Cover Image by (LinkAnd0606) on Twitter.

A/N: Hey everyone. This is my first ever fic. This story has been bubbling in my head for a long time now, and I decided it was time to see what I could make out of it. I hope you all enjoy what's to come, and as always, reviews are appreciated!

Prologue

?/?/?

Everything was going according to plan, or at least they hoped it was.

The pounding of footsteps throughout the darkened corridor was drowned out by the sharp ringing of alarm bells. The group was getting along in making their grand escape from the ill-fated casino. However, they hadn't expected the entire police force of the Tokyo precinct to be waiting for them at the main entrance.

How fitting for an organized group of thieves.

Maybe they should have expected it. After all, they did hold the #1 spot on the wanted list of the government. Whoever got the bragging rights of arresting the Phantom Thieves of Hearts would surely become the most powerful force in all of Japan.

Ronin withheld some doubt on whether their plan would actually work, but he had to keep faith. The team's morale was already high enough and he didn't want to hamper their resolve in any way, shape, or form. He was, however, getting slightly annoyed by the lack of adequate lighting along their route, likely caused by the intruders awaiting them outside in order to slow the group down and increase the probability of their capture.

"Oracle, isn't there a way to bring the power back online?" he yelled to a short girl wearing a binocular-like mask.

"They've restricted remote access to the main console. There's nothing I can do, even with the best of my abilities!" she replied frantically between labored breaths.

"Don't overexert yourself Oracle. Our top priority is getting out of here in one piece," an older girl remarked, her coal-black scarf fluttering behind her as she ran.

"How's our decoy doing?" a tall boy with a crimson mask queried as the party reached an intersection and made a sharp right towards a staircase heading downward, pausing momentarily near the steps to catch their breath.

Oracle looked at him and nodded, pulling up a holographic live feed showcasing the commotion in the main hall of the casino from the decoy's point of view. The team halted their getaway to marvel at the scene unfolding before them.

—

The shadowy silhouette of a young man could be seen gliding across the ceiling of the casino, soaring from platform to platform.

"T-There's something here!" an alarmed man exclaimed while shooting nervous glances at the chandeliers and lights hoisted securely above the crowd. He was pushed out of the way by a group of men with matching black sunglasses and black suits. They craned their necks upward, spotting the silhouette resting atop a bright neon light sign that read "WINNER TAKES ALL" with a smug look on his face and a silver briefcase tucked under his arm. An avian-esque mask protruding from his face, the figure beckoned the men-in-black with his finger, inviting them to try their luck in apprehending him. A full moon shone through the skylight above him, bathing the grandiose thief in moonlight.

One of the men, clearly the leader, spoke into his radio as they moved forward towards the emergency exit staircase.

"He's here. Move in immediately."

The dapper young man gazed at the muddled heap of men and women below him with a confident smirk before springing towards a hexagonal platform.

—

The rest of the group cooed in awe, impressed. Shocked at how calm the decoy was being based on their current predicament, but impressed nevertheless. They were thrust back into reality by the buzzing of the decoy's voice through the comms.

"Okay, the briefcase is at the selected dropoff point. I'll see what I can do to get our little friends here off our tail."

A dwarfish, animalistic creature was the first to react. "Good job Joker, now get running!"

"This is our only chance!"

"Stay calm, you can get away now!"

"We'll be sure to retrieve the briefcase on our end."

The barking of orders from the rest of the group was interrupted by an incoming transmission.

"Suspects…not…confirmed…hold…your…positions…"

Oracle's nose perked up. "Hm? What was that?"

"Don't worry about us. Just concentrate on getting away!" the aforementioned creature snapped, his cat-like ears twitching with a flair of seriousness.

Ronin beckoned the rest of his team with his gloved hand, which glowed a bright orange amongst the dark gloom engulfing them.

"We should split up. One group retrieves the briefcase, the other secures the exit."

"In that case, how 'bout me, Queen, Oracle, Noir, and Panther go for the briefcase, and the rest of you guys continue on?" a gruff voice behind a skull mask asked while fidgeting with his scarlet ascot. "That should leave you, Crow, Fox, and Mona to secure the exit route for us."

"Sounds like a plan to me! Let's go guys!" a catsuit-clad girl remarked, her platinum-blonde pigtails bouncing up and down as she nodded in agreement.

Noir, facing the four boys assigned to secure the exit, tipped her violet cavalier hat in a gesture of good luck.

"Although I would have preferred to get in on some of the action myself, I'm sure you all will get the job done."

Ronin, after nodding his head in affirmation, shot a worried look at Queen and asked, "Are you sure you'll be alright?"

She gave a small nod in response, a reassuring smile appearing on her face.

"We'll be fine. Worry about yourself first."

Oracle suddenly perked up, interrupting the brief solace. "Shit, there's more of them nearing Joker's position!"

"He's playing his part perfectly. The enemy's focus is on him, so it looks like the rest of us can slip away," Mona said, hearing the tension in Oracle's voice. "We can't let his efforts go to waste. Let's go everyone!"

The team acknowledged him in unison.

The group assigned to secure the exit rounded the corner and stealthily crept towards a terrace overlooking the plaza. The four boys grunted in annoyance at the sight of multiple riot control officers stationed beneath them, blocking their path to the exit.

"How are we supposed to get past them?" Fox huffed.

Mona scanned the area below them and said, "We'll have to engage in combat. This route is our only means of escape."

"You're forgetting that they have guns — real ones, not toys like ours, too. We wouldn't last a minute against them," Crow remarked with apparent shock in his voice.

"This isn't reality, remember? If we can catch them by surprise, they'll lose their physical form and transmute into shadows. In that state, they shouldn't be a problem for us."

Crow shook his head in embarrassment before saying, "Oh, that's right. Sometimes I forget the way this world works."

Ronin, acknowledging Mona's decision, turned his attention towards the guards beneath them.

"Now, how do we get down there without being noticed?"

A sequence of metallic sounds akin to screws hitting the floor occurred behind the group, causing them to spin around. Fox knelt beside a large ventilation shaft, swinging the grate open and placing the small blue screwdriver in his hand back into his belt pouch.

"This should do, yes?"

After exchanging amused smirks, the boys crawled into the cramped darkness of the ventilation shaft one by one and began working their way downward towards the first floor.

"Everyone remember where we're meeting up?" the Joker's voice buzzed through the comms.

"No worries, I can guide you all," Oracle's voice answered with renewed confidence. "Everyone, head to positions. Use Route B!"

"Uh, 'Route B' isn't exactly secure yet. We're working on it," Ronin anxiously whispered through the comms, peering from behind one of the many marble pillars in the plaza at the armed officers standing guard. A lone chandelier hung above the center of the room, scattering light across the pristine floor. Spotting a pair of guards approaching his position, Ronin swiftly realigned his body so that he was enveloped in the pillar's shadow. The two officers marched past him towards a pair of elevator doors, unaware that their high-priority targets lay in the shadows among them.

"No sir, there's been no sign of the remaining Phantom Thieves. Division Alpha has been tracking the main target throughout the staff passageways but—" he paused for a few moments, listening closely to the other end. "O-Of course sir, we'll move in immediately."

Ronin lost sight of them as the elevator doors closed shut.

"Perfect. Mona's training has definitely paid off," he muttered under his breath in a boastful tone, surprised at how well everything was going. He turned his attention to the center of the plaza, observing the pair of revolving doors at the other end.

All that stood between the team and their escape now were four rotten adults. The bullets on Ronin's bandolier jingled as he slinked from behind the pillar to the corner of a parentheses-shaped obsidian structure, placing himself behind one of the unknowing officers.

"Is everyone in position?" Fox's voice cut through the static of the comms.

Ronin quietly sighed and mumbled, "Ready as I'll ever be."

"We've got one shot at this. Let's not screw this up," Mona said.

"You can count on me. Just give the signal when you are ready, Mona," Crow remarked.

Ronin braced himself for the upcoming engagement.

"Okay, on three. One…two…three!"

The four thieves pounced from behind their respective hiding places and onto the unaware sentries. Ronin wrapped his left arm tightly around the guard's neck, whose face had begun to transmute into that of a heart-shaped mask. Using all of his strength, he groaned as he ripped off the guard's mask with his hand and a mixture of black and red liquid spewed from the guard's face as he cried in agony.

"Show me who you really are!" he roared as he snatched the officer's riot shield and swung it into his chest, propelling him backwards. Ronin glanced upward to see that the other guards had been disarmed as well, and that a heap of limp bodies now lay before them. They rose one by one, twitching and growling intensively as they each erupted into a mass of red and black sludge. The pile of viscous liquid began to swirl together before manifesting into a gargantuan elephant-like creature wielding a curved sword that bellowed with rage as it prepared to attack.

Fox grimaced and irritatedly said, "This one again? Let us defeat it quickly."

Ronin had begun to unsheathe his serrated sword before being interrupted by a familiar voice above him.

"Don't bother! Physical attacks won't do much good to this one!"

Ronin glanced upward at the terrace and flashed a fleeting grin when he saw Queen holding the briefcase with Skull, Panther, Oracle, and Noir standing next to her with their guns raised.

"Guns should work though!" Oracle chimed in mischievously.

Ronin's grin turned into a fierce scowl as he returned his attention to the shadow, quickly raising his rifle at it. Without warning, it charged straight towards him with its sword held high above its head, bringing it down in Ronin's direction. Ronin hastily raised a nearby riot shield over himself in defense as the sword made contact, cracking the glass and pushing him to the ground with force.

"Ronin!" Queen yelped.

"Don't worry, I'm fine!" Ronin grunted as he tossed aside the smashed riot shield. He winced in pain, clutching his left arm.

The shadow advanced towards him, ready to deliver the finishing blow. Mustering all his strength, Ronin raised his rifle and aimed it unsteadily at the approaching brute. However, its stride was quickly interrupted by the sound of gunfire reverberating throughout the plaza. Bullets whizzed past, most of them piercing the shadow's figure. It bellowed in agony as the remaining Phantom Thieves unloaded their ammunition into the enemy, crimson liquid gushing out of the lacerations to its skin. The Thieves ceased fire as the shadow fell to its knees and succumbed to its wounds, howling painfully as it disintegrated into a red mist.

Queen quickly holstered her revolver and hopped the barrier of the terrace, landing safely on the first floor with a grunt. With the rest of the team not far behind, she rushed towards Ronin, grabbing his right hand and pulling him upward. Ronin was about to protest after she grabbed his rifle and urged him forward, but decided to leave it be in favor of more pressing matters.

"The gunfire must have attracted a lot of attention. We need to leave, now!" Crow announced.

The team gunned it towards the revolving doors, practically pushing past each other as they escaped into the darkness of the cold night. Ronin took in a quick breath of fresh air as they made their way outside the casino, the street before them illuminated only by moonlight. Sirens wailed in the distance and the piercing sound of helicopter blades cutting into the open air sounded high above them.

Oracle, glancing at her laptop, exclaimed, "There's an alleyway near here. We should be able to get out from there!"

They retreated into the safety of a winding alley a few blocks from the casino and stopped to catch their breath.

"Is everyone alright?" Noir questioned anxiously in between hard breaths.

The Phantom Thieves glanced at each other and nodded, each of them panting. Queen handed Ronin's rifle back to him and leaned against the brick wall, wiping the sweat from her brow. Suddenly, she felt Ronin wrap his hand around her back and pull her into a one-armed embrace. She looked up at him in surprise, stumbling for words.

"I'm glad you're okay," he whispered with an abashed smile on his face.

"I…I should be the one saying that," Queen replied, a light flush developing in her cheeks. Feeling Ronin's hand tremble against her skintight suit, she asked, "How's your arm?"

"I'll survive," he answered cheekily, letting go of her and rubbing his injured arm with a visibly pained expression.

"You really are something else," she retorted, closing her eyes with an audible sigh of relief. Furrowing her brow in concentration, she hovered her hand over Ronin's forearm.

"Johanna, Diarahan."

Her iron mask vanishing into blue flames, a spectral blue light in the form of a motorcycle appeared beside Queen. Ronin felt the pain quickly begin to subside.

"Is that better?" she asked tentatively, opening her eyes as the entity beside her vanished and her mask reappeared on her face.

Ronin stretched his arm, now feeling no discomfort at all.

"Yeah, thanks."

The two smiled at each other warmly before being jolted out of their trance by a loud gasp, and everyone turned to look at the source of the sound.

"A-An ambush?!" Oracle stammered, looking at her laptop as if she was about to break down into tears. "Guys…Joker's been cornered…"

"What?!" Skull exclaimed.

Mona shook his head in disbelief, jumping onto Oracle's shoulder for a better look and asking, "Joker, can you handle it?"

"Joker!" Panther cried.

"Oh no!" Noir muttered as she clasped her hands around her mouth.

Oracle silently rerouted everyone's communication devices so that they could hear through Joker's comms.

"Capture him!" an authoritative voice grunted as a clamoring of male voices could be heard getting closer.

Joker's rushed breathing penetrated the remaining Thieves' ears as he attempted to escape his pursuers. After a sudden gasp, he yelped in pain and fell onto the ground with a loud thud, sending momentary static throughout everyone's comms. The tumult of voices around him grew louder until they were right on top of him.

"Suspect secure!" a voice shouted.

The rest of the Phantom Thieves looked at each other in shock, unable to utter a single word. The assortment of voices on Joker's end were slowly hushed before a single voice spoke.

"Huh, didn't expect to find some kid," he said in a clearly amused tone as Joker could be heard groaning in pain. The next words the man spoke sent a shockwave of horror throughout the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, crippling their resolve instantaneously.

"You have your teammate to thank for this. You were sold out."

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter and are looking forward to what's in store for the future. I really enjoyed the way in which the game hid everyone's identities in the prologue and I tried my best to implement that here as well.

Anyhow, I have a lot of big ideas planned, so I hope you all will continue reading and supporting. Feel free to leave any comments or critiques as well. Thank you!

***NOTE***

Parts of this story will be censored/altered in order to maintain accordance with the content guidelines here on FFN in regards to mature content. However, in order to give the full, uncut version of this story to you all, I have decided to simultaneously maintain another version of this story on AO3 which will contain content more suited for adult audiences. The differences will not be essential or important to the plot, but will likely deal with stylistic elements such as stronger language and more graphic images.

The link to the uncensored version of this story can be found in my Author Profile.

I will be sure to make note of chapters that include censored content so that you all can appropriately navigate to the version of the story you are comfortable reading.