Song of the Heart: Redux

Author's Notes: Welcome back to "Song of the Heart: Redux", and welcome to the actual main plot of Symphogear G! As usual, I would like to offer thanks to the author of the original "Song of the Heart", Aya1229, for allowing me to adopt this story and make it my own. As stated, today we begin the main season itself, and the changes will begin to show. We finally get into the action proper, and oh will there be some shocks for certain people today. Please note that I will be using altered lyrics for Hibiki's "Seigi wo Shinjite, Nigiri Shimete" battle song. The altered lyrics definitely fit this new and improved Hibiki. Also, this is the first appearance of the Symphogear armor in this fic; for the most part, the armors will be the same as in the season itself, with a few exceptions which will be stated when they appear. You can Google them if you need to see them. Now then: let's get to it. Showtime!

Review Replies: One review, but asks about pairings. Pairings have started to be figured out, but have not been finalized.

Disclaimer: I do not own Senki Zesshou Symphogear or Senki Zesshou Symphogear G. It is owned by those who own it. I also do not own any music used as insert songs here; they are owned by the respective songwriters and artists.

Acknowledgements: Once more, I would like to thank the author of the original "Song of the Heart", Aya1229, for her support in adopting this idea and making it my own. I would also like to thank a couple of friends of mine outside of (they know who they are) for acting as sounding boards when I have ideas for this that may seem a bit on the wild side.

'Insert thought here'=character thoughts

Flashback Is in Italics

-Song lyrics are shown in italics between dashes-

Chapter 2: Descending Storm (Part 1)

(Last Time…)

"It is a great honor to be a fellow singer's inspiration, and I'm sure that Kanade would have felt the same. I really hope that you enjoy the show tonight, and that we can perform on the same stage in the future sometime," Tsubasa said, before reaching out and shaking Hibiki's hand, which was returned in kind. "Good luck and I hope that you enjoy the concert tonight, Sora-san." With that, she walked off, leaving Shinji and Hibiki backstage by themselves.

Hibiki's next words, however, would send shivers down his spine. Once Tsubasa had left the area, she spoke in a quiet tone of voice:

"It begins tonight, so be on your guard Mr. Ogawa. And once it does, you will have your own role to play."

Unknown Time, Unknown Location

The lab was ablaze, both literally and figuratively. Computers, desks, cabinets, everything was on fire. No matter where she turned, it was inescapable. The destruction was catastrophic. And as she walked forwards, the sweltering heat was nearly overwhelming.

"Serena? Serena! Where are you?" she cried, making her way carefully through the rubble and broken glass scattered all over the floor. It was bad enough that one close friend had left today, taking with her THAT which was important for the future. It would be even worse if she lost Serena too.

As she rounded the corner, she finally saw her. A girl dressed in white stood in the center of the room, rubble seemingly cleared aside almost as if by some cosmic force. And despite the chaos and destruction surrounding her, she continued to sing her angelic tune.

"Serena! Serena! We have to get out of here! This place…it's going to explode at this rate," she cried. As if to emphasize this, an explosion occurred behind her, causing her to wince at the heat from the fresh blast as it rushed past her back like a tide at the beach.

The girl in the center of the seemingly angelic circle turned around and looked at her. The girl, now identified as Serena, looked as though she had seen better days. Her clothes covered in cuts and soaked in blood likely to be her own, she continued to sing with a smile on her face. Her tears a mixture of blood and water, she continued singing with that smile, despite seemingly knowing how this will all end.

And just when she started to reach out for Serena to try to pull her towards her and leave this hellish place, she heard it. The roof had finally begun to give way under the heat and was about to crash on top of her. Suddenly she felt herself being pushed to the ground by an older woman in her forties, shielding her and saving her as the roof collapsed on where she had just been standing. Wincing, she looked up to where Serena was supposed to be standing, only to find her missing, almost gone to the flames.

"Serena…SERENA!"

Studio, Tokyo, 1 week prior to Showtime

"Maria! Hey, the shoot is about to start!"

Maria Cadenzavna Eve opened her eyes before turning towards the door of her dressing room where her assistant waited. 'That dream again…' she thinks, getting out of her chair and tossing her pale pink hair over her shoulder before looking at the mirror for one last check on her makeup.

"It's been a year and a half, and yet I can't stop having those dreams," she whispered, finally pleased with her appearance as she headed towards the stage for her shoot. It was the day before the biggest concert event of the year, a global concert on the 2 year anniversary of the Kadingir Incident. And this shoot was the final promotional shoot for that concert for her. She had to focus.

"Man, Maria-san looks beautiful, just as much as ever," a female staff member states as Maria walks by, heading towards the stage for her shoot. Others nodded in agreement, causing Maria to smile. 'If only they knew…' she thought as she finally reached the stage, nodding her consent at the director as she prepared to sing. The music finally started, the lights flashing their different colors as Maria lost herself in "Dark Oblivion".

Between Tokyo and Nagoya, 4:45 am, Day of Concert

"AACHOO!" Yukine Chris sneezed, before rubbing her nose with her sleeve and taking a sip of cocoa. Now age 18 and two years removed from the Kadingir incident, she was viewed as one of the more important members of Section 2, trusted to carry out any sort of mission required.

"But why did I have to be assigned to this mission on today of all days," she spoke quietly while keeping her eyes open outside of her train window. Chris was acting as an escort along with another 20 security guards and Tomosato Aoi. Their mission? To escort the relic that had opened the door for the Noise to enter the world, The Staff of Solomon, to a US Military base nearby for safekeeping, along with Dr. John Wayne Vercingetorix. "As much as I love peaceful times now, it's still hard to believe it's been two years already..."

Suddenly alarms started going off within the train, causing Chris to jump to her feet. The sounds of gunfire from the train and the tracer fire outside of her window could only mean one thing: the Noise had come, just as expected in the mission briefing.

"Didn't expect it to be easy," Chris said, running out into the hallway. Above the train, green noise looking like hawks dive-bombed at the turrets mounted on the rearmost cars, untouched by the tracer rounds and bullets that passed right through them. Unfortunately for those manning the turrets, the noise pierced the turrets with almost comical ease, destroying one and killing the security person manning it. The other turret was not as lucky; the noise pierced through, but didn't cause it to detonate, as the guard inside was quickly turned into the carbon ash Noise attacks were notorious for.

The explosion of the turret shook the train heavily, sending Aoi and Dr. Ver stumbling into the wall of the train car they were in. As Chris entered the room, another explosion shook the train, sending Chris into the wall as another turret was destroyed.

"Why didn't Genjurou think of them even POSSIBLY trying to destroy the train with the cane in it?" she cursed, climbing back to her feet before looking at Aoi for a confirmation that the doctor was alright.

"We thought they would come, but not in these numbers," she said, turning to Dr. Ver, who looked almost frightened. "We need to get you to the front of the train, doctor. That's probably the only safe spot left."

The Doctor nodded, clutching the case containing the Staff of Solomon tightly to him as they made their way forwards, entering the gap between cars as Aoi spoke with Section 2 Headquarters. While this was occurring, the doctor began to speak.

"After the Kadingir incident, the Japanese government released the Sakurai Theory data tow the world. And while most of it is still more complex than is understood, the theory at least is that if we use this, the arc scepter known as the Staff of Solomon, we can possibly find a new way to fight the global catastrophe known as the noise," he said as they entered the cab next to the front of the train, pointing to the case he was carrying. "Fascinating, yes?"

"That thing…" Chris said, fists clenched in anger as she glared at the doctor. "The Staff of Solomon…no one should mess with that thing. Not after what it caused, the price that was paid…" she trailed off, shaking with visible rage.

Doctor Ver and Aoi looked at Chris almost in shock. Aoi knew about the price paid. Two years previously, one of their own, someone that Chris had barely gotten to know at that time had paid the ultimate price to stop the moon from falling at the end of the Kadingir incident. Tachibana Hibiki had left an impact on the snow-haired girl; although she didn't want to admit to it, Chris admired the courage it took to be willing to help others no matter the cost. It had changed her, causing her to try to be more open to Hibiki's friends at school.

"Not like I can talk about it, though," Chris muttered, looking to the floor.

"Chris, you still blame yourself, don't you…" Aoi said, walking over and giving Chris a hug before receiving further orders form headquarters. "Yes, commander, I'll tell her now."

"No need for you to tell me that, Aoi-san. I figured it was about time," Chris said, reaching up to her neck and pulling her relic, Ichaival, out from under her blouse. "Besides, I have some anger to work out on those bastards anyways."

Aoi nodded. She knew that on the anniversary of Moonfall, or as it approached, a lot of those who knew Hibiki became stressed and a bit on edge. They were all still in High School after all, even Tsubasa, who had taken almost a year off from school to try not to think about what had happened.

"Go get them, Yukine-san."

Chris nodded, before closing her eyes and beginning to sing.

"Killiter Ichaival Tron..."

Suddenly Chris was surrounded by a sphere of crimson energy, and in a flash, she stood clad in her familiar symphogear armor. Aoi saluted her and Ver looked at her with a grim smile on his face, before she leapt upwards through the ceiling. Immediately upon bursting through the ceiling, Chris opened fire on the swarm of Noise, taking out numerous enemies with energy arrows fired from her crossbows.

"This is for you, Tachibana…Billion Maiden!" she cried, her crossbows transforming into a pair of double-barreled Gatling guns as big as she is before she opened fire. The attack tore into the enemy ranks, blasting dozens of Noise out of the sky and out of the fight. Still more seemed to take their place, and Chris smirked at this as she returned the Gatlings to their normal crossbow state.

"If they think that numbers will help then they're wrong! Could be easier if Tsubasa-san was here though," she said, her back-mounted wings almost spawning dozens of missiles out of nowhere before a targeting visor dropped over her eyes, almost locking her missiles on to the noise.

"Eat this, bastards! MEGADETH PARTY!" Chris called out, as her missiles fired out, fully locked onto individual enemies. And as the explosions filled the sky with the fireworks of Noise exploding from her missiles, Chris saw something strange out of the corner of her eye.

"What the…a motorcycle rider? What are they doing trying to ride next to the train?" she asked, her curiosity causing her to pay more attention to the newcomer than to the fight. The newcomer was riding an orange and black motorcycle, and as the sun began to rise you could see the sun reflect off of its rider's orange and while jacket. 'That type of bike, it reminds me of Tsubasa-san's bike…' Chris thought, halting her crossbow fire briefly. This would nearly cost her, as a half dozen noise changed shape from birds of prey into drill-like missiles that launched directly at her.

"Chris! Look out!" Aoi called into Chris' earpiece, looking up from the opposite side of the train as the Noise approached. While this got her attention and she turned to face the noise, she wasn't going to be able to dodge in time.

"Damnit…Tsubasa-san, Miku-san, I'm sorry I couldn't be there…"Chris said, angry at herself for getting distracted. And then she heard a voice that she didn't think she would ever hear again, one that she thought was lost two years prior.

"Balwisyall Nescell Gungnir Tron..."

Chris' eyes widened in sheer shock as the motorcycle rider leapt off of her motorcycle into the air, before being surrounded by an Orange Sphere of light. 'Impossible…it can't be…' ran through Chris' mind as the orange sphere faded, revealing Tachibana Hibiki in her symphogear armor. Her armor had gone through a few changes since Chris had last seen it; she had added a long white scarf that flared out behind her on her left and right, and her pile bunker gauntlets had changed drastically to where they now almost seemed streamlined with mini-rocket engines built in. And those engines flared up, as Hibiki proceeded to punch the rapidly-approaching noise out of the sky, all six crumbling to ash immediately after she hit them before landing with her back to Chris, her now free-flowing red hair flowing to mid-back framed by her orange headphones.

(Insert Hibiki Fight song: "Seigi wo Shinjite, Nigiri Shimete" *ALTERED LYRICS*)

"Hi-Hi-Hibiki?" was all Chris could get out, before Hibiki turned and started to sing as she leapt into the air at another group of noise, the mini-rockets in her gauntlets firing.

-A fist with a person's soul, the essence of the flames of war. I unleash my full power 3, 2, 1, 0!-

Hibiki unleashed a ferocious spinning punch into the side of a larger noise that had been approaching, then screamed back to Chris as she proceeded to flip kick another noise that had been sneaking up from behind in Chris' disbelief at Hibiki being alive.

"Chris-chan, we don't have time to be just standing there right now. We can talk later, okay?" Chris looked at her with a look of both gratitude and anger at those words. 'Since when has she been this calm?'

"Tachibana…I'll show you!" Chris then proceeded to change her crossbows into another weapon entirely, as they lengthened and summoned a pair of large spikes on each. She then fired them into the sky above the swarm of Noise, before they separated into countless energy bolts and rained down onto the unsuspecting Noise. "GIGA ZEPPELIN!"

-A single straight line, the shortest path, their happiness shows the way. Why does it have to be me? In this path unwalked there is no answer. These limits are only yours-

Hibiki smirked before leaping back into the air and spinning around in a full spin kick to take out another five or six noise. Her gauntlets' rockets then fired again, propelling her into another group. 'Fast…' Chris thought, amazed at the speed and the control Hibiki showed, weaving through and around the sheer numbers.

"Chris, what's going on up there?" Aoi said through Chris' headset, unaware of Hibiki's return. This caused her to blush in embarrassment before recalling her Gatlings out.

"Uh…nothing, nothing at all!" Chris said before she opened fire, continually aiming at other groups from where Hibiki was fighting. 'Damnit Hibiki, we'd better have that conversation later!' she though, shooting down even more noise.

-My heart shakes the world, my heart sings fiery. Calm and chill, my mind is set, even if it costs me my life. I feel the warmth of their hands in mine; I have no regrets at all. Just look at the future, stand proud as a flower, and you'll surely be reborn as one!-

Hibiki landed back on the train next to Chris, before flashing her a smile.

"It's fine, Chris-chan, it's totally fine. Still plenty of them to go. Not enough of them though," she said, flashing her familiar smile, one that caused Chris to blush before her earpiece came to life again.

"Chris, HQ states that the leader is definitely coming quickly," Aoi said, causing Chris to jump before refocusing.

"Right…understood. I think I see it now," she said, before taking aim with her Gatlings and opening fire. The leader of the noise weaved through Chris' stream of firepower, dodging most of it and barely being affected by the rest. "Damn thing, just DIE ALREADY!" she screamed, pouring more firepower onto it as it approached.

"I've got this, Chris-chan," Hibiki said, leaping into the air and throwing a rocket-propelled punch directly at the nose of the Noise, to little effect before she bounced back towards Chris, landing somewhat gracefully after flipping in midair.

"Got any other bright ideas, Einstein?" Chris asked, almost teasing Hibiki. For the first time in two years, she almost felt like things were normal…and she enjoyed that feeling. For her part though, Hibiki looked towards the front of the train, her eyes widening before she looked down at the roof of the car they stood on.

"Chris-chan, come here!" Hibiki cried out over the rushing winds. She then punched the roof of the train, ripping open a hole in the roof just wide enough for the two of them just as Chris arrived.

"Hibiki, what's going…oh, shit," Chris said, finally noticing the onrushing tunnel they were about to crash into. Her mind then went blank as Hibiki grabbed her arm, pulling Chris towards her. "Wait a sec, Hibiki, what are you-"

"Hold on," the now redhead said, before hugging Chris closely and leaping into the newly-formed hole just before the train entered the tunnel above them. They had gone inside of the train itself, where Hibiki then let go, causing the snow-haired girl to fall to the floor in surprise. Hibiki then went towards the back end of the car.

"What was that for? And where are you going, Miss Heroine?" Chris asked, following closely as Hibiki proceeded to the gap in cars between the car they landed in and another car. Hibiki just turned and grinned before refocusing on her target; the connector between the two cars.

"Chris-chan…stay back please. I'm gonna try something I saw in Sensei's training manuals a couple years ago," Hibiki said, before punching through the connector holding the cars together and leaping down to shove them apart. After sending the car away from the rest of the train, she then leapt off the car Chris was on, landing and pulling an arm back.

-I want to protect you all; I do all in my power. My heart shakes the world! My heart sings fiery! Calm and chill, my mind is set! Even if it costs me my life, I feel the warmth of their hands in mine. I have no regrets at all. Just look at the future, stand proud as a flower, and you'll surely be reborn as one!-

(End Hibiki Insert song)

Chris then watched as Hibiki's right gauntlet seemed to spark with raw power as a red handle snapped into place. 'What is she doing…'Chris thought, as Hibiki then exploded forwards out of her stance, the rockets on her gauntlets flaring as she spun completely around twice before delivering a punch right to the train car they had detached…just as the leader Noise started to emerge from it. The next thing Chris saw was an explosion filling the tunnel heading the other way, but almost no sign of Hibiki within.

"She'd better not have died this time," Chris whispered to herself, before seeing Hibiki's silhouette in the smoke briefly as the train turned the corner away from the tunnel. That brief glimpse though was enough, strangely. "Still a surprise after two years…But why now? Why not sooner? Hibiki, what are you hiding?"

US Military Base, near Nagoya, 10 hours to Showtime

"With this, your mission is complete. Thank you for protecting the doctor and the relic," the sergeant said as he extended his hand to Aoi. Behind him, the Doctor nodded in agreement while the small group of soldiers saluted towards Aoi and Chris.

"Thank you, sir," Aoi said, bowing respectfully before shaking his hand. The group had managed to reach their destination, and had handed over the Staff of Solomon in the hopes that doing so would lead to a breakthrough in the fight against the Noise. And while this would normally be something that would interest Chris, she found her mind far away from the base.

"Damnit...that baka…why didn't she tell anyone that she was okay," the snow-haired girl whispered, her mind lost in thought as the conversation continued on around her. 'It's not like I care. Still, it was nice to see her again…' she thought, before a cough from Aoi got her attention.

"Chris, the doctor has something to say to you," the bluenette said before turning back to the conversation. Chris turned, just in time to catch the Doctor addressing her.

"And now that I've seen it with my own eyes, you symphogear users are better than I believed. You truly are heroes even just for defeating Fine, let alone what you did two years ago," the doctor said, as the soldiers nodded in agreement. Chris frowned, before speaking her next words carefully.

"It's like I said on the train. The world needed to be saved, and we did that. But the price for doing so…" she spoke, her voice haunted as if by some unseen force. 'What if she had actually died…and how am I going to tell Miku-san and Tsubasa-san?'

"I see. To be expected from a heroine, to deflect credit from herself. Know this: we will support you all with the best of our ability. Through these experiments, hopefully we can find the key to putting an end to the Noise threat. And with that, I must leave. Farewell," the doctor said, before following his military escort back into the base and leaving Aoi and Chris to themselves.

"It shouldn't be long now, Chris-chan. Are you excited for tonight? I know Tsubasa-san gave you and Miku tickets specifically," Aoi said, catching the teen's attention. Chris nodded briefly, before turning her gaze back towards the mountains.

"Yeah, I guess. It still feels fresh, you know? I wonder just how she would have reacted to those tickets," Chris said, almost distracted. Besides her, Aoi nodded her confirmation, before speaking up.

"You did such a good job that the commander already approved us a Helicopter back. We should be there just in time for the concert," the older woman said, as Chris crossed her arms behind her head in thought. 'It wasn't just me though…'

Before Chris could answer though, a sound like a bomb going off was heard. And as Chris turned around, she saw the very base that they had just left erupt in a fireball.

"Looks like that Helicopter ride is gonna have to wait," she said, a determined look emerging onto her face as she ran back towards the base, Aoi in pursuit. And as she ran, Chris' thoughts turned to the person who had saved her earlier that morning.

'Damnit…What is going on here? Hibiki, you owe me-no, us- some answers!'

At same time, on road back to Tokyo

A lone motorcycle rider, garbed in an orange and white rider jacket and black jeans, continued to dart through traffic towards the city, before a sudden itch came to her nose.

"ACHOO!" Hibiki sneezed, barely recovering her concentration in time to avoid hitting a tour bus just in front of her. 'Guess someone is talking about me...' she thought, before continuing to race towards the city. She did have somewhere to be, after all.

Concert Venue, Day of Concert, 4 Hours Prior to Showtime

Maria Cadenzavna Eve was, for lack of a better term, bored. While she always enjoyed performing in concert, the lead up was the hardest part. And as such, she found herself sitting in one of the stadium seats overlooking the stage, as technicians tested the final pieces for the night's special effects. Just as she started to hum the tune her sister had taught her however, her phone began to ring.

"Everything is finally ready now. We just have to wait for Sacristy S to come, and then we can begin," an older voice spoke, causing Maria's eyes to gain a dangerous gleam to them before she spoke, hopping to her feet.

"Then there's no time to waste. Okay, mom. It's finally time for the curtain to rise on the last concert on Earth," She said, before emitting a small dark chuckle.

US Military Base, near Nagoya, 2 hours to Showtime

Vacuums fired up everywhere, sweeping up the ashes of those who had died. The noise had attacked almost immediately after Chris and Aoi had left Doctor Ver, spreading chaos and destruction across the entirety of the base. And while Chris had been able to fight off the Noise, it had still been too slow to save many, just one fact among many that had Chris storming off in anger.

"Yes, everything is under control here, Commander. However, Dr. Ver's name is among those missing. And not only that, but the Staff of Solomon is missing too," Aoi said as she reported back to Section 2 headquarters.

"I see. Good work though, Aoi. Be sure to tell Chris the same. The helicopter will be waiting for you two," Kazanari Genjurou spoke clearly from his seat in the Division 2 Headquarters. The past two years had worn on him; while still physically fit, the emotional toll of losing his personal protégé had changed his outlook on the world. And on this anniversary of her death, it weighed more heavily than ever.

"Sir, about the other report that Chris made after the battle here," Aoi started, raising Genjurou from his thoughts. "She said that she wasn't alone on the roof of the train. She said that she saw her."

This got Genjurou, as well as the others on the bridge, to freeze, before looking at each other in confusion and alarm. Only a few people on the shift knew who was being referred to. And the fact that the news came from Chris of all people made it all the more concerning.

"Was she sure," Genjurou asked, his voice taking on a deathly seriousness. "If she was there, then how did we not detect her or the missing relic?"

"Chris seemed absolutely positive, sir. I haven't seen her as…shaken by anything since Kadingir. It seems really hard to believe, I know, but it may be worth looking into," the bluenette said, finality in her voice, causing Genjurou to sigh before pinching his nose.

"If so, then you two need to get back here as soon as possible. If she is alive and returning now, then there has to be a reason. I'll give Ogawa the heads up. Your flight is waiting."

Backstage, Concert Venue, 5 minutes to Showtime

"Right. Understood, sir. I'll keep an eye out," Ogawa Shinji said, hanging up his phone before letting out a sigh. 'So that's where Hibiki was this morning when she said she was running late…but why go that far out of the way?' He sighed, before turning his attention to his most famous protégé, who was in thoughts of her own.

Unmoving, but seated in a prayer position with a black cloak covering her singing outfit, Kazanari Tsubasa looked up at her manager as he approached. She then stood up, cloak fluttering in the breeze as she approached Shinji.

"Something is bothering you, Ogawa-san. That was Uncle Genjurou, correct?" she asked, an inquisitive tone in her voice. This caught Shinji by surprise. While the past two years had changed a lot of people, if anything it had only made Tsubasa sharper. 'Hibiki, these past two years…your disappearance…if you never left, where would we be at now?' he thought, before speaking as he put his glasses away.

"Yes, it was him. He said that while the mission was successful, the staff nevertheless went missing after they arrived, as did the Doctor," Shinji said, his face creased in concern. 'Does this have anything to do with what Hibiki said earlier today?' He shook his head, before smiling at Tsubasa. "I know that you're concerned about this, Tsubasa. But please, concentrate on the show today."

"How can I concentrate on a day like today? I swore that I would help her, and yet I couldn't completely do so. I couldn't help her at the end," Tsubasa said, her eyes flaring with emotion. "I know that he's expecting a lot from me today. If you've taken off your glasses, it means that you're not in manager mode anymore," she accused, walking closer to Shinji before a production voice interrupted her.

"Five minutes, Tsubasa! We need you on stage!"

"Hai! I'll be right there!" she responded, before turning to look at Ogawa with a glare saying that they would finish the discussion later.

"Tsubasa-san, healing the hearts of the wounded is an important job too. Your songs aren't just swords to be used to fight the noise and protect others. They are also an important inspiration to many. So please, do your best out there tonight, okay? Leave things with the 2nd Division to the commander and I, okay?" Shinji asked, before patting the Blue Idol on the shoulder and watching her walk off.

"Ogawa-san…" a voice spoke out quietly, almost causing Shinji to jump as he snapped his head around to see Hibiki standing there, mask covering her face and her hoodie's hood over her head. "Gomen for missing the recording session so suddenly this morning; I just had a bad feeling about things."

"No, Sora, no need to apologize. I was busy with final setup here most of today anyways, so we would have had to cut things short. More importantly though…how much did you hear?" Ogawa asked, while taking note of his surroundings to make sure that no one heard their conversation. At this, Hibiki nodded before speaking, an ominous tone in her voice.

"I heard almost all of it, but that's unimportant at this point. What is important is this: Try to watch the show from the control room; you never know what you could see, with all the different cameras…" she said, before leaving to head to her seat for the concert.

"Why the control room? What are you trying to tell me," Shinji muttered, before turning and heading towards his assigned spot in the manager's box. As he walked off, he didn't think there was anyone listening.

"What is going on here?" Tsubasa muttered, sliding out from her hiding spot en route to the stage. "I have to be ready, as they would want me to be…both Kanade and her…"

End Chapter 2

Author's Postscript: Not much more to say here, other than that things are building up to the concert. Next time, the concert occurs, and someone makes the stage their own to Section 2. See you then. -ZBD15