Pandemonium || PERSONA 5 FF (hiatus)

00│ Race Against Time

The world is not as it should be.

It's filled with distortion, and "ruin" will soon descend.

Those who oppose fate and desire change. . .

From time to time, they were referred to as,

"Tricksters."

A helicopter rushed above the crystalline ocean, running toward the brilliantly-lit city not far away from its destination. It hovered above the towering , moving straight toward its apparent target destination; a large casino with a woman dressed like a cow worker, holding up a pair of scales with the word "WIN" highlighted down from the scales in neon light, like the cowgirl. Everyone was moving through the street, the ground below being congested with a constant flow of activity. However, some people had stopped, either in front of the casino, or in front of several TV's scattered throughout the streets, be them through a window or built-up on a building. Some even stopped to look at their phones.

The reason for this? One must look no further than inside the casino. Alarms were blaring loudly, men dressed in black suits and tinted glasses ran all around the places, heads snapping around wildly as they looked at their surroundings. The people inside the casino were quickly growing confused and terrified, unaware of what was happening. Some had found black shadows leaping across the balconies and chandeliers.

"Wh-what's going on?"

An anxious woman among the crowd asked. The people in the casino was quickly growing more and more confused, even as three men in suits began to enter the room, their eyes trained above them. No one knew what was happening.

Had someone been killed? Was it a terrorist's attack? Was there a robbery taking place? The more confused they grew, the more terrified they became. It was within human nature to seek information in order to develop a rational decision and then act upon that decision as calmly as possible. Without information, humans are left in the dark, left to the unconscious dark thoughts in the back of their minds, thinking of the worst-case scenarios.

Some people began to flee, not willing to see just what was causing this commotion. A few others, however, looked excited, looking around for the cause. They had a feeling they knew who was responsible, and they wanted to see who it was.

Then, someone found the cause.

"L-Look, up there!"

Their attention turned to one of the chandeliers above them. Security immediately went into action, making their way towards the target while also keeping in mind of the danger they proposed. The crowd became more wild, with the rare few mentioned before taking out their phones and snapping pictures.

Standing atop the chandelier was a singular individual, dressed like a magician. He had short, messy black hair and gray eyes, the upper half of his face hidden behind a white mask, shaped somewhat like a bird, with a black design. He wore a black trench coat, a gray-collared shirt with black trousers, boots pressed against the foothold beneath him, and red gloves at his hands. Under one arm, he carried a silver briefcase, and plastered across his face was a giant smirk.

"Target has been found," One of the guards remarked as they moved. "Moving in to capture."

Seeing the security guards moving, the masked individual's confidence grew as he turned away, leaping off the chandelier and into the darker recesses of the casino.

As he moved, he left behind the briefcase for his allies to take and continued to move. He continued to dash around, leaping across all the obstacles in his way like a phantom, which he indeed was, before he found himself atop a glass catwalk. Below, the startled masses were in a stir.