Song of the Heart Redux (G Arc)

by zeroblackdragon15

(Story adopted from Ada1229) "Believe in the song of your heart." Finé's words on that day continue to drive Hibiki forwards. This is my view on how Symphogear G would have changed if Hibiki had been warned of the FIS' attack on the Queens of Music concert, as well as their plans for world domination. Pairings in Chapter 3; Interlude 2 uploaded 3/9/2018.

12. G Chapter 11: Battle on the Edge

Song of the Heart: Redux

Author's Notes: Welcome back to "Song of the Heart: Redux". I'd like to once again apologize for the delay in getting this chapter out; real life got in the way for a bit, but we're back and ready to keep rolling!

Today we see how Maria's departure affects FIS' plans, as well as how the news of Miku's survival will effect things with the 2nd division. We might even have a bit more combat, as events begin to accelerate towards their climax. I'd like to once more thank the author of the original "Song of the Heart", Ada1229, for allowing me to adopt her story and idea and make it into my own from there. We have a ton to get to today, so let's not waste any more time.

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.

Please note; the record label used in this, Galactic Music Japan, is NOT a real music label as far as I know, but is a parody made solely for the purposes of this story. The same goes for JAM TV; as far as I know, it's not a real music channel on TV, again a parody made up for the purposes of this story.

Also, no music quoted within the story belongs to me. The rights to any and all pieces used belong to their artists and record labels. I did buy a copy of the single CDs that the songs are from though, so thank iTunes for most of that.

Acknowledgements: Once more, I would like to thank the author of the original "Song of the Heart", Ada1229, for her support in adopting this idea and making it my own. I would also like to thank a couple of friends of mine (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.

Special note: No Mikus were harmed in the writing of this chapter...that I know of, anyways...

'Insert thought here'=character thoughts

Flashback Is in Italics

-Song lyrics are shown in italics between dashes-

Chapter 11: Battle on the Edge of Tomorrow

(Last Time…)

"I really worried her, didn't I…" she whispered, as she finally came upon her apartment. Reaching into her pocket to grab her keys, Hibiki grabbed the doorknob. As she did so however, the knob turned under her hand. Eyes widening in surprise, Hibiki couldn't help but take a step back, reflexively slipping into a combat stance as the door slowly crept open in front of her, revealing a familiar, yet unexpected face on the other side of the door. "What…what are you doing here?"

"Okaeri, Hibiki-san," Maria Cadenzavna Eve said, her voice bringing a smile to the Gungnir wielder's face as she spoke. "I was wondering if you had moved or something."

"Tadaima, Maria," Hibiki replied, a clearly surprised tone in her voice. "I didn't move at all. But why are you here? Unless…"

"Yeah," Maria replied, the unspoken question being instantly answered as a determined gleam entered her eyes, the light reflecting off of the Relic hanging from her neck. "I'm quitting the FIS…and I'm here to help you put a stop to Ver's plan, once and for all."

Tachibana Hibiki's Apartment, Shinjuku, Tokyo

Tachibana Hibiki stood, eyes wide in surprise as she tried to process what the young woman in front of her had just told her. 'Maria…you quit from FIS? But why? And why now? I never thought you'd do so, even after our conversation the last time I saw you…' she thought, a small frown coming across her face. Taking a moment to gather her thoughts, she smiled, before she began to speak.

"Maria, are you sure about this?" Hibiki asked, the young woman in front of her frowning slightly in reply. "Because if you're sure, then there's a lot that we have to talk about, and I don't feel completely comfortable discussing it out here. Let me get inside, then we can talk about it more, okay?" Nodding briefly, Maria couldn't help but let out a smile before stepping aside, allowing Hibiki to enter her own home and closing the door behind them both.

-SotHR-

After what felt like an eternity of silence to Maria, Hibiki emerged from her master bedroom, a pair of track pants and an orange tank top covering her form. Sitting down at the kitchen table across from her and carrying a mug of hot tea, the Gungnir wielder began to speak, a smile written on her face.

"I'm happy to see you here, Maria. And yet I still wonder just why you left them," Hibiki began, her words inquisitive. "Aren't Shirabe, Kirika, and Nastassja-san all still part of FIS? Why'd you leave them? I know you wanted to protect them, and that you and your mom didn't see eye to eye on certain things, but what happened?" she continued, offering the mug of tea to her friend, who took a sip from it briefly before replying.

"It started after last time, Hibi=san," Maria began, her eyes staring into the mug in front of her at her own reflection. "What you told me that day, to follow what my heart told me, really stuck with me. And it's something that I've followed every day since." Taking another moment to look her friend in the eye with a sad smile on her face, Maria continued to speak, her voice soft as she spoke. "When I got back, I couldn't help but be sickened by what Doctor Ver was willing to do. I saw the footage of what happened with the Nephilim, and I could barely contain my anger at him for what he allowed it to do to both your girlfriend and to Kazanari-san."

"Maria…" Hibiki whispered, looking over at the older girl with a sad smile on her face. After a moment, the former Black Gungnir wielder continued.

"It's funny, really. If not for mom's orders that day, I wouldn't have started to question what was going on. My heart had always been telling me that what I was doing was wrong, but I had never really thought about it before then," Maria spoke, a small frown on her face. "I know that leaving them is the right thing to do. My heart is telling me that what Ver is leading mom and the others towards is something completely different from what we originally set out to do, something much more destructive, and that they have to be stopped. Serena wouldn't forgive what they're doing. And it's also telling me that the best way for me to do so is by helping you, Yukine-san, and Kazanari-san."

A small smile on her face, Hibiki nodded, her eyes closed as she tried to process what her friend had just told her. 'Looks like Maria took what Kanade-san told me to heart, just like I did…still, I wonder why she left now? What could have happened that finally pushed her over the edge to leave like that, when Shirabe-san and Kirika-san are still there?' Taking a moment to gather her thoughts, she began to speak once more.

"Okay, but that still leads me to wonder why now to leave. You went back to protect Shirabe, Kirika, and your mom, right? So why now?" Hibiki asked, causing her friend to sigh, a frown emerging on her face as she prepared to reply.

"Mom told me to leave a couple days ago," Maria began, her words drawing Hibiki's attention. "I had been planning to leave fairly soon anyways, but with how things were going, I didn't feel comfortable leaving Shirabe, Kirika, and Mom that vulnerable to Ver and his manipulations like that. But when I went to tell mom that I refused to follow the path that she and Ver are leading Kirika and Shirabe any longer, she almost seemed relieved that I wouldn't do so." This got Hibiki's attention, before her friend continued to speak. "It's like she's asking me to stop them, Hibiki. She told me to follow what my heart is telling me just like you did, and it's telling me that I need to be here, helping you and the others put a stop to Ver's plans in any way I can."

"Maria…thank you," Hibiki said, her voice drawing the older girl's attention. "We can start by talking to headquarters in the morning; you look tired, it's late, and I know with the stress of things lately, it wouldn't be good for anyone if we talked to them about this right now. I'll take the couch; you can have my room while you're here." Before she could get too far away however, Maria's hand grabbed Hibiki's own, causing her to pause as the older girl began to speak.

"Before any of that, there's one more thing I have to tell you," she began, voice barely above a whisper and drawing the Gungnir wielder's attention. "Your friend, I think her name was Miku, right? I know where she is, but I think she could be in serious danger." At this, Hibiki's eyes widened, relief flooding to her eyes before she replied, her voice clearly tired, but grateful.

"Maria, thanks for at least telling me that. I don't think you know what it means to me," she began, before reaching over to where Maria's backpack rested and picking it up. "I know you want to help with things, but let's just go over it all with the others in the morning, okay?" Waiting for her friend to stand up, a small smile on her face, Hibiki couldn't help but whisper one last thing before going to set things up for the night.

"Okaeri, Maria."

FIS Stealth Airplane, En Route to Frontier, Unknown Location

Tsukuyomi Shirabe stirred from her sleep as the first rays of light entered her room, crossing her face in the process. She wasn't happy to feel the sun, however. 'It's too early…' the Shul Shagana wielder thought, as she rolled onto her back, her eyes shut tightly as she tried to return to sleep. The previous couple of nights had not been easy for the girl, nor for her friend Kirika. The young woman they considered to be their older sister had left in the middle of the night the night before last, leaving next to no sign that she had been there. All that remained to show she was there was a pair of letters she had written: one for Shirabe, one for Kirika.

"Maria," Shirabe whispered, as the thought of the letter she had been given along with the words spoken to her through her own room's door caused her to feel even more downcast. "I just don't understand. Why did you choose to leave?" Pulling her legs to her chest, Shirabe looked over at her desk, where the letter once more rested, its contents face up for anyone to read. "We're this close to reaching the end, so why? Even though you told me to watch my back around the doctor, and that you don't trust him, it doesn't make sense."

It was more than just the letter that was bothering her, however. Maria's words to Shirabe and Kirika the night she left were still rattling around inside of Shirabe's head. 'Maria…what did you mean when you said not to trust the doctor? His actions haven't been the best in the world, but for him to have the noise attack you and mom…that can't be right, can it,' Shirabe thought, eyes turned downcast towards her feet. 'We're this close to Frontier. We're about to accomplish our goal….so why do I feel as though it's so hollow to reach it like this?'

Shirabe was stirred from her thoughts by a brief knock at the door, the rhythm of the knocking telling her exactly who it is. 'It's breakfast time already, huh?' she thought, before walking over to the door and opening it, revealing her best friend Kirika just outside the room.

"Another long, restless night, Shirabe-chan?" the blonde asked, noticing the tired look on her friend's face. However, Kirika herself didn't look like she'd had the greatest night either. 'Looks like Maria's letter to her is affecting her too,' Shirabe thought, taking in how her friend looked as though she had barely slept at all. Nodding slightly, the shorter girl began to reply, a concerned look on her face.

"You don't look like you slept too well either, Kiri-chan," she muttered before stifling a yawn that threatened to break free. "I guess it's time to make breakfast, isn't it?" At the sight of an eager nod, Shirabe smiled gently. 'Kiri-chan…you haven't been acting like yourself lately, but if there's one thing that never changes about you, it's how you're always so energetic around food,' she thought, as she grabbed her apron from the hangar it rested on. 'Still…Maria told me to protect you and mom…and I'm going to, no matter who it's from or what I have to do…'

-SotHR-

Breakfast went by fairly quickly for Kirika, even though she didn't want it to. But as the meal concluded for both herself and Shirabe, she couldn't help but feel frustrated over how the oldest of their trio had left. 'Maria…what are you thinking by leaving like you did?' the blonde thought, placing her dishes into the sink so that she could wash them. Even as she began to fill the sink with warm water, Igalima's wielder couldn't help but feel some anger at how their mother had acted since Maria had left.

"Damnit…since Maria left, Mom's been almost completely on edge. Even the slightest thing sets her off," Kirika began, her words drawing her friend's attention as she cleaned the stovetop from its usage earlier on. "She told me yesterday after I was done practicing that if I made a stepping error like I did during the exercise, she'd personally bench me for this upcoming mission. It's like she's gotten stricter because of what happened."

"Kiri-chan, maybe it's because Maria left like she did," Shirabe countered, her voice trying to calm her friend down. "Maybe if she wouldn't have left as close to Frontier being revived as we are, it wouldn't have been quite so big of a deal."

"Or maybe if she wouldn't have let her conscience guide her, it wouldn't have happened and everything would be fine," Kirika groused as she started to scrub the dishes. Placing one of her freshly cleaned plates into the rinse pile on the other side of the sink, she continued to speak. "I mean, to leave in the middle of the night like that, and this close to time? What's with that? She'd been acting differently since she got back from her walk, almost as if she changed her mind about everything. It's not fair to mom, and it's not fair to us!"

"That's enough out of both of you. At this point, it doesn't matter if she left or not," a familiar voice cut in, as Doctor Ver entered the room, coffee cup in hand. Walking over to the coffee maker and pouring himself a fresh cup of caffeinated sludge, he spoke up once more. "We hold the keys to reviving the one thing that can save this world. It doesn't matter if Maria left or not, since it's not like she would make a difference anyways, not with the power of the Nephilim's heart, as well as the power of the Shen Shou Jing." Taking a sip from his mug, the Doctor smiled maliciously, the air in the room seemingly dropping in temperature. "It'll all be over soon. Soon, we'll have obtained our goals, and everything will change. Now then, if you'll excuse me, I should go check on our guest." And with that, the doctor left the room, leaving the younger duo to their own thoughts.

Little did either they or their mother know about what was occurring in the room in which their 'guest' was being held. Because as Doctor Ver was returning from getting his fresh cup of coffee, a twisted grin appeared on his face. 'That's right, soon my goals will be obtained…and perhaps 'she' will be the key to it all…'

-SotHR-

In a dark room on the plane, a young woman laid unconscious on a table, her arms and legs strapped to it by cold steel bindings. As she continued to lay there unconscious, a pair of IVs ran into her elbow, one with the standard IVs and another with a bizarrely-tinted mixture. And as the girl laid unconscious on the table, one word was heard from her lips, albeit so faint that it could pass for nothing.

"Hibiki…"

Tokyo, Shinjuku, Park

Ogawa Shinji let out a yawn as he looked out over the riverbed, fellow 2nd division employees searching the area. He had been in the area for a number of hours now, searching for something, anything that could be a clue as to the whereabouts of the missing Kohinata Miku. The search had not been very fruitful however, and he was running out of ideas.

"We've checked almost every area from Sky Tower in this direction already, sometimes twice," he muttered, taking a brief sip of coffee from his thermos. "And we have to be running out of time. There's gotta be some sort of sign here, if she survived."

It had been all of about twelve hours since the search had started in this part of town, after receiving a tip that there had been something flying away from the tower in this direction. Ogawa had been called in regarding the search immediately, however he had only been able to join the search within the previous few hours after having been at the recording studio with Tachibana Hibiki. 'Chris couldn't have showed up at a better time if she tried,' he thought, his mind reflecting back on how the Ichaival wielder had been able to drag his client out of the studio she had refused to leave previously. 'If it wasn't for her, Hibiki could be there still…and we'd be close to losing another person to her own guilt.' He had seen the way the Gungnir wielder had been pushing herself to cope with the loss, refusing to take any sort of break at all the whole day. And what he had seen had scared him to the point of not wanting to see it happen again. 'It was just like how Tsubasa dealt with Kanade-san's death…'

Looking over the area once more, the rising sun caused Ogawa to sigh before taking another sip from his thermos. 'We've been at this all night. Please, if we're going to find anything, please let us find it now. We could be running out of time if we don't,' he thought, before the voice of one of his subordinates got his attention.

"Ogawa-san! Quickly, over here! We think we have something," one of his male subordinates called out from down near the river running through the park, causing the 2nd division's spymaster's eyes to widen in surprise. Taking a last sip from his thermos and placing it atop the roof of his car, he quickly made his way to the riverbed, where a familiar-looking object was at rest on the ground. 'Could it be?' he thought, before reaching down and picking it up off of the ground.

"This could be the break we're looking for," he began, his words displaying utter seriousness. Turning to his subordinate, Ogawa nodded at him before continuing to speak. "Get Headquarters on the line. I think we might have what we've been looking for."

Tachibana Hibiki's Apartment Complex, Tokyo, Shinjuku

"She'd better not have dragged herself back into the studio again," Yukine Chris spoke, her voice echoing down the silent hallway as she walked towards where her girlfriend's apartment awaited. Clad in a red hoodie and a black skirt, the Ichaival wielder sighed before continuing to speak. "I just managed to get her to leave the studio last night, and she promised me she wouldn't do that again." Besides her, Kazanari Tsubasa walked, her strides fairly even with the Ichaival wielder's own. They had both received a phone call earlier in the morning from 2nd Division Headquarters, and had figured that they could get the Gungnir wielder on their way to headquarters. "She was a complete wreck last night, Tsubasa-san. I just…I can't stand seeing her suffer like that, you know? It's not her fault that the Sky Tower came under attack!"

Looking over at her shorter teammate, Tsubasa couldn't help but nod in agreement, her mind racing at what her uncle could possibly have called them in for at the hour he did so. 'It's got to be something major…did they find something related to Miku-san? Or did they find some sort of thing that could lead us to FIS' front door?' she thought, her mind narrowing down options as they walked. Stopping for a moment as they reached the Gungnir wielder's door, Tsubasa gave a reassuring smile to her friend before beginning her reply.

"Chris, I'm sure that your girlfriend didn't drag herself back to work. She knows how worried she made you, and she isn't the type to take what you ask her to do lightly," she said, stepping to the door and pulling her keys out of her blue motorcycle jacket's pocket and starting to look for the spare key. "Still, you're not the only one who's been worried about her. Taichou said that she didn't pick up her phone this morning, so he asked if I could stop by on the way into headquarters to find her."

"I was going to stop by anyways," Chris said, a small blush coming across her face as she looked at the small bag in her hands. "I went and got some of those Danish you said she's always chasing after at the studio for breakfast, and I thought that today would be a good time for her and I to have breakfast together. I just didn't expect that Headquarters would call us all in." Looking up at how her friend was smirking at her, Chris couldn't help but blush at the look on the older girl's face.

"Chris, it's okay for you to do so. You're going out with her, and you're the one who has her heart," Tsubasa spoke, a reassuring tone to her voice. "Protect that feeling and cherish it, because you never know when it'll be ripped away from you at a moment's notice." A saddened look emerging onto her face, Tsubasa turned and slid the key into the lock on the door, before noticing something off. "That's weird…" she trailed off, garnering her friend's attention.

"Tsubasa? What is it?"

"It's unlocked," the former idol replied, causing both girls to go on guard immediately. "Hibiki doesn't leave her door unlocked like this, does she?"

"H-H-How would I know? It's not like I've been over here late at night or anything," Chris sputtered, a blush coming over her face as she looked away. 'Still…this isn't normal,' Chris thought, before nodding at Tsubasa as she reached for the door handle. Moments later she turned the handle, the older girl opening the door slowly as to not alert anyone as the duo entered the apartment.

"It doesn't look like anything's out of order or anything," Tsubasa whispered, as she proceeded towards the kitchen quietly, hanging her jacket over a chair and revealing the black short-sleeved dress she wore underneath. As she did so, Chris followed closely, setting the bag of pastries on what appeared to be the dining table before taking a look around for anything even remotely out of place. Noticing the bedroom door ajar, the Ichaival wielder nodded at her friend, who knowingly nodded in reply.

'So this is Hibiki's bedroom,' Chris thought as she entered the room, eyes darting around the room for any signs of an intrusion. Satisfied at her initial sweep of the room, she slowly walked over to the bed, where the blanket was pulled up as if to cover someone's head from any light that could enter the room. 'Time to wake her up…' Chris thought as she walked over to where the lump of blankets rested, as the image of her doing this to her girlfriend on a daily basis caused her to blush furiously. 'No…as great as that would be, now isn't the time to be thinking about that,' she thought, before she reached over to shake what appeared to be the shoulder of the occupant of the bed.

"Hey, Hibiki-baka, time to wake up," she whispered as she shook the person's shoulder gently, trying to wake them up. It wouldn't be long before Chris got a reply far different from what she had expected, as an unfamiliar voice responded.

"Nggh…Five more minutes…" the voice grumbled, before rolling over slightly, now resting on their back. Eyes narrowing in determination, Chris shook the figure's shoulder once more before speaking again.

"Come on, baka. We're going to be late. Kazanari-taichou wants us at the base; I got those pastries Tsubasa-san said you like so much," Chris whispered, a little more force in her voice this time. This time, the figure stirred slightly, before speaking softly as they seemed to sit up, the blankets sliding off their form to reveal someone Chris never expected to be in that room.

"Fine, I'll get up…" Maria grumbled, reaching up and stifling a yawn as she stretched her arms above her head. This action caused the jacket she was wearing- 'Hibiki's jacket,' Chris noted -to rise as well, revealing that she had almost nothing on underneath it besides a silvery-white pair of panties. Mere moments later, a scream was heard from the bedroom, followed quickly by a slap as the shouting began.

"What's going on in here? Chris, I thought I told you to wake…her…up…" Tsubasa spoke, her voice trailing off at the sight in front of her as a crimson blush rushed up her face. Chris' slap had knocked the jacket partially off of the former Black Gungnir wielder, exposing her bare torso to the cool bedroom air. And as the bluenette came into the room, she couldn't help but notice the sight of Maria recoiling from the slap of one Yukine Chris, an image that would be burned into her memory, even as Chris started to yell.

"What the HELL are YOU doing in MY girlfriend's BED?!" she yelled, as she reared back to punch the older girl, who had a stunned look on her face. "What did you do to her? Spike her drink and take advantage of her?" Letting her fist fly forwards, Chris' eyes widened in surprise as Maria caught her fist, holding it in place and twisting the younger girl's arm behind her back before she began to reply.

"Why would I do that to someone who I consider one of my best friends, who I specifically told when you were fighting the Nephilim to hurry and get to you? Yukine-san, I think there's been a bit of a misunderstanding here," Maria grumbled out, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she stood up from the bed, revealing her figure to the air as she did so. "Besides, didn't you notice the blanket and pillow on the couch?"

Before Maria could continue speaking however, a kick seemed to come swinging down from the corner of her vision directly at her head. Releasing Chris' fist, she quickly brought up her arms above her head to block the axe kick launched by the bluenette in the room, preventing it from possibly damaging the bed frame. Stepping to the side, Maria replied with a quick snap kick to the front of her own, something that was easily blocked by the blushing woman in front of her before it could break the flat screen on the wall behind her.

"Maria, just what are you doing here? What are you planning?" Tsubasa asked, before stepping inside of the idol's reach and launching a quick jab. Thinking quickly, Maria turned her body halfway to the side, evading the punch before grabbing Tsubasa's arm and spinning her so that her body was against the wall before replying.

"I already told Yukine-san this, and now I'm going to tell you this too, Tsubasa-san," she began, her voice coming out in a grouchy, yet breathy tone that caused Tsubasa to shiver slightly. "I think there's a misunderstanding going on here. I don't have any bad intentions, and I don't want to hurt any of you. So can we end this fight already? I'll explain more when Hibi-san gets back."

"Like I'll believe you," Tsubasa growled out, sweeping her foot around and under Maria's own, causing her to lose her balance and fall to the floor. She had miscalculated however, as Maria had not let go of her arm and dragged her down with her, the former idol's face landing next to Maria's own before she could grab anything to balance herself. Reacting quickly, both girls climbed to their feet, but before any further combat could take place, a welcome voice entered the room.

"Well, I appreciate the two of you not going full out and trashing my room, but I'd appreciate it if you didn't attack my guest, Tsubasa-san," Hibiki spoke up, the towel hanging around her neck complimenting the tank top and yoga pants she wore and an amused smile on her face as she walked over to her girlfriend before giving her a hug, causing her to blush. "I get up early to get a workout in, leave the door unlocked, and next thing I know I see my manager and a recently-returned friend in a fight with each other."

"It wouldn't have been like that if you didn't let HER sleep in your bed, Hibiki-baka," Chris growled half-heartedly as she leaned into the hug. "What is she doing here, anyways? And what do you mean she's your guest? Please tell me that you have a good explanation for this, Hibiki."

"I can probably do a better job of that than your girlfriend can, Yukine-san," Maria spoke up drawing the other girls' attention to her. "Your girlfriend was really the only person I know in town, so I came here, and she offered me a place to stay after I quit from FIS on Friday."

Before another word could be spoken however, a noise was heard, the sudden musical interruption causing many of the occupants in the room to jump in surprise as Hibiki's ringtone went off. Sighing softly and removing herself from the hug she had started with her girlfriend, she proceeded to grab her phone from its charger before beginning to speak.

"Moshi Moshi. Kazanari-taichou? What has you calling this early?" the Gungnir wielder spoke, the identity of who she was speaking with breaking the tension that filled the air. Moments later, the reply came through the earpiece.

"Hibiki-san, we finally got a hold of you," Genjurou spoke, his voice carrying through the early morning air. "Are you with the others at the moment? We detected an unusual source of energy from where you're at. Is everything okay?"

"Hai, Taichou, everything is fine."

"Good. Anyways, Can the three of you come into the base? We have an important development to discuss."

"Yeah, we'll be in shortly. Although…" Hibiki trailed off as she looked over to where Tsubasa and Chris were glaring at Maria, Chris especially so. "I have someone I want to bring with us."

"Oh?" The surprise eminent in Genjurou's voice caused her to speak up once more, added urgency clear in her voice. "I have someone who I think could help. Taichou, she really wants to help, and I think we'll need all of it that we can get." After a moment, a brief sigh came through the phone before a response was heard.

"Very well. Although, if it's who I think it is, then it's going to be tricky to authorize it, Hibiki-san. Still, get in here as soon as possible."

"Understood, taichou. Will do." With those words, Hibiki ended the call before turning back to where the others stood, Chris' glare turning onto her as she re-entered the room. Placing the phone onto the dresser, she began to speak once more.

"Taichou wants us to come in. I'm guessing that you two already heard about it though," she said, earning a nod from both Chris and Tsubasa. Stopping to note the troubled look on her girlfriend's face, she then proceeded to speak up, her golden eyes locked onto the cerulean orbs of her manager. "Tsubasa, can you please take Maria with you? I was able to convince Taichou to let her come in, but there's something I want to talk with Chris about. In private."

Nodding silently, Tsubasa looked over at the Ichaival wielder, whose mood seemed to have become downcast. 'Chris…don't let this chance get away. You have the chance to be with someone special to you…I had that chance once, until she died...' she thought, before shaking her head. Walking towards the door, she turned to look at Maria with a questioning look before speaking, her voice stoic.

"Are you going to stand there, or are we going to get going?" Tsubasa asked, her words grabbing Maria's attention, as she nodded. "At least get dressed somewhat, will you? If you're going to come with us, you can at least do that."

-SotHR-

Minutes later, as the door shut behind the departing duo, Hibiki sighed, before going back to her room, a small cup of coffee in hand. Handing it to her girlfriend as she sat on the edge of the bed, Hibiki began to speak.

"Chris, I'm sorry you had to see that," she began, her tone as reassuring as she could make it. Before she could say anything else though, her girlfriend began to speak, her voice shaking.

"Hibiki-baka…" she began, her voice trailing off as she placed her coffee onto the nightstand next to her. "Why didn't you tell me that she was here? I'm your girlfriend for crying out loud. Don't I deserve to know that?" At this, the Gungnir wielder sighed, before nodding in agreement and speaking once more.

"Yeah…Chris, you deserve to know that. That's my mistake. Still, nothing happened last night. I took the couch and let Maria use the bed because she had to have been trying to get away from FIS for a while, and I wanted to make sure that she got her rest."

"Maybe, but still…" Chris trailed off, her voice struggling to hold it together. "You say that you love me, that your heart belongs to me, but it goes both ways. How do you think I felt when I saw her in your bed? It almost felt as bad as that time did…" she spoke, her voice hollow as tears started to well up in her eyes at the memory.

"Chris…" Hibiki thought, as she reached over to wrap up the other girl in a comforting hug. Wrapping her arms around her girlfriend's body and pulling her in closely, she proceeded to whisper gently. "I don't mean to hurt you, you know that."

"I know that," she muttered, before looking away at the window her voice haunted. "But she said the same thing. She said that she cared about me, that she wouldn't hurt me. And yet, at the end, I still had to deal with the pain of having my heart broken by the person I wanted to believe in, that I gave everything I had for. Seeing that pink-haired girl in YOUR bed just brought all that pain back, only worse. It felt like a knife right in my back, Hibiki."

"Gomen," Hibiki whispered, her voice downcast as she spoke. "Chris, I wouldn't even think of doing that. Not to you. Not to the person I've given myself to. I'd never do anything like that."

"Don't say something like that. Don't say it unless you mean it, Hibiki-baka." With those words, silence echoed throughout the room, engulfing the duo as they sat on the edge of the bed.

"Chris…" Hibiki spoke, causing the girl in question to look at her, her golden eyes staring right into the violet eyes of her girlfriend. "You're the most important person in the world to me. I don't want anyone else. You deserve so much better than how she treated you, and I wish that there was something I could do to help make the pain, those emotions she put you through, go away."

"Then why don't we do any of the stuff that all those other couples do?" Chris asked, her words causing her girlfriend's face to go as red as her hair. "I almost feel like it's because I'm not good enough…"

"I don't want to do any of that unless you're comfortable doing so. I love you for you, Chris. For everything about you. And I don't want to do anything that you're not comfortable doing."

Chris couldn't help but stare into her girlfriend's eyes as she spoke, a small smile emerging onto her face. 'I gave myself to her and it led me to nothing but pain. But with Hibiki, it's so different from then…so much warmer, so much more real…' she thought, her girlfriend's golden eyes shining with a love that could never be faked.

"Just shut up and kiss me already," Chris whispered, voice breathy as she spoke, eyes locked onto those of her girlfriend. Responding in kind, Hibiki moved in, slowly closing the gap between the two before their lips met, electricity surging through them as they captured each other in a kiss. Wrapping her arms around the Ichaival wielder and pulling her closely, Hibiki deepened the kiss, her eyes closing as she felt Chris' tongue licking at her lips, almost asking permission for entrance. Opening up slightly, she returned the favor, their tongues dancing in each other's mouths as the kiss continued to deepen, electricity surging through her body at Chris' slightest touch. After what felt like hours, Hibiki broke the kiss, a small bead of Chris' saliva dropping onto her chest as she pulled away.

"I love you, Chris," Hibiki panted, as her girlfriend's head came in to rest on her shoulder. Taking a moment to hum her agreement, Chris began to respond, her arms still wrapped around her girlfriend's lower back as she nuzzled the taller girl's neck.

"And I love you too, Hibiki. I love everything about you," Chris panted, her breath sending tingles down Hibiki's spine. "Still…don't we have somewhere to be?"

"Yeah," Hibiki muttered, her voice husky compared to her normal tone. Pulling away and breaking the hug, she stood up before going over to her dresser and grabbing her choice of outfit for the day. "Can you wait out in the kitchen, Chris? We wouldn't want to keep everyone else waiting, after all."

Meeting Room, 2nd Division Headquarters, Tokyo, Japan

Kazanari Genjurou stood, a pensive look on his face as he looked over the group of girls standing in front of him. Arms crossed in front of his trademark red office shirt, the commander of the 2nd division's mind was rapidly analyzing the newcomer in front of him. 'Maria Cadenzavna Eve…why are you here? And what is your relationship to Hibiki-san that has her swearing that you're not the enemy anymore?' he thought, the frown on his face deepening. 'So many more questions that I have, but maybe you'll be able to give me some answers here today. You seem different than the last time we saw you, back at that bridge…now we get to find out just how much so.' Taking a deep breath, Genjurou began to speak, drawing the attention of the four young women in front of him.

"Before I get to the news I have for you, there are a couple of questions that I need to have answered," he began, eyes looking directly at the pink-haired idol. "Your presence here, Maria-san, is a surprise. How you answer my questions will help determine whether or not you'll be able to help as much as you claim you want to. Is that clear?"

At this, three sets of eyes darted over to where Maria sat, her eyes looking towards the clear glass table. Slowly getting up from the chair, her silver hoodie ruffling as she placed her hands at her sides, the former member of FIS took a moment to gather herself. Looking back at Genjurou in the eye, she began her reply.

"Understood, Kazanari-san. I'll answer any questions you have for me."

"Then let's begin," Genjurou stated, voice taking on a serious tone. "First, I have to ask. Why are you here? What could have happened to drive you away from FIS? It couldn't have been just anything, so why?"

At this, Maria smiled softly, her eyes unflinching from Genjurou's own. Beaching into the pocket of her jeans, she pulled out a small USB drive and placed it onto the table before beginning her reply.

"To answer your question directly, Kazanari-taichou, I'm here because I want to do anything I can to help," she said, her voice unwavering. "As for what led to my decision, I have Hibi-san to thank for it. If not for a conversation I had with her so long ago, I would have never developed the resolve I needed to make my own decision and follow what my heart is telling me to do."

"And that is?"

"It's telling me that I can't allow whatever Ver's planning to succeed. I won't let him or the rest of FIS reach their goals," Maria said, a small bit of anger leaking into her voice as she mentioned the doctor's name. Reaching up and grasping the relic pendant around her neck with one hand, she continued to speak. "My sister, Serena, wouldn't have wanted whatever his plans are to succeed. What they're doing isn't the way to save people from what's coming. Sir, I'm here because I want to help in any way I can."

"Okay, makes sense. Next question. You've said that you're willing to do whatever you can to help. While you've answered why you want to do so, I can't help but wonder what you could provide to the cause that Hibiki-san, Chris-san, or Tsubasa-san can't."

"Kazanari-taichou, this USB drive contains all of the data on Frontier that FIS had, including schematics, layout, and other data. There's also something else important on there; Hibi-san's medical records from when she stayed with us in California over a year and a half ago," Maria said, picking up the drive off of the table and proceeding to hand the drive over to Genjurou. Stepping backwards, Maria continued to speak, her resolve filling her voice. "Sir, I just want to help in any way that I can. I may not have Black Gungnir anymore, but I still want to do anything I can. I won't allow FIS' plans to succeed. My heart is telling me that this is the path that I need to take. Please, just allow me to do so."

Genjurou's eyes widened at one particular statement that Maria had mentioned. 'She doesn't have her relic anymore? But then…what is the relic hanging around her neck?' he thought, his mind racing at the possibilities. 'Still…her tone of voice was completely genuine. She really wants to do anything she can to help. However, even so, that doesn't mean that I can just forgive her previous transgressions. Not right away.' Making his mind up, Genjurou began to speak, his eyes not looking away from Maria.

"I see. While I'm willing to allow you to help, this will be on a probationary basis and you'll be monitored. Closely." Genjurou spoke, his tone serious as he looked at the young woman in front of him. "You'll have a tracking anklet on you at all times during this period. Is that understood?"

At this, Maria nodded. 'I can't expect them to trust me right away,' she thought, looking over at Hibiki, who wore a smile on her face as she sat across the table. 'But at the very least I've been able to start down the path my heart is telling me to take. Serena…would you be proud of this step I'm taking?' she thought, a small smile appearing on her face as she did so.

"Understood, Kazanari-Taichou."

"Good. Now, on to other matters," Genjurou said, placing the Flash drive into his shirt pocket before reaching into his pocket and removing another object. Walking over and placing the object in front of Chris, he began to speak once more as she looked over the device.

"That device is Kohinata-san's communicator," He said, the words causing Chris and Tsubasa's eyes to widen. "Ogawa-san and his team found it within the last few hours in a park near Sky Tower. We were able to pull the records of its signal, and we found that it had been moving for several minutes at an almost constant speed."

At this, Chris could feel her eyes watering slightly. 'That can only mean one thing…Miku's not dead, is she?' Looking over to where her girlfriend sat next to her, she could feel Hibiki squeeze her hand with her own before nodding briefly, a small smile on her face. 'She has to be alive, doesn't she…Miku, I'm sorry about keeping Hibiki and I a secret from you…just hang in there.' As if reading her thoughts, Genjurou began to speak once more.

"Kohinata-san is alive, which is the good news. The obvious conclusion is, however, that she's been kidnapped. That also means that you can't sit here looking all upset and beating yourselves up over it. As soon as we can find the FIS, we'll make a move to try to save her."

"Kazanari-Taichou, there's something I have to say," Maria spoke up, causing everyone's attention to be drawn to her. "I…I was the one who saved Miku from that Tower."

Tsubasa eyed the young woman seated next to her in shock, along with a bit of anger. 'If Maria saved her from the tower…then why isn't Miku here now? Something isn't adding up here...' Before anyone else could speak, Maria continued, her eyes shutting in frustration.

"I found her in a part of the tower's observation deck that had split from the rest of it, Noise circling overhead. I knew that if I left her there, she could possibly die…so I did what I could; Get her and get the hell out of the area."

"Then why didn't you get her to safety and just leave then?" Chris blurted out, frustration in her voice as she grinded her teeth. "Maria, Miku is my roommate, and the friend of all of us here. So where is she now? Why didn't you bring her with you?"

"Miku wasn't the only one I had to worry about at the time, Yukine-san," Maria whispered, her voice quiet. "My mother was there as well, and I had to get her to safety as well. I couldn't afford to stop moving, not until I got back to where the plane was at the time. Not when Ver could have attacked us at any time."

"Maria-san, what do you mean by that? Ver could have attacked you at any time?" Genjurou asked, an eyebrow raised. 'This confirms what the videos from the Sky Tower showed, if true. That footage showed her not just fighting off American soldiers, but also having to fight off an unusual amount of noise. And the noise seemed almost as if they were gunning for her and her mother specifically…looks as though things have gotten more interesting.'

"I don't know for certain, but I think that Doctor Ver overheard me when I told my mom that I was planning on leaving FIS," Maria said, hands clenched into fists resting on the table. "He was the one who ordered the noise to attack like they did, I'm sure of it."

"But if he knew about it, then why didn't you just leave that second?" Tsubasa asked, her voice questioning. "Unless there's something else going on here, I don't see why you wouldn't have done so after leaving the area. But at least it answers the question of where Miku is."

"Yeah, but it still doesn't' tell me why she couldn't get Miku out of there when she left to come here," Chris seethed, her anger threatening to boil over. At her words, she felt a reassuring squeeze on her hand once more from her girlfriend, before Maria spoke up once more.

"I wanted to get her and bring her with me, Yukine-san. But it just wasn't possible, not after what she's been put through by that bastard."

"What do you mean?" Genjurou asked, eyes narrowing at the implications. 'Ver…what are you planning? And what does Miku have to do with it?' Maria then spoke up once more, anger filling her voice.

"When we all got back, Ver acted as though he wanted to make sure that everything was alright with her, so Mom gave him permission to check on her," Maria said, tension in her shoulders causing them to shake. At this, she could feel her frustration begin to boil over. "I wanted to get Miku out of there, Hibi-san. I really did. It just wasn't possible with what he'd done. Some protector I am…"

"Maria…" Hibiki whispered out, a saddened smile on her face as she looked at her older friend as she gathered herself. Before too much longer, the former Black Gungnir wielder began to speak once more.

"Hibi-san, I couldn't move her from where she's at, even though I wanted to. Not after what Ver's been putting her though. The amount of drugs he's been injecting her with is just too much. If I took her away from there when I left, she would have died before we even got to the city. I'm sorry, Hibiki, Yukine-san. I just couldn't keep your friend safe."

"Damn him…." Chris growled out, her anger boiling over as she turned away from the table and punched the nearby wall. "Damn that bastard! He isn't getting away; that bastard is going to pay for EVERY LAST THING he's done!" Even as she spoke, Chris couldn't help but feel upset at both the doctor and herself, however. 'If I wouldn't have activated the Staff of Solomon, then Ver would never have gotten this much power…damnit…I have to do something…'

"Maria, it's not your fault," Hibiki spoke, her voice calm, but her body language betraying her as her fists clenched together at the thought of what was happening to Miku at the moment. "If it's anyone's fault, it's Doctor Ver's. You did everything that you could at the time."

"Maybe, but I swore to myself that I'd protect everyone who's important to me. When I left, mom told me to come here and help you protect everyone important to you. I should have known he'd try something like that."

"No one could have expected him to try something like that," Genjurou spoke up, causing all four girls to look at him immediately. "You did what you could, Maria-san. Your sister would be proud of you for doing everything you could do with the knowledge you had. For now, I do have one question for you. How long do you think it will take for FIS to get everything set up for Frontier to be up and running?" At this, Maria paused for a moment, before looking at Genjurou and replying.

"I would think it would take Ver about a week to have everything ready for them to revive Frontier in full, but I'm not sure."

"Good. Then we'll have to be ready for it then. Chris, Hibiki, Maria. The three of you head to the training room. Let's get some exercise and get to training: I want the three of you to head down there now and get warmed up. Tsubasa, you and I have to have a talk, and then we'll join the others in the training room." At this, the three nodded, before standing up to leave the room, leaving the two Kazanari alone in the meeting room.

Training Room, 2nd Division Headquarters, Tokyo, Japan

Silence echoed throughout the room as Hibiki sat, legs stretched out in front of her with an arm reaching out to touch her right foot. She had been the first one to arrive in the room, and while both Maria and Chris had entered the room relatively quietly, one could still sense the tension in the air between the two of them, even as Chris came to sit down next to her. 'It's hard to blame them for being tense around each other though,' she thought, releasing her right foot and switching over to reach for her left. 'Chris…you probably blame Maria at least partially for this. However, at the same time, Ver is the one whose actions are putting Miku into even greater danger…' at that thought, her eyes narrowed, anger threatening to flood to the surface. 'That bastard…he's already done so much and hurt so many, including those I care most about. I can't let him get away next time. I won't let him get away next time.'

Finishing the stretch, Hibiki leaned back before stretching her arms over her head, the orange tank top she was wearing almost emphasizing her athletic frame. Standing up and brushing off the black warm-up pants she wore as well, the Gungnir wielder stepped over to where her girlfriend sat before sitting behind her and wrapping her arms around her in a hug. Moments later, she felt the Ichaival wielder relax slightly into the hug, even as she began to speak slightly.

"Hibiki…" Chris' voice trailed off, as she leaned her head back to rest on her girlfriend's shoulder. "How can you trust someone like her who put Miku into that situation?" At this, Hibiki paused, a frown coming across her face. Taking a moment to gather her thoughts, she began to speak, her voice filled with determination.

"Maria did everything she could. While I know that she put Miku into a bad situation, something that she regrets having done, it's Ver who's drugging Miku and doing who knows what else to her." At this, her frustration boiled over, something that was easily noticeable to Chris as well as to Maria herself, who walked over, her silver tank top hugging her frame over the black warm up pants she also wore. "He won't get away with it. He won't get away with anything he's done."

"Yeah," Maria whispered, drawing the duo's attention to her as she spoke, taking a seat next to them. "For what it's worth, Yukine-san, I'm sorry. I just couldn't have gotten her away from there without putting her life even further on the line, and I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I did so." With those words, an understanding silence settled over the trio, as they waited for both Kazanari clan members to arrive so that they could begin their training session.

-SotHR-

An hour later, Tsubasa entered the training room, a distant look on her face. Behind her, Genjurou entered minutes later, his red track suit's jacket hung over his shoulder. Seeing the number of his charges having grown by one, he began to speak, knowing that today would be a bit different from most other training sessions.

"Usually I would say to start with a spar between each of you here. However, since we have one more person here, I want to start a little bit differently today. Get loosened up everyone; I want to get started quickly. Hibiki, Chris, you two are with me today. Tsubasa, Maria, you two pair off as well."

At this, Tsubasa barely responded, her blue tank top barely moving as she moved to where the former FIS member waited. Noticing the melancholy look on the former idol's face, both Hibiki and Chris couldn't help but think that something might be wrong, before Genjurou spoke up at them once more.

"Get loosened up, you two. We have some work to do today, and we don't have any time to waste right now."

"Hai, taichou."

As she began stretching, Tsubasa was a million miles away mentally, her thoughts and mindset shaken by what she had bene told by her uncle. 'Why…How could…I did everything...Was it all for nothing?' she thought, as she almost half-heartedly stretched, the girl in front of her noticing the look on her face as well.

"Tsubasa-san, is something wrong?" Maria asked, a concerned look on her face as she stretched, an arm crossed across her chest in front of her. Looking up briefly from her own stretching, Tsubasa replied, an edgy tone to her voice.

"No, nothing's wrong. Everything's fine," she said, before sitting down, legs spread open and reaching over to grab her right foot. "Just get ready. I take training seriously, and I expect the same of those I work with."

"If you say so," Maria replied, before mimicking the actions of the former idol in front of her. Still, she couldn't help but feel concerned. 'She doesn't seem right…something's bugging her, but I just don't know what. It's not my place to pry, but there's gotta be something I can do to cheer her up…I just don't know what.' Moments later, the sound of a body hitting the mats stirred her from her thoughts, as Chris was knocked to the floor by Genjurou's throw. The sparring had begun.

-SotHR-

It had been a couple hours of sparring, and between Genjurou's instructions and Hibiki's assistance, Chris had finally seemed to start making progress. However, now they were moving into more complicated territory, as she stood facing Hibiki once more, as both awaited Genjurou's instruction. After a moment, he spoke up, providing the instructions for the girls.

"One more throw here, then we'll take a break. When you two are ready, we can begin."

Looking over at her girlfriend, Chris saw her nod briefly, before moving closer in preparation for the throw. Getting into the stance they had been instructed to by Genjurou, Chris felt the hand that was gripping Hibiki's training gear drift a feathery touch across her partner's breasts, the slight humming that she knew had to be a suppressed moan catching her off guard and causing her to blush slightly. In her surprise she let her grip loosen, a mistake that Hibiki immediately took advantage of as she struck, kicking one of her legs out from under her and dragging her arm over her back. The resulting sound that her impact made as Hibiki threw her over her back was accompanied by all of the air in her lungs suddenly vacating, along with suddenly being unable to move as the shock of the impact immobilized her long enough for Hibiki to slide to the ground and pin her arms to her sides, immobilizing her completely.

Noticing the somewhat worried look on her girlfriend's face, Chris smiled slightly as if to say "I'm okay", before noticing the proximity they were in. Noticing the way that her girlfriend's hair clung to her face, and feeling the perspiration from their workout causing her top to cling to her, accentuating her curves, Chris couldn't help but blush, even as her girlfriend's breasts mashed up against her own, causing her to feel a shiver down her spine at the sensation. Noticing the blazing heat of Hibiki's body, she tried to crane her neck up towards her girlfriend's face, moving closer and closer. Before she could do anything further however, Genjurou's voice broke in, causing Hibiki to visibly jump.

"Okay you two, that's enough. I swear, kids and their hormones," Genjurou spoke, his voice making the duo realize that everyone else's eyes were on them, causing them to blush. "Let's take a break here. Let the lovebirds over here get themselves cooled down so to speak." Walking off to get a drink from the water bottles that had been brought in previously, he left the duo to untangle themselves from each other, something that they reluctantly did after a moment.

Smiling gently at Chris, Hibiki nodded before moving over to get a water bottle of her own from by the mat they were on. Taking a moment to take a drink from the bottle, she let out an audible moan at the feeling of the cool water entering her mouth. Returning to where Chris sat, she offered her the water bottle before sitting next to her as the Ichaival wielder took a drink from the bottle. Feeling the weight of her girlfriend's head resting on her shoulder afterwards, Hibiki closed her eyes in contentment, before a familiar voice stirred her out of her contentment.

"Hibiki, can I ask for a favor?" the voice of Tsubasa said, as Hibiki opened her eyes to see the older girl in front of her. "Would it be okay if I stayed with you for a little while?"

At this, Hibiki paused for a moment. 'Something happened earlier, now I'm sure of it,' she thought, mind racing through the possibilities. 'It's not my place to pry about it, but whatever it was, for it to lead to Tsubasa asking if she could stay with me for a while...it had to be pretty major…' Looking over at her girlfriend, she began to speak.

"Chris, would you be okay with it? I know that you weren't particularly happy about Maria staying over." she asked, causing Chris to look up from the water bottle she was drinking. After a moment, she began her reply.

"I'm okay with it, but wouldn't you need to get more to support another person staying over?" she asked, an inquisitive look on her face. At this, Hibiki nodded, before turning to the older girl and speaking once more.

"Since Chris is okay with it, I'm more than okay with it," Hibiki said, a small smile coming onto her face as she spoke. "Tsubasa-san, you can stay as long as you need to." Suddenly, Hibiki could feel the weight of another person landing on her, before she realized that the weight was Tsubasa as her arms wrapped around the Gungnir wielder's back. Looking over to the side at where Chris sat, she noticed a small smile on her girlfriend's face, before slowly returning the hug. Quietly, she could feel the older girl shaking slightly, as if trying to not let her emotions consume her, before she rubbed her back gently. Moments later, Tsubasa spoke up once more, her voice quiet, yet clearly grateful.

"Arigatou, Hibiki-san," she whispered, her emotions threatening to spill over. After a moment, Hibiki replied, one arm reaching over and squeezing her girlfriend's hand reassuringly.

"Okaeri, Tsubasa-san."

As Hibiki proceeded to try to soothe the older girl, none of the four girls in the room noticed Genjurou standing at the side of the room. Taking a quiet drink from his water bottle, Genjurou couldn't help but have a smile on his face at the closeness of Tsubasa to her friends, before thinking about what led to this. 'They have no idea just what they have done…You're free now, Tsubasa: free to be who you want to be, with those who treat you like a family should treat you.'

Tachibana Hibiki's Apartment, Shinjuku, Tokyo

"Are you sure you don't want me to help you with that, Chris?" Hibiki asked, a concerned look on her face as she carried their shared dinner to the door of her apartment. After another three hours of hard training, Genjurou had finally let them out for the day, albeit with the caveat that they be ready for another day tomorrow. As such, the four Symphogear wielders went their separate ways, with Tsubasa asking for Maria to help with getting some things to stay for a few days. That left Hibiki and Chris to themselves, something which the Ichaival wielder was looking forwards to.

"I'll be fine, Hibiki-baka. This isn't that heavy," Chris said, her voice somewhat tired from the day's events. After their break, it had been incredibly awkward when the commander had asked them to try throws once more, with another pair of incidents occurring and leaving both girls flustered. 'It still felt good though…different from Finé…' she thought, her mind flashing back to a particular throw where she had been the one performing the initial throw. As she did however, the dull ache that had been slowly worsening as time passed suddenly robbed her limbs of their strength, stumbling on legs that felt like they were made of lead the futon she had been carrying slipped from her weakened grasp. "Oh shit!" she managed to get out, before dropping the futon onto the ground, her tired arms shaking with exertion from the unexpected workout.

"You okay? I can carry it the rest of the way," Hibiki said, walking over as Chris shook her arms to try to relieve the burning feeling within them. Reaching down and picking up the futon in one arm while carrying the bag with their dinner within it with the other, Hibiki smiled briefly, before continuing to speak. "We're almost there. You're really not used to that level of workout, are you?"

"No, and I'm kinda dreading what taichou is going to have us do tomorrow morning," Chris said, the ache in her arms slowly starting to fade away as they arrived at the doorway to Hibiki's apartment. Setting the bag with their dinner on the ground while being careful not to knock it over, Hibiki pulled her keys out of her jacket's inner pocket, before sliding the keys into the lock. Waiting until she heard the lock click into place, she pushed the door open before stepping inside and flipping the light switch out of an ingrained habit formed after multiple long nights in the studio. "Where are Tsubasa and Maria? I thought they'd be back by now."

"Tsubasa-san did say that she'd be getting some things for a couple of days, so I think we'll have the place to ourselves for a little while at least," Hibiki said, as she placed the bag with their dinner on the table. Opening it and removing the ramen bowls within, Hibiki proceeded to move to the cupboard before removing a pair of bowls from within. Setting the bowls on the table, she then proceeded to get a pair of glasses down from the next cabinet over, before placing them one at each place. Moving over to the fridge, she then proceeded to turn around, a question on her face as she spoke. "What would you like to drink?"

"Water's fine for now, Hibiki-baka," Chris replied, a slightly amused smile on her face. 'Finally I can get a decent amount of time where it's just Hibiki and I…almost seems like every single time we've tried to go on a date before, it's gotten interrupted by someone or something happening…' she thought, the smile on her face growing slightly wider at the thought. 'It'll be nice to have some time just the two of us…' she thought, not noticing as her girlfriend joined her at the table, placing Chris' glass of water in front of her along with a pair of chopsticks before sitting down, a freshly poured glass of water sitting in front of her as well.

"I'm sorry that we couldn't do anything more than this," Hibiki said, a small smile on her face. "I didn't have any chance to make any reservations or anything. I know it's not like going out to dinner at a restaurant, but at least it's time that we can spend together, you know?" At this, Chris smiled, nodding briefly before taking a sip from her water glass. 'Looks like she's also been a bit stressed out over how we haven't been able to go out…' she thought, before placing the glass back on the table and speaking once more.

"I don't mind it. I don't care where we are, or what it is that we're doing, Hibiki. What really matters is that it's time that we spend together, just the two of us." Smiling with a mischievous look in her eye, Chris prepared her chopsticks, before the couple began their meal, hopeful that this type of moment would be able to happen more often in the future.

Kazanari Residence, Tokyo, Japan

"Are you sure that this is enough to take with you, Tsubasa-san?" Maria asked, her arms crossed as she stood by the door leading to the hallway. By the sliding closet, Tsubasa kneeled, closing her blue suitcase. Quickly looking over in reply, the Ame no Habakiri wielder replied, her voice cutting through the air.

"It'll be plenty. I just need enough for a couple days while I figure some things out," Tsubasa said, her voice filled with frustration over the situation. Standing up and propping the suitcase onto its rollers, the former idol pulled the suitcase to where Maria stood, the taller girl's face showing concern. 'I've only seen her act this tense once, and that was back at the Queens of Music concert…the difference between then and now though is that it's not aimed at me…' she thought, reaching up to grab the relic pendant hanging from her neck. 'Serena…Tsubasa-san is so similar to myself, and I want to help her. But how can I help her with whatever's bothering her if she won't tell me or anyone else what it is?'

"Can we please get going already? I'd like to get back to Hibiki's as quickly as possible," Tsubasa said, her voice shaking Maria out of her thoughts. Nodding briefly before kicking off the wall quietly, Maria couldn't help but note the brisk pace that the former idol was using. It reminded her of herself, back immediately after her sister's death; driven by frustration and anger at feeling powerless. 'Tsubasa…I don't know what happened. I don't know who did this…but you deserve so much better than this…' she thought as the duo arrived at the borrowed car, before placing Tsubasa's suitcase in the trunk. Taking a seat in the back seat, Maria sighed as Tsubasa sat in the passenger seat in front of her, blocking her face from view as the drive began.

"Ne, Maria-san," Tsubasa began, her voice quiet as she stared out the front windshield. "Why does it feel like I'm losing a part of who I was, but gaining something far more important?" At this, Maria smiled sadly, even as her mind tried to formulate a reply. 'The situation feels so similar to my own experience leaving mom behind, along with Shirabe and Kirika…' she thought, her mind trying to formulate a reply. Taking a moment to gather her thoughts, she began to speak, voice quiet in her reply.

"I think that it's because you're moving forwards in a way that you yourself have chosen, free from the restraints of the past and from others trying to force their ideals onto you. While that may be a part of who you are, it doesn't define you, or who you are," Maria said, a small smile on her face as she spoke. At this reply, Tsubasa's eyes widened, before a small smile came onto her face at the reply. As she returned her eyes to the city lights flashing by the car, Tsubasa couldn't help but smile, even as she turned her focus to the new chapter in her life.

-SotHR-

Waiting for the lock to click as she turned her spare key, Maria turned to Tsubasa, a small smile emerging onto her face as the former idol stood, a nervous anxiety on her face with her suitcase waiting next to her. Thinking quickly as the small click of the lock was heard, Maria began to speak.

"I know I'm not Hibi-san, Tsubasa-san. However, I still want to say welcome," she said, before turning the door handle and opening the way into the room, to find the lights mainly turned off. "Huh…I would have thought that Hibiki would at least be awake still. Did they go out or something? I know that Hibiki had said that she and Chris were going to be doing something tonight."

Walking in behind her, Tsubasa quietly placed her suitcase by the side of the hall, before taking her blue and white tennis shoes off in the entryway. Walking into the dimly-lit common area, she took note of the full-sized futon waiting in the middle of the area, before her eyes looked over to the table near the kitchen, where a small note waited. Walking over to pick it up, her black leather jacket hugging her form as she moved, Tsubasa picked up the note, a small smile coming onto her face at the contents.

"Okaeri, Tsubasa-san. Sorry for not welcoming you in person. Still, welcome to my home, and I hope that you enjoy your time here. Sincerely, Hibiki," Tsubasa read aloud, voice quiet as she shook with gratitude. "Tadaima…" she trailed off, the smile she wore widening at the word. A small laugh shook her from her nostalgia, coming from Maria, who stood by the small hallway leading to the main bedroom, an amused look on her face. "Maria-san? What's going on?"

"Nothing too major, just come take a look at this," Maria said, amusement evident in her voice. Walking over, to see what her new roommate was looking at, Tsubasa saw the door to the master bedroom shut, a blue light peering out from underneath it. Taking a moment to look at her new roommate, Tsubasa moved forwards, before moving a hand shakily to the door handle. Pausing for a moment before grabbing the handle and turning it slowly so as to avoid making too much noise, the door opened before her, revealing a sight that brought a smile to her face.

"Well, don't they look cute together…" Maria trailed off, her voice quiet as she looked into the room. Nodding silently, Tsubasa smiled as she took in the image of Chris and Hibiki asleep in the bed, Chris' head resting gently on her girlfriend's shoulder as they slept, with Hibiki's right arm wrapped around her loosely. Looking over to where the flat screen television mounted on the wall was displaying the end credits of an anime with a small smile on her face, Tsubasa crept quietly over to the screen and shut it off, before moving quickly back to the doorway and exiting. "It's almost like a weight is off of their shoulders when they're like that. It kinda makes me wish I had someone like that…"

"They should enjoy this time while they have it," Tsubasa whispered, as Maria closed the door behind them. "After all, they work so hard to earn the chance to be like that. It wouldn't be right for anyone to take it away from them…" she trailed off, as she moved to where the futon waited on the floor, Maria moving to the couch and covering herself with the blanket. Sliding underneath its covers, Tsubasa closed her eyes, her tired eyes sliding shut quickly as she rapidly fell into a dreamless sleep.

Meeting Room, 2nd Division Headquarters, Tokyo, Japan

'It's almost time,' Genjurou thought as he oversaw the ending of the last training session for the four girls in front of him with his arms crossed over the red dress shirt he wore. Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, he began to speak, knowing that his words here would set the tempo for their mission the next day.

"It's been a productive week. However, there's no more time to prepare. Tomorrow, we head out to stop FIS from reviving the Frontier. Get your rest tonight, because tomorrow there won't be any turning back for any of us. We either succeed, or we fail and the whole world is at the whim of Doctor Ver and his schemes," Genjurou said, drawing the attention of his charges. "With that said, Tsubasa, Chis, Maria, the three of you are dismissed for the night. Get your rest, because we head out early tomorrow morning. Hibiki, can you stay behind for a moment?" At his words the three aforementioned girls stood up and left the room, although Chris was slow in doing so, a reassuring nod from her girlfriend convincing her to leave the room, almost closing the door completely behind her as she left.

"Sensei, is there any reason that you're holding me behind? I promised Chris that we'd go out to dinner after we finished here," Hibiki said, as Genjurou turned on the wall-mounted screen before he plugged in the USB drive obtained from Maria. Pulling up a particular folder but not opening it in full, he sighed and looked at the Gungnir wielder before speaking, his voice completely serious.

"Hibiki, this won't take too long. However, it's important that we have this discussion." Opening the file folder and pulling up the images contained within, he continued, a grave seriousness to his words. "I'm sure that you recognize some of these images. After all, they're your medical records. However, something in particular bothers me about what's in these, specifically this particular scan." Pulling up the scan in question, it showed a foreign shape in the middle of the Gungnir wielder's body, with various dark-colored tendrils sprouting from it.

"That's from that time, isn't it…" Hibiki muttered, her voice dropping to a low whisper as she looked over the image on screen. "And that thing in the middle of me…"

"Yes. The records state that that was an added organ created by the Gungnir fragments within your body at the time. This particular scan was from just after your little incident during your spar with Shirabe and Kirika, right?" At this, Hibiki nodded, a downcast look coming onto her face. Walking over to where the girl sat in her chair, the commander of the 2nd division patted her on the shoulder before speaking up once more. "You're not in trouble here, Hibiki. However, I wanted to remind you one last time before the mission to not do anything too reckless. Because you pushed yourself as hard as you did, you were likely one transformation away from being killed. I know that the fragments were destroyed in another incident later and you're fully healthy now. However, at the same time, you know just how lucky you are to be alive. Don't do anything stupid to put your life at risk, okay?" At this, Hibiki nodded, before the sound of the door to the meeting room opening drew the attention of Genjurou and Hibiki away from the screen, as a clearly upset Chris stood in the door, eyes locked onto the image pulled up on the monitor.

"Idiot…you're such an idiot, you know that?" Chris spoke, voice shaking before she proceeded over to where Hibiki sat, shoulders shaking as she looked at the image on screen once more. "You were one time away from dying, Hibiki! One transformation! And if you would have used your Symphogear one more time…if you would have…" she trailed off, the walls she had constructed finally collapsing as the tears streamed down her face. "Damnit Hibiki, I almost never got to see you again…almost never got to…" Trying to wipe the tears from her eyes with the sleeve of her red winter jacket, Chris stopped, as a pair of arms wrapped around her, pulling her in closely.

"Chris, I'm sorry," Hibiki whispered, the white and orange hoodie she wore starting to become damp with her girlfriend's tears. "I didn't mean to upset you. I'm fine now; the fragments inside of me were destroyed months ago. I'm not going anywhere, you know that…" Trailing off as she tried to rub the back of her girlfriend, she turned her head to look at where Genjurou stood, a resolute smile on her face. "I'll be careful, taichou. I can't afford to be reckless, not when I have someone as important to me as Chris is."

Nodding in response, Genjurou couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of him, before turning off the monitor and moving to leave. 'Hibiki…you have people who view you as the most important part of their life. Don't let your drive to protect them lead you to getting yourself killed out there tomorrow…'

FIS Stealth Airplane, Near Frontier, Shirabe's Room, That Night

"Shirabe, that was really good," Kirika said, as they entered the shorter girl's room. The duo had just finished up cleaning after a delicious dinner Shirabe had made. "Where did you get the idea for the chicken from anyways?" Smiling at the compliment from her friend, Shirabe turned, before beginning to speak as she hung up her apron onto its hangar.

"I read it in a magazine, but I figured that with tomorrow being the big day, we should do something special," she said, her voice quieting immediately at the reminder of what awaited them the next day. It had been a long week for the duo, as Nastassja and Ver had drilled into them their roles for the upcoming operation. But even with her role memorized by heart, Shirabe still couldn't help but feel anxious about things. And as she looked out the window at the sunset, Shirabe couldn't help but wonder about the path she was on, something that Kirika caught onto fairly easily.

"Shirabe, are you okay with all of this? What we're doing, I mean," Igalima's wielder spoke, her voice quiet as she looked out the window at the setting sun. Turning around to look at her friend, Shirabe's eyes reflected the doubt that she was feeling. 'I don't know…Ever since Maria left, I can't help but think about what she said earlier the night she left, about how we can't trust Ver. Was she right? It's like he's hiding something big, spending more and more time working on some sort of project. I just don't know anymore…' she thought, as she looked away from her friend while biting her lip out of nerves. After a moment, she began to speak, her eyes locked onto the sunset outside as it set closer to the ocean waters.

"I don't know anymore, Kiri-chan," Shirabe whispered, her voice unsure. "Nothing makes any sense, not since Maria left almost a week ago. I can't help but feel as though she's right, about Ver, about this plan and what it's leading to…and it's really making me wonder if we're doing the right thing."

"Shirabe-chan…" Kirika whispered, her mind reeling at what her best friend had said. Pausing to consider her words, Kirika slowly began to speak once more. "I think that no matter the result here, we have to believe in what we decide. And if we follow our hearts, then we'll find a way. I won't let the memory of what we've done fade. More importantly, I won't let you fade away." With that, she moved closer to her friend, her shoulder brushing the Shul Shagana wielder's own, before looking out of the window of the plane alongside her, the sun going down as they looked over the ocean. As she felt her friend lean into her, resting her head on her shoulder, Kirika could feel anxiety swell. The time for preparation was finally coming to an end.

Tachibana Hibiki's Apartment, Shinjuku, Tokyo, Late Night

'Tomorrow's the day…' Hibiki thought, staring at the ceiling above her as she laid in bed, her arm wrapped around her girlfriend's red pajama-clad body and holding her closely to her own. 'But while it's possibly the best chance we have left at putting an end to whatever FIS and Ver are planning, I can't help but think about how far I've come since that day over two years ago.' Smiling gently as she leaned over and kissed her girlfriend's forehead, Hibiki allowed herself to relax, her thoughts flashing back to the events that had occurred even since she had returned.

"It seems like so long ago, and yet it's only been such a short time," Hibiki whispered, her mind drifting to when she had reunited with her (now) girlfriend on the train. "Doesn't even feel like it's been that long since you found out I was alive, Chris." Smiling as she felt the Ichaival wielder snuggle in closer to her, she continued to talk, voice quiet and soothing to her ears. "Protecting you that night changed so much for me, you know that?"

"Mmm…."Chris hummed, cracking her tired eyes open slightly as she peered up to Hibiki's own eyes. "You're not the only one whose life changed that night. Everyone's life has changed since you returned, Hibiki-baka. Tsubasa retiring, you becoming an idol, you and I going out…so much has happened, but I don't think I'd want it any other way..." she trailed off, closing her eyes once more as she returned her head to her comfortable position on her girlfriend's shoulder.

"You're not the only one, Chris," Hibiki whispered, a peaceful and content feeling swelling up within her. "Things may have looked bleak at times since the Queens of Music concert, but I can't help but feel more relaxed around you than anywhere else. Even tonight, knowing the battles that are waiting ahead, I can't help but feel like I'd be happy to just lay here with you."

As Hibiki spoke, Chris felt a strange feeling of contentment well up within her, its presence brief before fading away once more. 'What was that? Where'd that come from? It felt so warm…was that what it feels like to be happy?' she thought, a small smile on her face. 'If that's what that was, I could get used to that feeling…' Burying her head into the crook of Hibiki's neck, Chris cuddled up even closer to the Gungnir wielder's body, her body pressing up against Hibiki's side. Smiling softly, Hibiki sat up slightly, before leaning down and kissing Chris lightly on her forehead, before returning to the position she had been in and saying one simple phrase as she closed her eyes.

"I love you, Chris," Hibiki whispered, before shifting to a slightly more comfortable position, arms wrapped around her girlfriend holding her close as the warmth of the woman she held closely lulled her to sleep, Chris' head resting just under her chin as they fell together into the land of their dreams.

FIS Stealth Airplane, Cockpit, Unknown Location over Frontier

"Mom, are you sure that you're okay?" Shirabe asked, her voice concerned for the older woman at the controls of the plane in front of her. Nodding quietly, Nastassja began speaking, turning her chair to look at the younger girl and Kirika, a small smile on her face as she spoke.

"Shirabe, I'm fine," Nastassja said, looking at the Shul Shagana wielder directly. "While the symptoms may be progressing, they aren't bad enough for me to not fly us to Frontier. This is too important a day for me to be resting."

Nodding briefly, her scarf rustling as she did so, Shirabe couldn't help but recognize the weakness in the older woman's voice. 'We're running out of time…' she thought, eyes looking downwards as she awaited their arrival at the location of Frontier. Besides her, Kirika noticed the look on her friend's face, before reaching over and taking her hand gently, a concerned frown on her face before beginning to speak.

"Shirabe, if Mom says she's fine, then trust what she's saying," Kirika said, a reassuring smile on her face despite the anxiety she felt internally. 'Could today be the day that I…? No, I don't have time to think about that now. I have to focus on the mission, no matter how afraid I am of the idea of losing myself…' she thought as her friend looked at her with a small smile on her face as well. Before she could speak any further however, a familiar tone cut in, shaking the blonde out of her thoughts.

"While that may be the case, we still have no time to waste," Doctor Ver spoke up as he leaned against the entrance to the cockpit. "The moon's fall is getting closer and closer with each passing second. If we really want humanity to survive, we have to gather humanity together in a new land before that occurs. That is our task, and Frontier will become that new land!" he finished, his arm gesturing towards himself directly.

At this, both of the younger girls looked at the Doctor directly, Shirabe's gaze narrowed at the doctor's words. 'I don't know why, but something about what you just said feels off…it's like you're hiding something…' she thought, her mind running through ideas of what could be the problem. Before she could say anything more, the alarm went off, shaking her from her thoughts and drawing her attention to the screen in the front of the cabin, where a video played.

"U.S. patrol ships?" Kirika said, her voice filled with surprise at their presence. "What are they doing out here? I thought they didn't know of our location!" As Nastassja remained silent, Ver stepped forward, his eyes glinting with a strange intent that Shirabe hadn't seen from him before.

"It's not like this wasn't expected, after what happened at the Sky Tower," Ver said, his voice almost eerily calm. "Why not make a demonstration to the world of our power? Perhaps destroying the ships with some big, flashy explosions will cause the world to realize that our power isn't something that they should be taking so lightly?" At this, Shirabe's eyes narrowed, rage beginning to bubble up within her at the doctor's words. 'Maybe Maria was right about you…maybe she was right to say that you can't be trusted…this isn't what we should be doing…' Taking a moment to calm herself, she spoke up once more, her hands balling into closed fists at the implication the doctor's words held.

"That's how the strong do things, but all it does is create the weak that we're supposed to be trying to protect," Shirabe growled out, her words surprising the others in the cabin. "Is that really what it means to be strong? To cause terror so that people fear you? That can't be what true strength is, can it?"

At the younger girl's words, Nastassja nodded slightly, a neutral look on her face. 'Shirabe…it seems that Maria's letter and words have had a bigger effect on you than even you realize,' she thought, her eyes turning to the screen once more. 'However, at the same time, it could be troublesome if they were to catch us. We're at the point of no return…Can I really ask these two girls to do something that they are not prepared to do?'

2nd Division Temporary HQ, Bridge, Location Unknown

"Taichou, we've got trouble," the voice of one of the younger bridge crew spoke as the alarms on the submarine started to go off. "We've got a noise pattern detected nearby, and a small group of U.S. patrol ships are sending out an SOS!" Quickly taking note of the situation as video appeared on screen in front of him, Genjurou stood up, before issuing the command.

"Get us to that location now. If there are noise attacking those ships, then you can just about bet that FIS and Ver are there, too. This is it. Looks like they've started to move," Genjurou said, as Maria, Hibiki, Chris, and Tsubasa ran onto the bridge, having been alerted by the alarms throughout the ship. Taking a moment to notice the video on screen, Maria's eyes narrowed as she began to speak.

"So it looks as though it's time," she said, arms crossed over her blue jean jacket with her eyes focused entirely on the monitor as it showed the overhead view of the main carrier of the patrol group. "They're making their move now."

"Looks like you were right with how long you thought it would take for them to prepare to revive Frontier," Genjurou said, his arms crossed together as he turned to look at his charges. "This is it. Things begin from here. Get ready-you all know the plan from here. There's no going back now. We must succeed here." At this, his four charges nodded, before Tsubasa spoke up, her black leather jacket contrasting with her dark blue blouse underneath it as she looked at Maria directly.

"Are you sure that you're willing to fight your old comrades? Can you even do so? I know you don't have Black Gungnir anymore; if you did, you would have used it in training the one day. Are you sure that you are willing to do so?" At this, Maria paused, the Ame no Habakiri wielder's words causing her to think briefly before responding, a determined look on her face.

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't, would I? I made my own decision that what FIS is doing is wrong, that their plan is the wrong way to stop the moon from falling. I knew that my path would put me against them once I made my choice. And even if I can't fight them directly, I'm going to do everything I can to help in any way that I can," Maria said, her hand unconsciously grasping at the relic pendant for Airgetlam hanging around her neck. Nodding silently, Tsubasa turned, before speaking once more.

"I'll get ready to launch then," she said, rushing off the bridge with Maria following her closely. Behind the two of them Hibiki and Chris remained, Hibiki's hands clenched tightly at the images on screen, her black and orange hoodie-clad shoulders shaking. Squeezing her girlfriend's hand gently, Chris began to speak, her voice drawing the taller girl out of her thoughts.

"Hibiki, we should get going as well. We have to be ready too." At this, Hibiki snapped out of her thoughts, a slightly worried look appearing on her face before she hugged Chris closely, the shorter girl's sweater-clad body pressing against her own. After a moment, she began to speak, her voice slightly haunted.

"Chris, do me a favor, okay? When you're out there, just be careful, okay? Come back safely, alright?" At this, Chris blushed, before a reaffirming smile emerged onto her face. Nodding in agreement, she then leaned in and kissed Hibiki on the lips, sending pleasant shockwaves throughout both girls' bodies, before pulling away and responding, thoughts racing at the sudden burst of emotions she had felt for a moment before fading. 'That warmth again…'

"I'll do that, but you'd better do the same, Hibiki-baka," Chris said, her face matching the color of her sweater as she spoke, her eyes darting around the room and noticing that the bridge crew had been deliberately looking elsewhere, Genjurou included. "You be careful as well. I can't lose you…no, not just me, none of us can afford to lose you. So you come back safely too, will you? Don't do anything too reckless." At those words, Hibiki nodded, as the couple proceeded to leave the bridge, hands intertwined as they left to prepare for the most important battle they'd fought yet.

FIS Stealth Airplane, Cockpit, Unknown Location over Frontier

Shirabe could hear the screams of the soldiers as they dissolved to ash, their bodies dissolving as the noise reached them despite the hail of gunfire. 'This isn't what either of them wanted…this isn't what Serena wanted, and this is what Maria left to try to prevent…Is this really what the decisions that I've made have led to?' she thought as she watched the footage, soldier after soldier crumbling into ash. Taking a moment to gather herself, she turned and started to leave the bridge, her actions drawing the attention of her friend watching next to her.

"Shirabe? What's wrong?" Kirika asked, breaking her eyes away from the video feed as her friend moved towards the exit of the room. Stopping for a moment, Shirabe turned and smiled softly before replying, her voice shaking slightly as she spoke.

"I can't stand this. This isn't right," she spoke, before leaving the bridge. At this, Kirika's mind raced, her thoughts leading to one possible solution. 'No…not Shirabe too…I won't lose you too…' she thought, before leaving the bridge as well, moving briskly to try to catch her friend. It didn't take long to find her, the sound of the plane's side doorway opening alerting her to her friend's location.

"Shirabe! What are you doing? This isn't part of the plan!" Kirika called, approaching where her friend stood from behind her as her friend stood at the edge of the floor, head peering out into the clear early winter sky and looking down at the battle occurring below them. "Shirabe, don't! We have a job to do!"

"Even if it means leaving the weak to die?" Shirabe asked, causing her friend to gasp in shock. There was no doubt or fear in her eyes as she continued, her voice resolute. "Kiri-chan, this isn't right. The more I think about what Maria said before she left, the more I'm convinced that she was and is right about how things have gone. I'm sorry, Kiri-chan. I won't just sit here and do nothing. I'm going to do what my heart's telling me is right…even if it makes you my enemy." With those words said, the Shul Shagana wielder leapt off, the wind whipping her scarf around her as she dived towards the action below, ignoring the distressed cry of her best friend behind her as she began to sing while descending to the waiting battle below, a pink sphere of light surrounding her.

-Fallian Shul Shagana tron-

"Wait, Shirabe!" Kirika cried out, looking downwards at the descending sphere of light. Steeling herself to go after her friend, Kirika prepared to leap, only to be stopped by a hand resting on her shoulder. Turning to look at the person the offending hand belonged to, she found herself looking at the face of Doctor Ver, a sinister smile on his face. "What the hell do you want? I'm going after her!"

"I'm very well aware of that," Ver said, eyes not leaving Kirika's own. "However, if you're that desperate to bring her back, I have what might be the perfect way for you to do so." Taking a moment to think about it despite her distrust of the doctor in front of her, she nodded before replying, desperation in her voice.

"What do I have to do?"

-SotHR-

The sphere of light surrounding Shirabe vanished, revealing her in her full Symphogear armor as she dived towards the waiting carrier. Spinning around in free fall, she took a moment to gather her thoughts. 'This is it…no turning back now. I hope that Maria will be proud of my decision…and I hope that Kiri-chan will understand it…' Eyes locking in on a group of enemies closing in on a group of soldiers, Shirabe's eyes narrowed before the armor around her ponytails opened up, revealing a number of magenta disks to the morning sky as she levelled out, slowing her descent as she took aim.

"You're mine! Type Alpha 100 Samsara!" she cried out, as the storm of disks fired out, lancing downwards at the enemies below her with lethal precision as each individual disk pierced through a Noise from above, destroying them instantly and clearing a spot for the girl to land in. Flipping gracefully, she landed on her feet causing a brief burst of air to fly out, eyes scanning the area for another group of enemies to target. 'They can be next…they're getting too close for comfort…' she thought, willing the wheels in her heels to reveal themselves. Moving quickly and skating her way into another group of Noise, she flipped over a larger enemy, twirling in the air before landing, her ponytail armor unfolding yet again to reveal a pair of larger buzz saws.

"None of you are anything more than a pest, so back off!" Shirabe cried out, her saws coming to life. Quickly she began spinning, her saw blades cutting through the closest pair of Noise and bisecting them at the waist. Continuing to rotate, the blades slowly rotated out wider, slicing another number of noise into pieces as arms, heads, and torsos separated from the creatures. 'Almost too easy…' Shirabe thought, before a quartet of blurs seemed to fly in out of the corner of her eye. Drawing in one of her saws to act as a shield, she deflected the attack as a smaller group of Noise began closing in on her.

"Heh. Nothing more than lambs to the slaughter," she whispered, before darting forward at the lead Noise of the group, who had been the one to cause her to shield herself. Drawing her saws forwards once more, she began her attack, the blade to her right slicing the creature at the top of its head, while the left blade span through its waist, causing it to collapse into ash immediately. Noticing a pair of the remaining noise starting to leap forwards at her, Shirabe quickly turned her body sideways, allowing the Noise to fly by her before bringing her saws down and slicing them lengthwise when they went by her.

Before she could move any closer, a blur appeared in her left eye. Turning her head to look, Shirabe's eyes widened as she saw a noise rapidly approaching her. 'Crap…too fast; won't be able to get a saw in the way in time…' she thought, as she braced herself to take the impact from the Noise. Suddenly, a blade sliced the creature in half, Shirabe recognizing the shape of the blade burrowing itself into the ground, causing a smile to emerge on her face.

"Kiri-chan! What are you doing here?" Shirabe asked, her friend descending to the ground and reclaiming Igalima's scythe from the deck of the ship, before standing and looking at Shirabe directly, a small smile on her face. "We can't just let the noise keep attacking. I'm sure that if you take half and I take half, we can-" she spoke, only to be cut off by the feeling of a cold metal pressing against her neck. Blinking quietly, the feeling of warmth she felt from her relic was quickly replaced by searing pain emanating from where the metal was pressed against her neck, making her to gasp in agony before bringing a hand up to her neck, eyes darting to the now-empty syringe in her best friend's hand.

"Kiri-chan…why? What are you doing?" She muttered out, stumbling back as her Symphogear began to deactivate, returning to its inactive relic state in a dull flash of light. Dropping the syringe to the deck, Kirika turned to look at her friend, her eyes sharp as she began to speak.

"What were you doing? Don't you understand that all you're doing is putting the mission into jeopardy by doing that? Damnit Shirabe, you're the most important person I have left in my life! Do you really think that doing this is the best thing for both the mission and for us? For all I know, I could disappear soon. I want this mission to be something that I can leave behind, so that you can't forget me!"

Glaring up at her friend in surprise and pain, Shirabe prepared to reply. However, before she could do so, a pillar of water erupted from near the side of the carrier, stretching above the height of the ship and causing both girls to shift their attention away from one another. Not even a second later, the metallic gleam of a rocket emerged from the torrent, rising even higher into the air. 'What the…are they going after the chopper?' Kirika thought, as the rocket rose higher into the sky, before its engine suddenly cut off, the sides of the rocket falling away to reveal a pair of figures hidden by the glare of the morning sun. 'No way…of all the times for them to show up…'

Leaping away from the rocket platform, Tsubasa and Chris fell rapidly towards the carrier deck, the Ame no Habakiri wielder quickly transforming her sword into a bigger state and unleashing an azure wave of light towards where Kirika stood. 'Fast…' the Igalima wielder thought, leaping away from Shirabe as the wave impacted the deck and sliced through it, kicking up dust and shrapnel in a massive explosion while missing the Shul Shagana wielder by mere feet. Reacting quickly upon landing, Tsubasa chased after Kirika as the shrapnel fell from the sky, while Chris landed closer to where Shirabe sat, crossbow drawn in her right hand and aimed directly at the remaining Noise. Taking an aggressive stance behind Shirabe, she wrapped her left arm around the girl's wrist in a restraining lock before beginning to speak, voice tense as the debris from Tsubasa's attack fell around them.

"Where's Ver? If you're here, then he has to be nearby, so where is he?" Chris asked, voice tense as she took aim at the Noise approaching from nearby. Pulling the trigger on her crossbow, she unleashed a volley of arrows, the energy bolts crashing into Noise after noise and obliterating them as she simultaneously tightened her hold on Shirabe's arm. "Where is the bastard who wields the Staff of Solomon? ANSWER ME!"

At her words, Shirabe's eyes widened, even as she sat in silence, left arm restrained behind her back. 'I can't transform right now…and Kiri-chan's the reason…Is she really willing to work with him, the man who suggested murdering so many just to show off power?' she thought, a sadness entering her mindset as she looked towards where her best friend was engaged in a fast-flowing duel with the older, more experienced Symphogear wielder. 'What is happening to us…why is our situation going to hell at such a rapid rate?'

-SotHR-

"You're as good in close combat as Hibiki and Maria said you were," Tsubasa spoke, katana blade clashing against Kirika's scythe, neither weapon giving an inch. "We know what your goal is, but tell me. Why are you doing this? What makes you think that the path you're taking is the right one?"

Katana blade flashing out, Tsubasa slashed downwards, her blade forcing the shorter girl she faced to leap backwards. Before she could continue to press the advantage, her opponent leapt backwards, getting a greater distance before swinging her scythe diagonally downwards, making Tsubasa bring her katana up in a blocking motion, catching the scythe blade on her sword before continuing to move, her arms moving in a circle and using her katana to push the scythe blade to the side and towards the deck of the ship, before thrusting the edge of the katana forwards.

"It's none of your business. You won't be allowed to interfere any further, Kazanari-san," Kirika spoke as she sidestepped the attack, her voice of the utmost seriousness, even as Tsubasa froze slightly at the mention of her own name. Taking advantage of the hesitation, she swung her scythe once more, its blade flashing from left to right in the direction of the older girl's ankles. She wasn't fast enough however, as the older girl leapt over the onrushing blade before rotating in mid air, the momentum created by the spin enabling her katana's edge to crash into the shorter girl's scythe handle with a greater amount of force than before, knocking her off balance and sending her stumbling towards the wall of the carrier deck. Taking advantage of the opening she had created, Tsubasa quickly closed in, her blade pointing directly at the shorter girl's neck as Kirika's scythe came to rest, its blade aimed directly at the floor beside them.

"You're the one who won't be interfering as we put a stop to whatever it is your group is planning," Tsubasa growled out in anger, the edge of her blade against the shorter girl's throat. But even with her head nearly skewered by Tsubasa's blade, Kirika was silent, her eyes glaring at the older girl in defiance as a confident sneer came onto her face before she replied.

"Don't think that you know everything that we're up to, Kazanari-san. After all, the plan is just beginning."

-SotHR-

"Looks as though things have started to tilt away from our advantage. If that's the case, then it's time to tilt the scales back to our advantage, and I know just how we can do so," Doctor Ver spoke, his voice calm as he pulled out his tablet from his lab coat's pocket. Reaching to the machine and pressing a particular button on the screen, he began to speak once more. "Transform and head out there. Obliterate those who are trying to interfere with our plans; leave nothing to chance. I want no possible obstacles left, understood?"

"Ryoukai," the voice on the other end of the line spoke, voice lifeless and devoid of emotion before ending communication. As Nastassja looked over at Ver with a curious look on her face, the Doctor simply smirked, his thoughts running wild at the force about to be unleashed.

'Looks like the drug combination that I developed for the fragments is working…it could probably use a little bit of tweaking though before it's completely perfect…' he thought, his eyes glinting dangerously as he hit the button on his tablet to remote open the back entry hatch to the plane. 'I know you're nearby Tachibana, from how the lovey dovey girl with the anger issues who you call your girlfriend is here. I hope that you enjoy the show that is about to commence…because I know that I will…'

-SotHR-

Tension was palpable throughout the air on the carrier deck, as Tsubasa narrowed her eyes at Kirika. 'What does she mean, their plan is just beginning? Was everything up until now just nothing? Or is there something more going on here that we don't know about, even Maria?' she thought, her eyes glaring in frustration at the girl she was facing. Before she could begin to formulate a reply however, an unusual voice echoed throughout the area, causing all four wielders' eyes to widen.

-Rei Shenshoujin rei zizzl-

'Another wielder? That's impossible…' Tsubasa thought, before a giant blast of violet laser fire erupted from the back of the slowly appearing aircraft that Tsubasa knew belonged to FIS, streaking headlong to a nearby cruiser. Within a second the blast impacted the ship dead center, engulfing the bridge of the vessel and the tower it sat on in its destructive fury, causing the whole tower to explode and enshrouding the ship itself in smoke. Moments later the smoke cleared, revealing the gaping hole where the bridge and its tower had once been, stretching all the way through the ship and to the sea.

'What? What power…' Tsubasa thought, eyes widened in shock at the sight of the ship having been obliterated so easily, the vessel already taking on a heavy amount of water with the screams of the dead and dying crew of the doomed vessel promising to haunt her dreams. Suddenly her earpiece sparked to life, the voice of Genjurou coming into her ear as the ships around the carrier began to open fire into the sky, their target the now-revealed aircraft above them as a purple light began descending towards the carrier.

"Be alert you two. Whatever that thing that's descending from their plane is, it's got some power to it," Genjurou said, his voice shaken slightly at the show of power. He wasn't alone however, as another blast of power emerged from the descending light, this time slicing a nearby cruiser in half from stem to stern and consuming it in hellfire. Another blast was issued immediately afterwards, this time targeting the missiles rapidly approaching the airplane above and annihilating them with no effect on the plane itself. Mere moments later the descending light touched down on the deck of the carrier, the deck beneath it caving in and creating a crater around the light. Soon the light died down, revealing the Symphogear wielder within as a flash of green light appeared around them, a fresh wave of Noise joining them on the deck of the ship.

Clad mainly in a white and purple outfit similar to a one-piece swimsuit, she also wore a pair of black gloves that reached up to her upper arms. Bulky purple knee armor accompanied a pair of white boots as steam released from the armor, the jets held within releasing excess heat as a pair of what appeared to be black cables attached the knee armor to the back of her armor. Resting on her head was a purple helmet, its purple visor brimming with a magenta light. Seconds later, the visor separated into two pieces, revealing the face of Kohinata Miku, a lifeless look in her eyes as she stared directly into the Tsubasa's shocked blue orbs.

2nd Division Temporary Headquarters, Waters around Frontier, Bridge

"So they made her into a wielder…" Genjurou muttered, his arms crossed out of tension as he watched the video on the monitor, eyes taking in the entirety of the scene. "We're lucky that we're down this deep; one even glancing blow from that thing would do major damage. However, I get the feeling that this is only the beginning. Are all of the drones able to stay in the air for an extended period of time?" he asked, shaking the bridge crew back into working, his words emphasizing the tension of the occasion. Moments later the bridge sprang to life, a response coming quickly form Tomosato Aoi.

"Sir, all camera drones are in the air," she said, voice shaken by the image on screen. "Is that really Miku-san?"

"Unfortunately, it appears so," Genjurou said, his voice serious as he spoke. Before he could continue, a younger voice cut in as Maria returned to the bridge, fuming with frustration as she spoke.

"Shen Shou Jing. So Ver's using that thing as a Symphogear…Damnit, I should have done a better job of Keeping Miku-san away from him. If I'd have just been a little more careful…" she trailed off, eyes narrowed in anger at the development on screen. "That thing is the key to them breaking the seal to Frontier. Kazanari-taichou, if that thing is allowed to open fire on Frontier, then Ver's goals will be well within reach."

"Is there anything else that we should know about it?" Genjurou asked, voice demanding an answer from Maria as she stared openly at the screen. Shaking her head, Maria began to reply, voice quiet as if her mind was far away.

"The main Shen Shou Jing relic was destroyed over eighteen months ago, during the incident where Hibi-san was cured of her issue with the Gungnir fragments. In fact, the explosion of the original relic was the reason she was cured; that thing's energy neutralizes other relics' energy and dispels it, even having the power to destroy them entirely, as it did with her. But other than that, I don't really know much about it. Sorry for not knowing more."

"Don't be apologetic. Still…none of us expected this." Turning to look at where Maria stood, Genjurou noticed the troubled look on her face as she looked at the video feed where Shirabe sat, arm held back by Chris. Before he could say anything else though, Maria began to speak once more, her voice quiet yet determined.

"Taichou, there's something I need to ask…"

-SotHR-

In the waiting area just outside of the locker room Hibiki sat, eyes narrowed in anger at the situation. 'While I'm glad that Miku's alive, something doesn't seem right…' she thought, eyes narrowed at the image of the girl on screen, arm swinging to her right as she called forth a weapon from her Symphogear. 'Whatever Ver's done to her…is this the result of all the drugs that she's on? Miku…what happened to you? For you to ruthlessly kill off so many people isn't like you at all...'

Hands clenched in frustration as she sat and waited for her turn to join the battle, Hibiki couldn't help but feel worried. 'Chris…Tsubasa-san…both of you need to be careful. If that's the Shen Shou Jing, then things have just gotten a LOT more complicated…and a lot more dangerous too…' she thought, her eyes taking in the scene on the surface. 'Chris, please come back safely. Don't do anything hasty…'

Aircraft Carrier, Deck, Waters Around Frontier

Miku floated silently, her head leaning back as the fire from her landing smoldered behind her. Weapon in hand, she returned her gaze to the three wielders in front of her, her eyes cold and lifeless as she stared down the Symphogear wielders in front of her as if to judge them silently.

"Is that…really Miku-san?" Tsubasa gasped out, eyes wide at their new opponent as she held her katana at Kirika's neck. 'She just completely destroyed those two ships without any hesitation at all…and her eyes…something's so different about her…' she thought, trying to find some sign that the newly-found girl was going to attack.

"Miku? Why…why is she dressed like that?" Chris asked, shoulders shaking in a mix of sadness and anger at the sight of her roommate. "Why is she using a Symphogear? She hadn't shown any signs of being able to use one before, so why is she able to now?"

"That wielder…she's expendable, created using Linker, just like Kiri-chan and I were…" Shirabe trailed off, causing Chris' eyes to narrow in anger at the news. "Since Ver must have accelerated her creation, she'll break even more easily than Kiri-chan and I would…and that's not to mention whatever else he may have done…"

"Damn him," Chris growled out, anger rising within her as she responded. "When I get a hold of that bastard, I swear he's going to pay for doing this…" she trailed off, voice quivering in anger at the development. 'What am I going to tell Hibiki...don't tell me that I'm going to have to fight against Miku of all people…Can I really fight against my friend like this?' Before she could say anything more, Tsubasa's voice echoed through her headset, the taller girl's voice serious.

"We've been able to confirm that the missing Kohinata Miku is safe and alive, but…" she trailed off, as if she refused to speak the words that she had been saying.

"Safe? You call that safe? Tsubasa, what the hell am I supposed to tell Hibiki? How am I supposed to tell her that her friend is not only in front of us, but just slaughtered two whole military ships without a second thought? What the hell can I possibly tell her, Tsubasa? Answer me, damnit!" Chris cried out, her voice filled with agony over the situation. Before she could get another word out, the silent girl in front of them moved, her visor once more combining its two pieces together and causing the magenta glow to return to it immediately.

"Proceeding to eliminate targets…" Miku said, her voice devoid of any life whatsoever. Before anyone else could react or move, the armor on her legs flared up, the jets within raising her off the ground before she rushed forwards, fan-like weapon pointed directly at her first target.

"Damnit, I don't have any other choice, do I?" Chris managed to get out, releasing Shirabe from her grip and standing up, before summoning a second crossbow into her left hand. Darting forwards, she took aim with her crossbows before unleashing a volley, the small group of energy bolts aiming directly at the onrushing opponent. Before they could hit however, Miku swerved to the right, causing the bolts to crash into the deck of the carrier and dissipate before taking aim and firing back with the mirror-like object attached to the end of the weapon. Leaping up and above the beam to dodge the blast, Chris quickly shifted her Crossbows to a form that she hadn't used before.

"I don't want to do this, Miku. Stop this already!" she cried out, before unleashing a much larger volley of arrows, the raining energy leading the newly-christened Symphogear wielder to take further evasive action as she leapt from the deck of the ship to the edge of the wall and off of the ship before landing in the ocean, her armor's jets allowing her to float over the surface of the water and skim on top of it as the noise who had accompanied her appearance were obliterated by Chris' volley.

"Damnit, get back here!" Chris called out, her feet landing on the deck just behind Tsubasa before she leapt once more into the air in pursuit of her friend. At this, Kirika scowled, an angry snarl coming onto her face.

"I won't let you-" she spoke, only for her voice to die out as Tsubasa seemingly phased in front of her, the reverse edge of her katana held mere centimeters from Kirika's throat. Standing down once more and letting her scythe drop to the deck of the ship, she sighed, her voice resigned to her current position, even if only temporarily. "Damnit…"

'I'm sorry Chris…until taichou tells Hibiki to enter the combat area, it looks like you're on your own…' Tsubasa thought, eyes narrowed in anger at the younger girl in front of her. 'I only hope that he'll do so soon…'

-SotHR-

Landing once more on the rapidly sinking frame of one of the ships destroyed by her friend's blasts, Chris took to the air once more, her mind divided over what she was doing. 'Damnit…it's all falling apart…this peaceful life that I've lived…' she thought, taking aim once more at her friend and unleashing another volley of arrows, all of which splashed harmlessly into the ocean as Miku used her gets to weave through the rain of energy fire. 'And I can't help but feel as though I'm the one at fault. If only I wouldn't have activated that damn Staff of Solomon…'

Landing once more on the front deck of a ship and skidding to a stop, Chris shifted her crossbows into her double barreled Gatlings, before swinging around and taking aim at the rapidly moving Symphogear wielder skimming over the surface of the ocean. 'Hibiki, forgive me if I hurt Miku…I didn't want this…' she thought, before pulling the triggers on each weapon, pullets raining forth and towards the ocean.

"Target resisting destruction. Proceeding to tactic Delta," Miku droned out, her voice dull as she dodged to her right, the rain of bullets following her the whole way. Taking aim, the Shen Shou Jing wielder returned fire with her fan-like weapon, unleashing violet blasts of energy that shot out at the Ichaival wielder. Doing so had created an opening however, one that Chris took advantage of as she sidestepped the approaching blast of violet energy, Gatlings blazing the whole way and causing bullets to hit Miku's leg armor. Flipping backwards and continuing her movement, the unwilling gear wielder took multiple other shots to the leg armor before repeating the process, firing back at Chris when she was able to find a window to do so as their standoff continued.

-SotHR-

As this went on, Doctor Ver looked on, his view from the cockpit of the stealth airplane making him feel as though he was above it all. Pulling out his tablet and checking over the statistics of the subject below while she continued to evade most of Chris' fire, a demented grin emerged on his face as he began to speak.

"This Shen Shou Jing works by providing direct feedback to the brain and executing a battle program that fits the scenario best, regardless of the wielder's will. It's the ultimate relic killer! And with the LINKER and other drugs she's been injected with, there's no way that she can be set free!" Ver spoke, a psychotic gleam in his eyes. "You can try all you want you brats, but you'll never be able to succeed!"

"Even if that thing is providing the plan and executing it, a false will won't make her a match for those wielders," Nastassja spoke, having kept her quiet the entirety of the fight thus far. "They'll find a way to defeat her eventually."

"We'll just have to see about that, now won't we?" Ver responded, his face twisting into a vicious sneer. 'Soon, once our plans are complete, the fragments will rise to lead this world to a new age. You're too soft, Nastassja...there's no place for a weakling like you in my new world…'

-SotHR-

Gliding back towards the carrier, Miku continued to return fire at Chris, the withering barrage of fire from the Ichaival wielder occasionally knocking her backwards. That didn't stop her however, as she returned fire just as often, if not more than before, something which didn't go unnoticed by Chris as she ducked under another blast of energy. 'Her shots…they're getting more and more accurate…' she thought, attempting to focus entirely on the fight as she leapt back towards the carrier in pursuit of her friend. 'Miku…stop this already…I don't want to hurt you…I don't want this…not when you're probably the first real friend I made on campus back at school.' Leaping off the nearest ship to the carrier, Chris continued her chase of her friend, even as she landed back on the damaged carrier's deck.

"Damnit Miku, please stop this! We just want to help you!" Chris cried out as she landed on the tower of the carrier, before missile racks unfolded from her waist armor. Before she could launch the missiles however, Miku leapt up from the deck, her leap leading her directly at Chris' position on the tower. 'No time to dodge…Damnit, Miku, Hibiki, I'm sorry…' she thought, before opening fire, the missiles launching rapidly at their target. Chris then resumed firing her Gatlings, her shots knocking the new Symphogear wielder back out of the air and towards the deck just as the missiles arrived and impacted Miku directly as she hit the deck below, the force of the explosions on impact shaking the carrier deck and creating a new crater in it as Chris came to a landing in front of Tsubasa. Reverting her Gatlings to her crossbows before returning them to storage, Chris collapsed to her knees, the emotions finally catching up to her.

"Damnit, I didn't want this. What the hell am I supposed to tell Hibiki?" Chris whispered out, voice shaded in grief as she slowly clambered to her feet. Walking over to the crater that her missiles had formed, she bore witness to the seemingly unconscious form of her friend. Her armor dented from the multiple direct hits from Chris' Gatlings and burn marks all over her from the impact of the missiles, it didn't appear as though there had been too much damage to Miku directly. 'Thank god….I didn't hurt her too badly…' Chris thought as she reached out, hand trembling in concern towards her friend's unconscious body. Just as she was about to touch her had though, a familiar voice echoed into the sky out of nowhere as Miku's visor glowed once more.

"You really should be careful to treat girls more gently, brat," the voice of Doctor Ver echoed out. "After all, if you were to try to violently remove her gear, then who knows the type of brain damage she could receive from the connected terminal's removal." Before Chris could reply however, she was forced to leap back as her friend leapt to her feet, fan weapon swinging at her head. Having returned to her feet, Miku then unfolded her fan, spreading it into a circular form that began to crackle with an ominous purple energy.

"Chris, get away from her! She's going to fire!" Tsubasa shouted, hoping that her voice would reach her teammate in time as she figured out what was about to occur. Before Chris could seem to acknowledge her teammate's words, the now spread fan opened fire, a barrage of violet lasers spewing forth from each freshly revealed mirror. 'Shit!' Chris thought, twisting her body and spinning a full three hundred and sixty degrees as she leapt backwards and away from Miku, lasers missing her arms and chest by millimeters to leave scorch marks on her arms, the volley creating additional space between them.

'No…Miku, what happened to you?' Chris thought as she skidded back, her momentum carrying her backwards as she skidded to a stop by where Tsubasa stood. Looking over her shoulder at where Shirabe sat, Chris' eyes narrowed slightly, even as Miku began to float, her fan weapon being returned to its closed state as she dismissed it. 'What's going to happen now?' Chris thought, body tense as she looked on. 'Is she…really trying to kill me?' Seconds later, the armor on Miku's legs changed, a part of it unfolding from each knee and releasing a group of mirrors from each leg which proceeded to meet at a median point above her head before they began to charge, violet light beginning to gather towards the ring of mirrors.

"Is there no other way?" Chris asked, before turning to look over her shoulder once more. 'Damnit…she has me trapped…Miku, how did it come to this?' she thought, returning her vision to the girl in front of her, whose mirrors began to flash as the violet light grew to a blinding intensity. 'If this is going to be the attack, then…' she thought, before making the decision, her eyes narrowing in focus at what could be coming.

"Damnit! Miku, stop this now!" Chris cried out, the armor mounted on her lower back opening and releasing her reflector bits into the air. Willing them into position in front of her, she crossed her arms just as Miku opened fire, a gigantic blast of pinkish violet energy emanating forth from the ring of mirrors around her. Not even a second later the blast smashed into the first group of reflector bits, obliterating them but not before they served their purpose, the beam being forcibly split by the bits into several blasts that curved around the vulnerable wielders before impacting on the rear end of the carrier, engulfing it in a massive fireball as a fresh rain of shrapnel fell onto the ocean's surface, the beam continuing to fire at Chris regardless of the initial blast being dispersed.

"Shirabe, you have to run NOW!" Kirika cried out, her eyes looking at her friend in fear as she sat, seemingly mesmerized by the violet beam of energy being held up in front of her. "Before you get erased by that blast or by them!" Eyes widening at Kirika's words, Tsubasa turned her head, eyes widening as Chris began to be pushed back, reflectors slowly burning away in the face of the overwhelming firepower. 'Miku…why are you trying to kill your own friend? What did Ver DO to you?' She thought, fear entering her thoughts as she watched on.

'Ichaival's reflector bits deflected Kadingir's shot that almost blew up the moon,' Chris thought, her eyes clenching shut as she struggled to stand her ground in the face of the seemingly unstoppable power. 'But yet I'm still being pushed back? What the hell is that gear they've made you wear, Miku?' Feeling the raw force from the blast beginning to overwhelm her, Chris started to scream as the armor surrounding her arms began to bubble, the armor starting to give way from the blast she was trying to endure even as Shirabe began to whisper, her voice quiet behind Chris in the face of the blast.

"That thing was supposed to be innocent and fierce, it was supposed to be a flood of power that could ward off any evil," Shirabe whispered, her eyes staring unblinking at the oncoming blast. "That is what the Shen Shou Jing Symphogear was supposed to be. But for it to be used like this?" she spoke, even as Chris was pushed back further until she stood just in front of Shirabe, the beam starting to overwhelm the majority of her remaining reflectors and causing the armor around her arms to slowly fail. 'Is this it? Hibiki…I'm sorry…I couldn't keep our promise…' Chris thought, before the sound of steel cutting into the deck in front of her caused her eyes to snap open. Falling backwards, Chris saw the giant sword sticking out of the carrier deck in front of her just as Tsubasa grabbed her arm, the jets from her ankle armor blasting at full force.

"Damnit Chris, pay attention! Now's not the time to zone out!" Tsubasa called out, reaching down with her free hand and grabbing Shirabe from the deck as she rushed away from the blast towards the back of the ship, right arm dragging Chris the whole way and dropping additional swords in the path of the onrushing blast.

"Tsubasa, that blast is cutting through those swords like they're nothing!" Chris called out, eyes not leaving the sight in front of her. Narrowing her eyes further in response, Tsubasa dropped additional blades behind her, hoping to buy further time to come up with a plan as the sound of her initial blades exploding rang through her ears. 'Damnit…I can't try to dodge to the side because I'd have to slow down…and if I did that, then that blast will catch us instantly, before I can get back to speed! Damnit…what can I do?'

-SotHR-

"Have Ogawa and Maria get ready to move to head up there! I want them moving as soon as Tsubasa and Chris are clear!" Genjurou said, his voice tense as Tsubasa continued to flee from the onrushing blast on screen. Moments later, another voice came across his monitor, as the anxious face of Hibiki appeared on screen and began to speak.

"Shishou, let me head up there already! Chris and Tsubasa could DIE if that thing hits them!"

"I know that, Hibiki. But if I sent you up there right this second, then who's to say that you couldn't deal with the same problems they're dealing with!" Genjurou said, his voice trying to end the debate. "I want to send you up there as well, but we have to wait for the right moment. Otherwise it'd be for nothing!"

"Shishou, I know the risks. That thing's the same relic that saved me from the fragments inside of my body. I know better than anyone what it can do to a person! I can't just stand here and do nothing while my girlfriend's life is in danger!" Hibiki responded, her voice tense, the worry in her eyes evident. "I have to at least try!"

"And what will you do to save Miku? Hibiki, you can't just rush in. Whatever FIS did to her, she's trying to KILL them right now. Are you really willing to fight her, when she'll be fighting to kill you and sees you as only her enemy?" Genjurou asked, his words causing Hibiki to freeze as she contemplated the question. "Are you willing to fight to kill, if that's the only way to save her?"

"Taichou…" Hibiki managed to whisper out moments later, her voice grim as she spoke. "If that's what I have to do, then I'll have to live with it. No matter how people look at me afterwards, I'll accept the responsibility."

"Then be prepared to launch in a moment. I get the feeling that your window of opportunity is about to swing open."

-SotHR-

"Tsubasa, it's literally right behind us!" Chris screamed out, the older wielder in front of her allowing her eyes to narrow further as she summoned one final sword ahead of her. "Tsubasa? Are you even listening?"

"Chris, if you don't stop talking right now, you're gonna hurt yourself! Now hang on!" Tsubasa called out, her ankle jets flaring brighter as she leapt slightly and adjusted while holding Shirabe over her left shoulder, now racing up the flat of the blade she had summoned. Not even seconds later as they raced up the blade, the blast behind them smashed headlong into the blade, eating through it within seconds before finally fading out as the barrier walls of blades collapsed, their destroyed forms collapsing over the side of the ship into the sea as the trench carved out of the carrier deck by Miku's attack revealed itself.

"Too strong…that thing was just too strong," Chris muttered out, her eyes in disbelief at what she saw. A trench had been carved into the ship, seemingly splitting it right down the middle and revealing the decks below the flight deck they had been on. 'If Tsubasa didn't use that sword as a ramp…Hibiki, please get up here soon…' she thought, rattled from the near death experience she had just escaped from as Tsubasa touched down, placing Shirabe onto the ground gently and allowing Chris to stand on the remains of the deck as smoke rose into the air around the path of the blast.

"Hang on, you two. I've given Hibiki the order to head up there," Genjurou's voice stated through Chris' earpiece, bringing a relieved look onto her face. "Are the two of you alright? Whatever that blast was, it looks like it carved a trench into the ship itself while breaking through one of Tsubasa's best attacks multiple times." Before Chris or Tsubasa could reply however, the smoke in front of them cleared, revealing Miku floating with her mirrors seemingly returning to their storage in her leg armor.

"We're fine, but we need someone to get up here and get the girl behind us out of here before she gets caught up further. I'm pretty sure she was one of FIS' wielders too," Tsubasa said, eyes locked onto where Miku waited without letting the Igalima wielder nearby out of her field of vision.

"I'm sending Ogawa and Maria up to help with that," Genjurou said, voice echoing into Tsubasa's earpiece as he spoke. "They should be up there shortly. In the meantime, be careful out there until Hibiki, Ogawa, and Maria arrive."

"Ryoukai, taichou," Tsubasa whispered, the tension in her voice reflecting the unease in the air as both sides awaited the other's next move.

'Thank god for that…we couldn't have dodged another attack like that last one, with or without protecting her,' Chris thought, even as she moved to stand guard in front of the once-more seated Shirabe. 'I can't believe that Miku fired on someone who was possibly her own teammate like that…What's next?' As if to answer the unspoken question, Kirika spoke, panic in her voice as she looked towards the unmoving Miku.

"What are you doing? Shirabe's one of us! Why did you just attack with her right there like that?" she asked, her voice cracking as she held her scythe closely. Unmoving, no answer came from Miku's mouth, even as smug voice spoke out through the air.

"Oh? Can you really still say that, after how she dove in to save those people?" Doctor Ver spoke, his voice harsh towards the Igalima wielder. "She betrayed us and moved to help the enemy. Can you really still call Tsukuyomi Shirabe one of us after her doing that? I don't think you can…" Ver said, his voice trailing off as Kirika's eyes widened.

"No…no, she couldn't have," Kirika whispered, her shoulders slumping over as she spoke. Internally, her thoughts were even worse. 'I wasn't able to open up to her…I betrayed her...What do I have left to fight for?'

"It'd be better if she was left to die, wouldn't it? After all, she's the enemy now, just like the fake Finé has become. But it's not like it'll matter. Soon the world will dance to our tune and ours alone!" Ver exclaimed before bursting into maniacal laughter. Before he could continue, Shirabe spoke up, climbing to her feet with Tsubasa's help.

"Kiri-chan," she spoke, drawing Kirika's attention to her. "The doctor's methods, his plans…those won't do anything to save the weak. All it'll cause is more despair for those who we swore that we'd try to protect. Is that really what you want? His methods won't save them at all!"

"Maybe not," Ver responded, having heard Shirabe's words through Kirika's Microphone. "But in the face of the coming disaster, we are simply far too powerless. It'd be better to save the strong than the weak, would it not? The truth is that the data on the Symphogear and relics is wider spread than you think. In fact, if there's any advantage that we might have, it would be the Staff of Solomon! Now, behold the power it provides!" Looking out from the open door on the side of the airplane as he took aim, the Staff of Solomon began spewing beam after beam of green energy onto the remaining ships of the fleet. Hundreds of Noise appeared on the escort ships, almost as if to pass judgment on the sailors within as explosions started to emerge from where the creatures attacked. A final beam hit the carrier in front of Tsubasa and Chris and around Miku, summoning a whole new group of Noise to deal with, leaving the duo to stand in front of Shirabe protectively, eyes darting around to take measure of their opponent.

"He really unleashed the noise?" Tsubasa spat out, her voice barely containing the venom she felt for the doctor. "Where the hell are you, Hibiki? How can we deal with all these noise while stopping Ver from having Miku kill anyone else at the same time without your help?" Taking account of the enemies nearby, she looked at Chris and began to speak, voice becoming serious. "Chris, if we're on our own, you'll have to be the one who handles the aerial noise, and I'll handle the ones on the ship. Then we'll go from there. Got it?" Nodding briefly, Chris prepared to move, eyes taking in the Nosie in the air. Before either one could move however, a cyclone of water rose up above the ship, dispelling quickly as a pair of individuals landed on the ship behind Tsubasa and Chris.

"Shirabe!" Maria called out, kneeling down and hugging the shorter girl briefly, her eyes worried for the girl she considered her younger sister as a familiar song grew in volume within her. "Are you okay?"

"Maria…" Shirabe trailed off, a small smile emerging onto her face as she spoke. "I'll be fine. I just feel tired…" Stumbling slightly as Maria released her from the hug, she looked over at Maria, noticing the relic pendant gleaming as it hung from her neck. "Is that…?"

"Yeah," Maria responded, before standing once more and looking at Ogawa, her eyes taking on a serious glint to them. "Ogawa-san, can you please take Shirabe and get her out of here?"

Nodding swiftly as a small smile formed on his face, Shinji picked up the smaller girl, before frowning slightly and beginning to speak.

"What about you? You don't have an active relic. How are you planning to defend yourself?"

"I'll be fine. This is something that I have to do…no, something that I WANT to do," Maria replied, a confident smile coming onto her face as a familiar tune filled her heart and mind. 'I can hear it...it's so much clearer than I ever heard Black Gungnir...this song, it's been there ever since I got it back from mom,' she thought, turning her eyes back to the crowd of noise in front of her before stepping forwards, the song in her heart growing louder still.

"I'm not going to run away," Maria continued, her voice firm and unwavering. "I'm going to protect those I care about, no matter what I have to do. The song in my heart is telling me that I'm right for doing this, and I won't run away from this responsibility. Serena…please watch over me, and I hope that I'll make you proud." Moments later, a silvery glow began to shine from the Relic pendant hanging around her neck, before she began to sing a song thought lost forever and a silvery orb erupted forth, engulfing Maria within its protective light.

-Seilien coffin Airgetlam Tron-

Moments later, the silvery orb dispersed, revealing Maria once more, clad in her now-revealed Symphogear. Wearing teal leggings that reached thigh-high, Silver high-heeled armored boots protected her legs. A white and teal bodysuit covered her body, silver accents hanging off each hip with a white half-skirt hanging off her right hip. A white glove covered her right hand, stretching all the way up her right arm, silver armored pieces covering each knuckle, while on her left hand rested a silver gauntlet, its armor stretching all the way up her arm. A pair of white and silver headphones topped it all off, silvery white wings stretching upwards from the earphones themselves as a Silver connecting piece connected them together, as Maria's eyes opened with a burning determination within them.

"Ogawa-san, go now!" Maria said, slowly summoning forth a vaguely dagger shaped weapon from the portion of her gauntlet on her left wrist and flipping it into a reverse grip. Dashing forwards towards the nearest noise, she slashed upwards, willing her blade to extend into a resemblance of a whip-sword as she did so before slicing through the small portion of the crowd she had attacked. As Ogawa moved to leave however, Kirika began to move, a desperate look on her face.

"No, I won't let you take Shirabe!" Racing forwards, scythe raised and ready to swing as she did so, Kirika found herself suddenly unable to breathe as a boot buried itself in her stomach, sending her flying into the side of the ship, a deep dent forming in the military grade steel around her body upon impact. As she struggled back to her feet, Kirika found Tsubasa staring at her, a focused look in her eyes as her right foot touched the surface of the deck. "Damnit, get out of the way!" Kirika shouted, before darting forwards and swinging her scythe, the curved blade meeting Tsubasa's katana once more as they resumed their dance of death once again, blades clashing repeatedly as they moved further away from the front of the carrier.

"Ogawa-san, get her out of here now!" Tsubasa called out, ducking under a scythe slash from her opponent. "Right now, she needs to be taken to safety, not be still here where it's a live combat zone!"

"Right. And leave the rescuing to us; we'll try to save as many as we can as well," Shinji said, seemingly teleporting away towards the side of the ship before leaping and running on the surface, a wave trail following his movements. As he ran, Shirabe looked back at the ship, knowing that her best friend and the older woman she considered her sister remained. 'Maria…Kiri-chan…stay safe, both of you…'

-SotHR-

As this went on, Chris took aim at the noise flying overhead. Re-forming her Gatlings out of her crossbows, she leapt into the air before spinning and opening fire, the hurricane of bullets lashing out and destroying a number of the noise overhead. Landing on the tower of the carrier, Chris quickly willed her missile racks to emerge from her waist armor, before opening fire once more, the missiles lancing out at a number of additional aerial targets, obliterating more of the noise filling the sky. As she turned to take aim at another group of Noise, a purple flash of light garnered her attention, making her eyes widen at the laser blast heading directly for her head. 'Shit…I can't dodge at this point…too fast...' she thought as she tried to move, staring at the oncoming beam defiantly as the inevitable approached. But the inevitable never arrived, as Chris felt herself be snatched out of the way, a pair of arms wrapping around her and pulling her to the deck roughly. Moments later the sound of the launch deck cratering under her rescuer's arrival greeted her ears while a warm, relieved feeling flowed through her body before fading away once more. 'That feeling again…' Chris thought, eyes relaxing and feeling a body pressed against her own as her feet finally touched the deck.

"Could you be any flashier, Hibiki-baka?" Chris asked, not even needing to look at her rescuer to know who it was as Hibiki stepped forwards, a saddened look on her face as she got a look at what had happened to her friend. Before she could say anything however, Miku turned, leaping off of the bow of the ship and speeding away, the trail her armor's jets left on the surface of the water the only way to keep track of her. Not even a moment later, Hibiki spoke up, her voice quietly determined.

"Is this really how it's going to be?" Hibiki said as she let out a single mournful sigh, eyes shimmering as she tracked the contrail of her target through suddenly blurry vision. It was all she would allow herself, as she spoke up once more. "I guess there's no other choice then," she said, the start of the handle for her Gungnir's spear ejecting itself from her right gauntlet. Catching it and allowing the rest of the spear to form, she spoke up again, a sadness to her words that hurt Chris to her core. "I'll do what I have to then…"

'No…' Chris thought, as Hibiki stepped forwards, preparing to go after her friend-turned-enemy. Rushing forwards and grabbing Hibiki's hand, she began to speak, even as she willed her last few reflector bits to attach to Hibiki's gauntlets.

"Hibiki-baka, you promised not to be reckless! If you're going to go after her, you better promise to come back, you understand me?" Attaching the last of the golden cube-shaped bits to Hibiki's gauntlets, she continued to speak, voice tense with emotion. "Hopefully these can help, even if just a little bit."

Looking at Chris' eyes, a small smile emerged onto Hibiki's face, even as she turned once more to see where Miku had headed. Taking a moment to think, she began to reply, turning her head back to her girlfriend before hugging her closely.

"I will. You be careful as well, Chris. None of what's happened here today is your fault, don't forget that." And with that, Hibiki leapt off the carrier's deck, the force of her leap denting the deck which she stood on. As she flew through the air towards the next ship in line, Hibiki couldn't help but wonder if she could really keep the promise she made to herself. 'I'll come back, Chris…and I'll bring Miku back with me, no matter what it takes.'

-SotHR-

Chris couldn't help but feel upset as she watched Hibiki chase after their friend, hands clenched at her sides and shoulders shaking as the sound of multiple explosions on nearby ships filled the sky. 'Damnit…it's my fault, no matter how much Hibiki and the others say that it's not,' she thought, eyes darting skywards to look at the horde of noise still remaining above the ship. Raising up her Gatlings once more, Chris opened fire, even calling forth even more missiles from her waist armor before firing them as the storm of firepower she wielded obliterated mass numbers of noise. 'If not for my activating the Staff of Solomon…if that thing wasn't active, then the Treasury of Babylon wouldn't be open to go along with it…and none of this wouldn't have happened! No matter what I try to do to make up for my mistake, it still catches back up with me…that's why I have to be the one to get it back, because if I don't, then how could I ever be able to forgive myself? How would I be able to obtain that peaceful world that I strive for? How can I ever have the peaceful life with Hibiki that I want?'

Leaping skyward once more, Chris began to spin as she opened fire once more, her Gatlings spewing a veritable hurricane of gunfire at the opposing creatures and erasing them from existence. And as she landed on the top of the tower once again before moving to the next ship in line, Chris couldn't help but worry over the idea slowly forming in her head. 'Do I really have no other option but to do that? But if I don't, then how many more will suffer because of my actions? Damnit…what can I do…'

Leaping towards the nearest ship and spotting a large group of noise on the front deck, Chris opened fire once more, her Gatlings making quick work of the creatures as she descended from above. She was too late however, and as she landed she couldn't help but notice a golden locket sticking out from a pile of ash vaguely shaped like a human hand. Looking down at where the locket sat open, Chris felt her anger boiling up inside of her, as she spoke up once more, a regretful tone in her voice.

"It's the cross I have to bear, and I know it. But when will it end? When will I be able to finally make up for the suffering that my actions in that past keep causing?"

-SotHR-

"The light of the Shen Shou Jing, along with the power boost Miku is gaining via phonic gain, is the perfect tool for us to use to unleash Frontier," Ver muttered, his eyes filled with insanity as he watched out the front window of the plane while Miku hovered away from the combat area. "All we need to do now is wait for her to get into position, and it'll finally be time for the final stage of this opera to begin."

"Do you really think that they'll just let us perform this task, Doctor?" Nastassja responded, an eye on a side monitor which showed the 2nd Division's mobile headquarters surfacing from underwater in time for Ogawa to land on top of the ship, Shirabe carried in his arms. 'Shirabe…Maria, keep her safe. There isn't much time left for me, and both she and Kirika will need someone to watch over them once everything comes to an end…' she thought, the doctor's reply shaking her free from her thoughts.

"They don't have any choice in the matter," Ver replied, a victorious smile growing on his face as the madness in his eyes deepened. "None of their wielders are even capable of standing up against the power of the Shen Shou Jing. All fighting against her would do is put blood on her hands beyond what's already there now! And even if they could, if they tried to stop her from using it they'd risk doing further damage to her. No matter what they do, they lose!"

-SotHR-

"Damnit, get the hell out of the way!" Kirika yelled out, her scythe swinging downwards at her opponent's hear before being blocked by a katana blade. Applying additional pressure by firing the rockets in her shoulder armor to boost her power, the Igalima wielder pressed downwards, as Tsubasa found herself driven back slightly. "I wanted to be remembered by her, and now I can't do that because YOU got in the way!"

"If your idea of being remembered is cooperating with a madman like Ver, then what type of memory are you leaving her with?" Tsubasa responded, before slipping her sword free of the scythe she was trying to block and stepping to the side to make additional breathing room. Immediately rushing back in, she sliced upwards with her sword in a diagonal cut from right to left, leading the shorter girl to leap backwards, scythe once more at the ready. "And what do you mean be remembered by her? You're still so young; there's no reason for you to think that way!"

"I don't need to answer to you," Kirika replied, her scythe gleaming under the daylight as another pair of blades appeared along it. Swinging the blade quickly in a spin, two of the blades flew at Tsubasa, the wicked gleam of their edges shining brightly against the smoke rising from the deck below. Reacting quickly however, Tsubasa drew a second katana before using the sword in her left hand to parry the first scythe blade, batting it to the side and causing it to embed itself into the wall of the ship. Spinning immediately, she then proceeded to slash downwards, the blade in her right hand knocking the second scythe blade off course and grinding through the carrier deck, a lengthy gash following in its wake.

Adjusting quickly to the situation, Kirika was forced on the defensive as Tsubasa raced forth, the second blade she now wielded making her tougher to defend for the younger girl. Blocking a double overhead slash from the Ame no Habakiri wielder with her scythe handle, Kirika spun her scythe slightly and pushed the swords mistress to the side, the leverage she had with the lengthier weapon somewhat negating the strength advantage Tsubasa held. Following quickly with a horizontal slice, she found her attack blocked by the sword in Tsubasa's left hand, as the sword held by Tsubasa's right hand came swinging in from overhead at the scythe handle just below the edge.

'Shit…' Kirika thought, quickly retracting her scythe blade to get it out of the way as the katana came down, the Asian-style blade slicing through the deck below with a screeching noise. Taking advantage, Kirika stepped in, landing a shoulder to the older girl's stomach, causing her to stumble back before she re-expanded her scythe, blade flashing wickedly as she prepared to swing once more.

"I have you this time!" Kirika cried out, scythe swinging downwards at her opponent. 'Gotta make some room to work with…' Tsubasa thought, before she realized her position on the deck. Swinging the sword in her right arm up and parrying the scythe away from her, Tsubasa flipped backwards, returning the sword in her left hand to its storage as she landed, before stabbing the sword remaining into the launch mechanism of the catapult she had landed on. Instinctively unfolding the blades attached to her ankle armor, she crouched low and activated the jets on her ankle blades as the catapult activated, sending her speeding down the carrier deck before taking to the sky.

"Damnit, is she trying to get away?" Kirika asked, running towards the end of the carrier deck Tsubasa had launched from as the older girl seemingly glided to the rear deck of a nearby ship before skidding to a stop. "Here goes!" Kirika cried out, activating the boosters on her armor once more and leaping into the air, following the opponent she had settled upon. As she attempted to do so however, a wave of azure energy lashed out, causing her to swerve in mid-air, the change in direction spinning Igalima's wielder like a top before she landed on the deck, scythe blade swinging as the duel continued with their blades clashing once more in a shower of sparks.

-SotHR-

Maria slashed outwards once more, her whip-like sword slicing through the group of noise surrounding her easier than a hot knife through butter. Returning the blade to its dagger-like form, she scanned the area, gathering her thoughts, before spotting another group of Noise to head towards.

'Well, the whip-sword idea worked pretty well,' she thought, reflecting on the ease with which it could be used to take out groups of enemies around her. 'I wonder if I can use Airgetlam's armed gear in other ways…' An idea quickly forming in her mind, Maria flipped the dagger into a normal sword grip before racing towards the next group of enemies and leaping into mid-air above them. Raising it above her head, causing additional copies of the weapon to appear, some misshapen due to her lack of experience. She then willed the blades to rain downwards on the group of noise below, slicing through them effortlessly and destroying them. Seconds later only the blades themselves remained, the more developed blades sticking out of the deck below as the less developed blades shattered upon impact, the blades having left deep gashes in the carrier's metal plating where she landed. Flipping the dagger into a reverse grip once again, Maria began to take in the situation once more.

'With Airgetlam, I can be the protector I swore I would be…' she thought, eyes glancing around for another opponent. Finding there to be none left on the carrier deck, Maria leapt into the air once more, before landing on the tower of the carrier, eyes scanning over the nearby ships in search of any additional noise to deal with. 'It feels so different from Gungnir…so much more effortless to use. Even the main weapon feels so much easier to use than the spear of Gungnir…Serena, I'll make your memory proud. Just watch over me…' she thought, before her headset came to life.

"Maria, that should be the last of the Noise on that ship. Great work, but for now we need you to help with the rescue efforts nearby," Genjurou spoke, his voice tense, his attention stretched thin as he split his focus between directing the wielders and monitoring something going on elsewhere in the area. Nodding slightly before responding, Maria couldn't help but feel worried. She had seen Hibiki leave in pursuit of her friend minutes earlier, and had wondered what could be the cause as she proceeded to cut through the number of noise remaining on the ship itself.

"Understood, Taichou. Do you want me to go and provide support elsewhere?"

"No, not for now. Just try to help out as best as you can there. We'll talk about that new Symphogear of yours once you're back.

"Roger that."

-SotHR-

Feet barely taking the time to touch the deck below her, Hibiki leapt off immediately, moving quickly towards the point she figured she could catch up to Miku. As she flew through the air once more, she saw her friend skimming the surface of the ocean below, the jets on Miku's leg armor a giveaway of her current location as she made her way away from the combat area. 'Why is she going away from the area? I know the Shen Shou Jing has the ability to degrade and destroy relic powered objects; that's how the Gungnir fragments inside my body were destroyed…' she thought, her leap descending towards the deck of a ship in Miku's path. 'Wait…that could be it…but, I can't afford to worry about that right now. First things first, I have to stop Miku…even if it means having to go that far…'

Landing on the deck of the ship and causing a small crater to form under her feet, Hibiki turned, her eyes staring in the direction which she knew her friend was going to come from. Moments later Miku leapt onto the deck of the ship, before coming to a stop in front of Hibiki directly as the jets in her armor allowed her to float in place. 'Here goes…if I don't try, then I won't be able to live with what I'll need to do…' Taking a deep breath to relieve some of the anxiety in her body, Hibiki began to speak, eyes locked onto the visor covering her friend's own eyes.

"Miku, I know you're in there," Hibiki spoke, her voice as calm as it could be given the circumstances. Returning her spear to its storage, she spoke up once more, a small smile on her face. "Don't you recognize me? Miku, it's me, Hibiki." Receiving silence as an answer from her friend, she spoke up once more, a desperate tone in her voice. "Look, I know that I upset you back in the medical bay the other day, but you're still someone who's important to me. Miku, please, if you're in there, answer me!" Moments later, the girl in front of her responded, voice devoid of all emotion.

"Target identified to be Tachibana Hibiki. Current mission objective Is to release the seal on Frontier. Target stands in way of objective. Will proceed to eliminate target," Miku's voice spoke, the jets on her leg armor flaring up once more as she withdrew her fan weapon from storage, causing any form of ash and dust beneath her to fly outwards. At this, Hibiki sighed before closing her eyes, silently calling the handle of her spear from its stored location in her right gauntlet. Shoulders shaking briefly as the handle expanded into her spear once more, she opened her eyes once more, a new determination expressed within. Sliding into a stance and holding the spear behind her with her right hand so that its bladed end pointed towards the deck below, Hibiki began to speak, her voice quiet.

"I wish it didn't have to be like this…" she trailed off, before speaking up once more. "But if I have to fight you, then I'll do what I have to do!" Springing forwards, Hibiki brought her spear around in an upward slice from right to left, the tip of her spear cutting a gash into the deck beneath her as it rotated though. Seeing the attack, Miku dodged to the side, before bringing her fan downwards, the weapon aimed for Hibiki's shoulder. Letting the momentum from her initial attack carry her, Hibiki span to the left, the fan missing her by inches, before switching her grip on her spear to a more comfortable grip and bringing it back down towards Miku. Not even a second later a loud crashing sound filled the air as Miku brought her fan back up, the weapons of the two friends impacting one another as sparks flew.

Attempting to break the clash, Hibiki flipped upwards, using the weapons clashing against each other as leverage to perform a flip kick aimed at Miku's head. Leaning her body backwards and avoiding the kick aimed for her jaw, Miku spun away, using her fan to bat the falling Hibiki into the ship's wall nearby, the wall groaning loudly and creating an imprint shaped around the Gungnir wielder's body as her eyes widened from the impact. Quickly unleashing her cable whips on her opponent, Miku struck, her whips lashing out at Hibiki in an attempt to strangle her. But before the cables could reach their goal, Hibiki reacted, her left arm reaching up to grab one of the cables as the spear in her right hand lashed out, striking the remaining cable and knocking it away as sparks flew from the damaged portion.

Pulling in her friend by the cable attached to her violet armor, Hibiki prepared her spear to strike, raising it above her head once more and bringing it down once again in a slashing motion. Bringing the fan up to block once more, the side of the fan-like weapon clashed against the blade of the spear, causing cracks to emerge on the surfaces of both weapons from the force involved as another loud clang echoed from the clash of weapons. Releasing her friend's cable and pressing her advantage, Hibiki span around, this time bringing her spear in for a horizontal slash which was met once more by Miku's weapon, the fan pointed downwards in a vertical block, the two weapons cracking even further under the strain as sparks flew once more. Seconds later Miku's weapon gave out, the tonfa-fan shattering into pieces as the momentum of Hibiki's swing pushed Miku to the side, sending her tumbling over the edge of the ship and towards the surface of the ocean.

Flipping backwards in midair, the jets on Miku's leg armor fired, allowing her to stabilize herself as she hovered over the surface of the ocean as the water beneath her was pushed outwards and away from her. Summoning a pair of hovering mirrors beside her, Miku's leg armor unfolded, once more releasing the ring of mirrors from within and beginning to charge, as the pair of smaller mirrors rose above the ship's deck, opening fire on the Gungnir wielder.

Stepping backwards to avoid the beam coming from the mirror to her left, Hibiki was caught by surprise as a second purple beam soared in from her right. Reacting quickly, she brought up her spear, cutting the beam in two before another beam came in from above. Stepping backwards once more she let the beam hit the deck, cutting through the armor where her left foot had been standing just a moment before, a scorched circle signaling the impact. But before Hibiki could react any further, an additional laser came in from out of the corner of her right eye. Spinning quickly once more, Hibiki brought her spear up once more, before knocking the beam aside, the impact of the beam onto her spear causing cracks to appear on the weapon.

'Damnit, where are these blasts coming from?" Hibiki thought, her eyes darting around rapidly as more lasers soared in from varying directions. Dancing through the web of laser blasts, beams barely missing her or scorching her armor slightly while impacting the deck of the ship she stood upon, beams cutting gashes into the deck or punching holes into the armor, the sound of the blasts hitting seemingly valuable components being supported by the slight listing of the deck. After dancing through another round of blasts, the shooting suddenly came to a stop as Miku's jets propelled into the air, a violet glow from the ring of mirrors surrounding her before she opened fire, a blast of violet-pink energy racing forwards once more at the slightly-off balance Hibiki.

'Gotta move…that's the same thing that almost got Chris…'Hibiki thought, the blast racing ever closer. Reacting quickly, she threw her spear into the path of the blast before leaping to the side, the blast quickly eating through the spear and destroying it while slowing slightly. It wasn't long before the blast slammed into where Hibiki had previously stood, chewing through the metal of the cruiser and engulfing it in a fireball and sending the ship further beneath the waves before the beam crashed into the sea behind the cruiser, a cloud of steam rising into the air as the beam dispersed. Without re-collapsing her mirrors and returning them to her leg armor, Miku moved once more, her remote mirrors flanking her as she hovered away from the wrecked ship towards where she would attempt to unseal the structure resting dormant underneath the waves of the ocean below.

-SotHR-

"Someone get a hold of Hibiki and check her status! And give me a damage report on the sub!" Genjurou called out, arms crossed as he looked on at the devastation left behind by Miku's attack. The submarine had been rocked by the shockwaves caused by the combined blast and exploding ship, and although their video feed had shown Hibiki more than holding her own against the onslaught of firepower, there hadn't been any sign of her when the blast hit. Moments later, Aoi spoke up, having returned to her communications workstation after helping Ogawa escort their newest guest to a spot in holding.

"Sir, we have an incoming message from Maria," she spoke, pulling up the message and sending it through to Genjurou directly as he nodded, eyes narrowed at the sight of the sinking cruiser on screen. Within a few seconds, Maria's voice came in through his earpiece, a healthy amount of concern in her voice as she spoke.

"Taichou, what the hell was that explosion? Don't tell me that Hibi-san was involved," she spoke, her voice anxious at the sight. Thinking quietly before responding, Genjurou spoke up, his voice grim as he awaited some sort of response indicating that the Gungnir wielder had managed to avoid the attack.

"That explosion came from where Hibiki is facing Miku in combat. However, it looks as though Miku is moving away from the combat area," he spoke, voice serious as he looked on. "None of you are in position to do anything to stop Miku at the moment, and we're waiting for some kind of response from Hibiki to tell us that she dodged that attack."

"Taichou, should I head over there then? At the very least I can try to help get anyone out of there that I can."

Before Genjurou could respond, the voice of another member of the bridge crew spoke up, drawing his attention.

"Kazanari-taichou! We found her signal! Hibiki-san is moving after Miku-san! Should I have her break off?"

"Hold on a moment, Maria," Genjurou said, before replying to the crewman's statement, the slightly tighter grip of his hands on his sleeves the only indicator of the stress he was feeling at the moment. "No. Hibiki's the only one in position to even attempt to stop FIS from having Miku release the seal on Frontier. If she's being quiet, then trust her to handle things. Maria, I want you to head to where the explosion came from and see if there are any survivors. If there are, get them out and come back to the ship."

"Understood, Taichou," Maria spoke, her voice reluctant to drop the subject before the message line cut off. Taking a moment to look at the monitor displaying Tsubasa's fight against Kirika as the duo clashed blades in a dance that seemed to never end, he returned his focus to the monitor displaying the sinking cruiser, his thoughts conflicted.

'Hibiki…you're the only one who can stop Miku at this point. Be careful though…we can't afford to lose any of you, not at this point. I don't enjoy sending you girls to fight like this; I know that all of us here wish that we could take on the responsibility ourselves. But right now, all any of us can do is leave it to you…' he thought, eyes narrowed at the images on his monitor. 'I hope after all of this ends that all of you girls can have the peaceful lives that you deserve…because if anyone deserves that peace, it would be you girls who have the ability to wield the Symphogear.'

-SotHR-

Hibiki couldn't help but feel frustrated as she raced across the water, the rocket engines on her skirt armor allowing her to almost run on the top of the water. Eyes locked onto where her friend had come to a stop, her eyes narrowed before she leapt into the air, the engines in her armor pushing her into the air as she touched each of her gauntlets, activating them and the engines held within. Coming to a stop in front of where Miku's jets allowed her to float, she looked at her friend, taking note of the pair of miniature mirrors flanking her as she bounced from one foot to the other.

'That explains where the lasers came from earlier, before she shot that massive blast at me…if she has more of them, this could get tricky…' Hibiki thought, eyes narrowing slightly. Moments later her opponent shifted her head, the visor covering her eyes looking right at the Gungnir wielder before another pair of miniature mirrors were called forth along with a spare tonfa-fan, this time held in her left hand. Pointing the fan at her friend, Miku spoke, a clear lack of emotion within her voice.

"Target Tachibana Hibiki has returned. Will re-engage," she spoke before opening fire, the mirror on the end of her weapon releasing a blast of purple light at Hibiki. Reacting quickly the Gungnir wielder bounced to her right using the engines on her gauntlets, barely dodging the blast before a web of additional purple lasers came forth, the mirrors having deployed in a complex angles that forced Hibiki into an evasive pattern. Almost seemingly leaping in mid air from one foot to another as she dived head-first through a gap in the web, Hibiki spun, a fist cocked backwards as she threw a rocket-powered punch at her friend, only to be blocked by the fan rising up to block the blow before the mirrors returned, lasers firing at Hibiki from either side and forcing her to flip backwards as the boosters on her skirt armor and gauntlets flared, the beams grazing her armor and leaving scorch marks as she did so.

Quickly descending to a lower altitude as the mirrors followed, Hibiki was forced on the defensive as another pair of miniature mirrors joined the fray, making the laser web even more complex around her. Throwing herself into a dizzying pattern of rolls and spins as she fell towards the ocean below, she made her way through, searching for the most open gap in the laser web with which she could get out of the trap as her armor gained more scorch marks from grazing blows. Spinning away as a pair of lasers intersected where she had been not even a second before and feeling the heat of the blasts through her armor, Hibiki couldn't help but get even more frustrated. 'I won't be able to get in close like this…' she thought as she spun around to dodge another blast coming in from above. 'I have to do something about these mirrors first…'

Before she could begin to figure out a plan however, a blast came at her from Miku's weapon. Reacting immediately, she brought her arms up in front of her face, before the feeling of the inbound attack reflecting away from her gauntlets and into the air away from her gave her an idea. 'This is going to be tricky…' she thought, before leaping towards where Miku hovered, seemingly bouncing from side to side as much as her gauntlets allowed her to as she tried to avoid being an easy target for the remote mirrors, many of the remote weapons' blasts barely missing her as she went.

-SotHR-

'You're putting up a good fight, Hibiki-san,' Nastassja thought, eyes locked onto the monitor displaying the ongoing fight as she observed the goings on from the cockpit. 'However…will it be enough? Can you find a way to put an end to this where both of you make it out safely?' Nastassja couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy about what was occurring in front of her eyes. When Maria had brought Miku back with them, it had been Nastassja who had allowed for Ver to check her over for any injuries. And as a result of her decision, Nastassja now found herself watching the two friends fight against one another.

"I would say that it's about time that we raise the curtain on Frontier itself, wouldn't you Nastassja-san?" Doctor Ver asked from his position in the back of the cockpit of the plane, a sadistic grin on his face. "Once we release the reflector pods, it won't matter what Tachibana does, since all it will take is one of Miku-san's lasers to start the reaction." Nodding in agreement, Nastassja spoke once more, her voice level despite what she was feeling inside as she reached towards the button on the console in front of her to unleash their plane's reflector pods.

"Agreed. We are on a tight timetable after all. There's no more time to waste in order for us to be able to use Frontier to prevent the moon from falling." With her words spoken, Nastassja pressed the button, causing a shudder within the plane as the plane's armor on top revealed a pair of concealed launchers. Seconds later the launchers began to fire, each releasing multiple pods into the sky which began to descend towards the fighting duo, the tops of the pods revealing a satellite dish held within. The final steps to the revival had begun.

-SotHR-

Hibiki's eyes narrowed as she bounced to her left, the engines in her gauntlets carrying her sideways while she dodged another pair of beams that raced past where she had been. Noticing another beam out of the corner of her right eye, she brought up her right arm to where she noticed it was coming from, Chris' reflectors that had been attached to the armor of her gauntlet glowing brightly as she batted the beam away and towards where another of the remote weapons was taking aim. Not even a second later she heard the satisfying sound of one of the mirrors being destroyed, the redirected blast having hit home. 'Time to go on the offensive then,' she thought, as she bounced back to her right, almost cartwheeling upwards as she did so to dodge the sudden flurry of blasts heading in her direction.

Closing ground as quickly as she could while weaving through the maze of laser fire, blasts whizzing past her and scorching her armor even further as she went, Hibiki finally got clear of the web. Bouncing left and getting in front of her friend once more, Hibiki was surprised to find another group of four additional remote mirrors appear in her path, opening fire and forcing her to deflect as many blasts as she could. 'Each time I use the reflectors, they're heating up more…gotta get them a breather…' she thought, feeling the rising heat on her gauntlets reaching through to her hands directly as she batted another beam away, this time succeeding in hitting the remote mirror that the blast had come from and destroying it.

Diving downwards amidst the flurry of laser fire towards the ocean surface she flipped forwards, the engines in her gauntlets firing once more as she neared the surface of the water. Dipping her arms briefly under the surface before kicking off the surface of the ocean and bouncing back towards where Miku hovered, Hibiki felt the heat building in her gauntlets diminish, as the ocean had flash-cooled the reflectors off. 'Gotta do it now…' she thought, noticing the reflective pods descending as if to form a giant circle around an area near the area they were fighting in. 'That's gotta be the area above the seal…'

Bouncing upwards and from side to side as much as her gauntlets allowed her, Hibiki steadily closed the gap between her and Miku, deflecting blasts when she could as the withering storm of laser fire came from odd angles. As she closed the gap the storm grew thicker, some blasts causing her to spin to the side mid-bounce in order to avoid blasts aimed at her face. Bouncing desperately to the right to avoid a group of blasts from the group of four mirrors that hung back to defend Miku, Hibiki saw another blast come from the corner of her vision as she reacted, left arm swinging down as the reflectors on her gauntlet activated once more and deflected the blast. Seconds later an explosion occurred in front of Miku, as one of the remote mirrors around her exploded from the blast.

Not letting the mirrors reorganize themselves, Hibiki closed rapidly, bouncing forwards repeatedly in a zig-zag motion from right to left as the engines on her gauntlets pushed her at a greater speed than any other time in the fight. But as she closed distance, she threw herself into a barrel roll to dodge a blast from another mirror. And while she successfully dodged the blast, it managed to connect with one of the reflector pods launched previously before being redirected to the next reflector pod, moving faster and gaining strength as it went. 'Shit…time's up…gotta do it now…'

Eyes narrowing, Hibiki pushed herself closer, bouncing from the right towards the gap left in Miku's Remote mirrors by the earlier deflection. Batting away another blast but having it connect with one of the reflector pods and accelerating the process, while other blasts that she dodged connected with other reflector pods, she finally reached the floating Miku. 'I'm sorry for what I'm going to have to do, Miku…forgive me for this…' she thought, as her friend's body swung her fan-tonfa downwards. Reaching up and grabbing Miku's wrist with her right arm, she twisted the arm quickly, forcing her friend to release the weapon from her grasp as the girl in front of her gave no indication of pain as her wrist snapped.

Continuing to move, Hibiki caught the weapon in her hand, bouncing with her left gauntlet and spinning around after letting go of Miku's now injured left wrist. She quickly followed up, launching a kick to the glowing circle of mirrors surrounding Miku, the thrust of her bounce providing additional force to the move as it met the reflective surface. A tense few seconds later the mirror itself gave out, the whole thing shattering into pieces from the force of the spin kick. But Hibiki wasn't done there, as she noticed the hemisphere of lasers formed by the reflector pods nearing its completion, the light within growing brighter and brighter with each reflection. 'No time left…' she thought, as a massive pinkish-purple blast landed out from the completed hemisphere, heading towards a reflector pod that would lead it towards their location in midair.

"Miku, I'm sorry for what I'm doing..." Hibiki's voice trailed off. Quickly interposing Miku in between herself and the onrushing blast, Hibiki shoved the non-responsive girl towards the blast. Firing her gauntlets once more and executing a final bounce, she flipped in mid air, spinning downwards and landing three quick kicks to her friend's back, shoving her even more towards the path of the blast. Landing once more on Miku's back, Hibiki kicked off one last time, the engines within her gauntlets firing desperately as she bounced backwards and out of the path of the beam just as it impacted the falling Miku, engulfing her in its light and leading to an agonizing scream.

'I'm sorry, Miku…I'm so, so sorry…' Hibiki thought, a saddened look on her face as she watched her friend fall from the blast, the Symphogear armor Miku had been wearing having completely disappeared from her body with the only trace of the Shen Shou Jing being the weapon held in Hibiki's hand. Springing forwards and diving towards the surface of the ocean as she watched her friend's body fall, Hibiki didn't notice as the massive blast continued on its course undeterred. Moments later, as Miku's body sank beneath the waves, the Gungnir wielder reached her location, grabbing her friend by the leg and pulling her close to herself before she could sink too far beneath the waves. 'Please forgive me for what I had to do…' she thought, as the blast hit a final reflector, redirecting straight down into the ocean, its destination clear.

Moments later, the sea became noticeably rougher, tossing Hibiki and her friend around in the waves like a ragdoll. And as Hibiki swam towards where she knew the 2nd Division's submarine to be waiting with Miku in tow, an ancient structure began to rise above the waves, the structure named Frontier slowly emerging from the ocean in which it slept to hover over the ocean once again.

FIS Stealth Airplane, Cockpit, Frontier Airspace

Doctor Ver couldn't help but laugh at the sight before him, as Frontier slowly rose from beneath the waves. 'So what if that bitch Tachibana was able to release her friend from the Shen Shou Jing…' he thought, a maniacal gleam entering his eyes. 'She still was a useful tool for me to revive Frontier. It's almost time for the curtain to rise on MY plans for Frontier…and it's almost time for this world to dance at my feet…'

Noticing the doctor's smile, Nastassja turned, her eyes narrowing as she looked on. 'Ver…whatever you're planning, I can't see it succeeding. Something about how you're reacting tells me that there's more going on than what you've been telling me…I just hope that it's not what Maria fears…' she thought, before she began to cough, blood spilling out of her mouth and into her waiting hand. 'I'm running out of time…if the world is going to be saved, then I'll have to hurry. Your plans won't succeed, Doctor…no matter the cost I have to pay.'

Cruiser Rear Deck, Waters Around Frontier

Tsubasa looked around with a katana in each hand, eyes narrowed as the ruins rose from the ocean nearby, shaking the ship that she stood on. 'What the hell? Is this thing…is this thing Frontier?' she thought, as she looked at Kirika as she struggled to stay on her feet in front of her. Returning the sword in her left hand into its collapsed state and putting it away, she prepared to speak as she started towards where the younger girl held herself up by the shaft of her scythe. Before she could say a word however, the sound of a gunshot rang out as pain lanced through her body, causing her to stumble forwards. This was quickly followed by another gunshot, pain lancing through Tsubasa's left shoulder near her collarbone this time. 'Who…who would be…'

As Tsubasa fell to the deck, arms splayed out in front of her, Kirika's eyes widened as she looked to see who had pulled the trigger. And as she looked, she was surprised to see that it was Tsubasa's own teammate who had pulled the trigger, as Chris stood behind her friend, submachine gun drawn and aimed at Tsubasa directly. 'What is she doing here? Is she betraying her own teammate? What the hell is going on here?' Kirika thought, mind racing at what could be happening as she began to piece things together.

Chris, however, did not display any emotion at what she was doing. As she stepped forwards, gun drawn, she kept her eyes on Kirika, before taking aim once more at Tsubasa with her finger hovering over the trigger. As the Ame no Habakiri wielder turned her head at last to see her teammate standing above her, Chris allowed her eyes to meet Tsubasa's as the sound of her gun firing rang out one final time...

End Chapter 11

Author's Postscript: Sorry for the lengthy wait on this one, but we're back. Had a long wait here, but hopefully it'll all be worth it. Read, Review, and Enjoy, and I'll see you next time.-ZBD15