, before he looks deeper in the Palace, "And... I now have a lot to think about." As if he were ruminating upon the chain of events, "That man. Could it be?"

Despite it all... he does wait for them to leave the Palace, before he limps out from another direction.
 
"Damnit... DAMNIT!" He says to himself, as if angered by this outcome, "... How did a pissant like Kobayakawa manage a cognition like that..."
 
It went perfectly. Too perfectly. After all... if that blade had fallen... well, there's no time to think about that.

<Pose Tracker> Ren Amamiya has posed.

    What are you doing? I ambushed you!
    
    "Shut up and run," Joker snaps, eyes still forward on the blazing red eye in the midst of the smoke--and arm still tight around Akechi's shoulders.
    
    ...which can't be great for his injury, but they'll both deal with the blood later. A little now is still better than the loads the Black Mask will make them both bleed if he catches them. Already he's trying to slice through smoke, and in the moment, it wouldn't shock Joker if it actually worked.
    
    Later, he'll wonder why he didn't summon his Persona to help with that. Right now, the only thing that matters is everyone getting to safety.
    
    Their heart leaps into their throat when the Black Mask does exactly that, leaping at them blade-first--only for Panther's fireball to BLAST into him and give Joker precisely the moment they need to drag Akechi up and run with them for the exit.
    
    And, thank god or devil, they do seem to make it. Belle heals Queen and Noir to ease their escape; Fox and Panther unleash their respective strengths on the Black Mask before the former falls into the smoke with Belle and the latter whips herself up into an escape; Queen guns it with Noir at her back, and Noir bombs the exit, bringing it down at everyone's backs.
    
    Joker smiles in relief to see it over their shoulder as they race with Akechi out of there. That smile grows only fonder when they hear Panther call to them in open concern. "I won't let you down!" they shout back.
    
    Just as Ren accepted Ann for herself, so too did Ann accept Ren for themself. Not just her, but Ryuji, Yusuke, Morgana... They all heard out Ren's story and believed in their innocence. They haven't yet repeated that story of their arrest for Makoto, Haru, or Kasumi, granted, but that's beside the point right now. All of them are their dear friends. Joker won't let them die, and Joker won't hurt them by letting themself die here. Even Akechi... ... ... is not really a friend, per se... but THEY HAVE THEIR PRINCIPLES. If they risked their life to protect Kobayakawa, they're damn well not leaving Akechi for dead.
    
    ...
    
    Soon enough, they're close to the exit. Akechi breaks away from them, a touch flustered; Joker lets them, expression now neutral as they tuck their hands into their pockets. 'Sporting,' huh... Well, that's consistent with the Akechi they know.
    
    Sometimes people are just similar. That's all there is to it. It's got to be.
    
    So when Akechi says he won't lose to them next time, Joker quirks a half-smile back. "That's my line," they state. Still, they pivot on one foot, coat billowing in their wake. "'Til next time, Detective."
    
    They stride out of the Palace without looking back... because they know they can count on their friends to watch theirs.