AN: This chapter will feel like it's all over the place, but that is deliberate, so don't worry about that.

Other than that, please do review and leave a comment. Usual stuff basically.

Enjoy!

-!-

(Play: Nier Automata OST - Song of the Ancients)

A barrage of silver daggers burst forward, impacting the Noise and the beasts as they tried to approach. Having decided to go on the defensive due to the alchemist's current state, Maria continuously held back the horde closing in on them. However, her efforts yielded very few results, as they kept on coming in droves despite her attempts to bottleneck them through a narrow path between two collapsed structures.

Behind her, Saint-Germain lay propped up against a crumbled wall, her entire frame bleeding, bruised, and broken. She let out hackneyed breaths as she tried to stabilize her condition, unwilling to die due to blood loss just yet. She had already suffered such injuries in the past, so something like this should be nothing new to her.

It was still very unpleasant though. But unlike before, this time she was not alone.

"We...we must retreat," The alchemist breathed out just loud enough for Maria to hear her above the chaos. "We must...regain our bearings...find a more strategic location to defend…"

They were sitting ducks in this open area. It was only a matter of time until Maria would get surrounded again and be overwhelmed.

Acknowledging Saint-Germain's suggestion, Maria threw one last barrage of daggers at the enemy units, then immediately backpedaled. Hurriedly dismissing her weapons, she bent down and picked up the alchemist with two hands, immediately jumping away just as several beasts crashed upon their location.

They soared through the skies as Maria continuously leaped away. Weakly raising her gun behind the wielder's back, Saint-Germain fired repeatedly, attempting to shoot down any pursuers haphazardly. Her arm screamed in pain from every bit of recoil the gun caused, but she grit her teeth as she continued.

"Don't push yourself!" Maria told her. "You need to focus on healing yourself! You can do that, can't you?"

"Yes," She answered weakly. "But it will...take time, and I don't know how long. I also need to...concentrate while doing so. It's...a difficult process…"

"Damn," Maria bit out, landing atop a pile of rubble and immediately jumping away again. "Alright, I'll try to buy you as much time as I can. I just wish I didn't have this injury…"

Maria nearly yelped in surprise as Saint-Germain stopped firing and suddenly put her hand on her back. She felt a sharp pain run up her spine, nearly causing her stumble upon the next landing. "What are you doing?!"

"Keep on retreating," The alchemist merely said, focusing on channeling her energy. "I will...heal your wound to the best of my ability...we can't...have something like this slow us down…"

"What…but what about you?! You need to take care of yourself first!"

"There is no point...in doing so now. It is more important...to get you back to full fighting shape beforehand...it will be meaningless to focus on myself...if your injury causes you to fall…" Saint-Germain murmured, pouring more energy into her healing spell.

Maria felt as the aching on her back began to dissipate, the constant itchy sensation fading little by little. Whatever it was Saint-Germain was doing, it was definitely helpful; she already began to see results as he next leap was much higher and farther than before, finally putting more distance away from the chasing enemy units.

'Where can we go? What will be a good place to bunker down in?'

As if reading her thoughts, the alchemist spoke up as she continued healing her. "The harbor...will be a good place to defend...the enemy can't...enter a body of water...so we can at least...keep our backs safe as we hold them off...we can request for additional support...from H.Q while we're there…"

Maria grit her teeth. Saint-Germain made a good point, and one she was quick to start implementing...but that wasn't what she was focused on at the moment. No, what bothered her was the fact that she seemed to be getting weaker, as if the healing process was putting an even bigger burden on her than before. Her words were spoken with more pauses in between them, clearly showing to Maria just how much she was struggling.

Taking a sharp left from where they were, Maria headed towards their new destination. "Commander, do you hear me?!"

"Loud and clear, Maria-kun! We've heard Saint-Germain's request and we'll do our utmost to assist you! We will provide you with all the help we can!" Genjuro answered back.

"Good...that's good, thank you."

That took care of that. Now to just get there in one piece.

The Noise and beasts from earlier, as well as many new ones, were still hot on their heels in the chase. With the wound no longer as bothersome, Maria managed to successfully evade them and get away from their attacks, without any significant close calls.

The final bit of pain that rose from her back vanished, and Saint-Germain's hand slid off the Airgetlam wielder's back, hanging limply behind her. Noticing the sudden silence that fell upon the alchemist, Maria called out to her in a panic. "Saint-Germain?! Are you alright?! Saint-Germain!"

Stirring slightly from her words, the silver haired woman spoke up weakly. "I'm...fine….focus...on...getting us...to the designated...area…once...we're there...I'll rest...a bit...my...apologies…"

"You can apologize later! Get a hold on yourself! We still need you!"

"I...won't die...so easily...I...will trust that you...will defend me...until I can...assist you...again…"

Maria was taken aback by her words, but nonetheless found herself smiling. "I see, then I won't let you down. It's the least I can do to thank you."

It was Saint-Germain's turn to be surprised. "Thank...me? I...haven't done...anything worth...being thanked for…"

"You helped those two," Maria answered. "And you saved them, time and time again, without caring what happened to yourself in the process."

"I...only...did so...because they are...more valuable...than me...in the larger picture...we cannot afford...to lose even one...of the Symphogear wielders...while I'm more...expendable...you need not...worry about...me…"

Maria couldn't find a way to respond to the alchemist. Before she could dwell on the thought further, Saint-Germain suddenly yanked on her arm to the left, moving her out of the way just as a Flying Noise tore through the space they had occupied just a second before. Maria landed, and her eyes widened as the beasts converged on her location instantly. Forcing all the strength she could into her legs, she jumped above them all just as they struck. She groaned at the near miss, gritting her teeth as she continuously avoided their strikes.

Before long, she reached the entrance of the harbor, the area still in the same state it had been when Chris had defended it. The concrete floor was wet now too, having been flooded completely during the giants' altercation. 'Almost there.'

She had no real manner in which to funnel or curb the advance of the enemy units. They would tear through buildings like they didn't even matter, so trying to somehow stop them in their tracks wouldn't give her any sort of advantage. An open space with their backs to the sea would be the most effective way for her to deal with the invaders, as they wouldn't be able to get the drop on her and she'd have vision of all the ones coming towards her. It was less than optimal, but it was the only choice she had at the moment.

"MARIA-KUN! INCOMING!"

Genjuro's warning came barely a second after she heard a loud whooshing sound over her head. Immediately understanding what it was, Maria charged forward as fast as she could, leaving the enemy units in the dust in her wake. Just before they could try and close the distance, a missile impacted the middle of their formation. It exploded mightily, a large fireball rising into the sky as the invaders were mercilessly slaughtered, the concussive force blowing them to smithereens. However, Maria was unable to completely avoid the follow up shockwave, and braced herself as much as she could.

But then a barrier came to life between her and the blast zone, stopping all debris and force from sweeping her off her feet.

"Saint-Germain! You can't!"

"There...is...no...time to waste…" The alchemist bit out through clenched teeth, her arm raised behind the Symphogear user, the shield she had conjured wavering and shimmering in the air due to her lack of power. "You must…"

The arm dropped, exhaustion settling in on the woman. The barrier fell soon afterwards, having fulfilled its purpose of protecting the duo.

"Saint-Germain?!" Maria exclaimed in alarm, noticing the rapid degradation of the alchemist's state. The silver haired woman gave no reply, her response coming out as quickened breaths, her power having reached dangerous new lows. "Damn it!"

It was out of the question to expect HQ to retrieve her now. With the Noise right on their doorstep, the submarine would get attacked instantly the moment it would surface, and so Maria found that she had no way to help the alchemist. Swallowing down her concern as she heard the beasts growl behind the wall of fire the missile had brought with it, Maria took the opportunity to carefully lay Saint-Germain down, laying her back against one of the few remaining pieces of the railing that remained in the harbor.

Now that she got a good look at her, she could finally see just how badly she was injured. She was bleeding from everywhere and her energy reserves were extremely low, putting her in a definitely life-threatening situation. Without said energy to help her recover her wounds, the only thing keeping her alive right now was the very broken Faust Robe barely covering her body completely.

'Just surviving must have been a miracle.' Maria commented to herself.

She turned around, facing the beasts and the Noise that have started to come through the barrier of flames. Once again equipping her dagger, she furrowed her brows as she prepared for their charge.

But just before that, she spoke up once more. "Saint-Germain...whatever you do, never think you are expendable. I dare say...that we can say we are friends now. And friends...are never expendable."

And she met their charge with one of her own, a defiant roar tearing its way out of her throat.

The dazed alchemist angled her head towards the chaos, her vision blurry and her mind muddled. And yet, she had heard her words.

'Friends…?'

Two smiling faces rose up in her mind, waving to her from a distance.

'I...see…'

A warm feeling began to fill her heart, a feeling that she had not felt in a very long time. Unwilling to let it dissipate just yet, she kept hold on her consciousness, focusing on restoring her strength. She may be defeated, but she was not gone just yet.

'So this...is what I've been missing...wasn't it, Cagliostro...Prelati…'

And holding onto that feeling, she anchored herself to the mortal plain, watching with bated breath as Maria fought against evil.

-!-

Kanade's feet dragged across the asphalt as she was pushed back again. Following up on her attack, Tsubasa closed the distance to her in an instant, her sword impacting against the raised spear again and again.

"Much better Tsubasa! Much much better!" The red head exclaimed. The fight really had it ups and downs, what with Tsubasa's resolve wavering here and there, but now she was sure that her former partner finally got herself together completely and that now there'll be no more strange interruptions.

The sword wielder may have not noticed it herself, but Kanade did: the way the corner of her mouth upturned into what seemed like a smile when the hole in reality was closed. When that happened, their fight had paused for a short moment to marvel at the duo's success, but quickly got back to their own fight, now on a new level of intensity.

And Kanade immediately found herself with a slew of new wounds along with it.

Kanade thrust forward, forcing Tsubasa back and away from her range. Going on the offensive, she charged, bringing down the spear down on the blue haired idol.

But Tsubasa blocked it magnificently. Flipping over, she deflected the spear away with the blades on her feet, and now with her hands on the ground she spun, cleaving her way through the air towards her former partner.

'REVERSE RAKSHASA'

Kanade knew the innate danger this technique posed, and so immediately jumped away from its range. However Tsubasa was relentless, her legs spinning rapidly as she made her way to Kanade. It was faster and stronger than ever, and the sword wielder was sure of its power. It was incredibly basic, yet it proved its worth to her time and time again.

It only had two real weaknesses, both of which she knew how to cover perfectly.

But Kanade also knew what they were, and so knew for a fact that Tsubasa would take them into account and try to lure her into a trap.

There was something akin to a mind game between the two fighters at that moment. Tsubasa closed in on her former partner at blinding speeds, and Kanade was initially stumped at how to respond to it.

So she answered in the most blatant and insane way she could: she charged right in.

There was a look of total shock on Tsubasa's face as Kanade entered the range of her technique. With her legs spinning so quickly, there would be no doubt Kanade would get eviscerated instantly upon contact.

But the redhead had other plans. Putting her spear in the path of Tsubasa's legs, a loud crash rang through the area as the spear exploded into a thousand pieces from the sheer force behind Tsubasa's strike. With the physical barrier between them destroyed, there was nothing now to stop the Ame-no-Habakiri wielder from achieving her victory.

Until the moment she had to vocally gasp as with nothing but her hand, Kanade put a stop to the spin. Her armoured hand grasped Tsubasa's lower leg just below the calf, ending the technique in an instant due to its massive drop in speed due to destroying the spear. The former Gungnir user smiled, and with a strong heave threw Tsubasa into the air. The blue haired idol spun wildly, taken by complete surprise; deciding to take advantage of her confusion, Kanade jumped up to follow her, materializing another spear in her hand to strike true.

But Tsubasa was not defeated just yet. Twisting in midair, she managed to deflect the blow by throwing her sword at the spear, causing it to be thrown off course. With her gambit having failed, Kanade was repulsed and fell back down to the ground, Tsubasa following right after. Seeing the opening, Kanade rushed in, intending to cut her down as she was coming down.

Only to be caught by surprise as Tsubasa managed to avoid the fatal strike with expert maneuverability, weaving around the powerful slash and landing back on her hands, the blow having only managed to cut a tiny bit of the tip of her ponytail. Before Kanade could pull back the spear, Tsubasa leaped and flipped forward, rising above Kanade momentarily with one leg higher than the other in position to deliver a powerful axe kick to her head.

And so she swung her spear in a wide arc above her, intent on slicing her former partner in half.

At that moment…

There was a loud clash as once again her spear was repulsed, and she could only stare with wide eyes at what had done the deed.

It was so crazy she was amazed Tsubasa had managed to think it up on her own. In the moment she was about to hit her, the sword she had previously thrown came back down and instantly connected to her heel, turning her previously insane maneuver into one that caught the redhead off guard. Sent staggering back from the blow, she was unable to completely avoid the following barrage of strikes that Tsubasa sent her way.

The sword wielder landed back on the ground with the empty foot, and with the one that had the sword connected at the heel she struck rapidly, her leg a blur as a storm of wild cuts made their way towards Kanade. She barely managed to raise her spear as a shield in time to block the majority, but still many of them grazed her sides, carving more injuries into her fake flesh.

"K-kuh," She let out, held down the hurricane strikes. She tried to retreat away from their range, but Tsubasa followed her, hopping on her one leg to close the distance Kanade managed to put between them. "That's...pretty good, Tsubasa. Which one of the old man's movies did you watch to think this up?"

Tsubasa smirked in response, and she spoke up, her voice rising above the noise. "None at all! Uncle's hobbies..."

Planting her one foot forcefully against the ground, she finished off her combo with a powerful lunge. "Are not to my tastes!"

The sword pierced through the spear's red core, shattering the relic gem into a million pieces. Kanade was thrown back, once again skidding across the ground to the other end of the street. Tsubasa raised her leg, and the sword disconnected from it, falling back into her awaiting hand. With her offensive finished, she stood steadfast before her former partner, a small smile gracing her face.

She watched as Kanade lowered the spear and studied its destroyed core carefully, clicking her tongue. "Oh man, that's gonna suck."

"Hm? What's wrong Kanade? You can't tell me you've lost the will to fight." Tsubasa responded, finding her question slightly ironic considering what had happened in their fight so far.

Kanade laughed. "Nah, not that. It's just that this spear won't work so well with the core gone y'know? Can't do much with it like this. Gonna need to make a new one."

Tsubasa blinked, and looked curiously as Kanade smashed the spear against the ground. The Armed Gear exploded into shards that quickly dissipated, leaving her unarmed. Tsubasa briefly thought of taking advantage of the opening, but threw that thought way as Kanade immediately materialized a new one in her hand, its core in one piece.

"That's much better!" She exclaimed. She entered her stance, facing Tsubasa head on. "But wow Tsubasa, I'm getting more and more impressed and excited every minute! You come up with the most insane stuff, I gotta admit."

"Only as insane as you would have made them." Tsubasa responded, her smile widening.

"Pfft, copycat," Kanade said with a laugh. "Alright, then let's keep going!"

And the clash renewed.

-!-

(Play: DOOM 2016 OST - Welcome to Hell)

A graveyard.

That was what the very heart of the battlefield could be called at the moment.

Noise and beasts swarmed in from virtually all sides. Left, right, up, down. No matter where one would look, they blocked out the light of the moon entirely, their sheer numbers so overwhelming it could not possibly be comprehended. Even with the pathway to their dimension having been closed, it did not stop their onslaught nor did it weaken them in any manner.

And yet, they still came upon an obstacle. A major one, in fact, in the form of one Yukine Chris. Clad in the Super Ignite form of Ichaival, the white haired wielder was a one woman army, her power so ridiculous the only true match for it was Hibiki herself.

However, she couldn't care less about her right now.

She had prey to hunt right in front of her, and she would cut them all down until not even one remained. And their bodies littered the giant courtyard to its entirety, and every second another was added to the mix as Chris blew them away with the full might of her completely overpowered arsenal.

The chaingun she had used to mow them down earlier was replaced by something that packed a bit more of a punch. It could only be described as a laser cannon, and she held it with both hands faced towards the oncoming wave of enemy units. They were incredibly numerous, but in the face of her assault they were simply sheep to be slaughtered. The cannon fired, and a teal colored beam of light erupted from its tip. It instantly blew through and away all the Noise and beasts it was aimed at, the blast penetrating through them like a paper door. Noise parts and black smoke rained down on her in droves, and she licked her lips in anticipation.

They growled, shrieked, and scuttled towards her in a mad rush. Yet she continued onwards, unabated and unconcerned by their attacks and simply continued to blow through them with her increasingly more devastating weapons that left none standing in her wake. They couldn't even close the distance much less land a strike, and now that she was no longer held down by the need to defend anything, she was free to go as wild as she desired.

She fired again, and once more tore a clean hole through their disgrace of a formation. In an attempt to blindside her, Flying Noise dove down on her from above by the hundreds, trying to put a stop to her rampage.

But then the compartments on her hips opened up without her even needing to do anything, and from within them a barrage of missiles and bullets shot outwards at supersonic speeds, putting a stop to the Flying Noise' charge before it could even truly begin.

No blind spots from any direction. The looming form of a Giant Noise reached out towards her from behind, and her response was to twist on her heel, avoiding its claw grip entirely. Before it could pull back to try again, or even attempt to escape, its life ended when another beam of light tore through it and eviscerated its bottom half completely.

And then a beast finally managed to make it all the way to her in her momentary lack of focus. Or at least, that's what the beast thought. Its claw screamed through the air towards her back, intending on piercing through her with one blow.

But then its folly was made apparent.

It clanged off. The claw that was previously shown to be able to injure a wielder simply clanged off Chris' back as if it was made of steel, the dark patches covering it completely negating its strike. There was far more of the black covering than before, and now much of the naked skin had already melded with the rest of the Symphogear.

And the change in her demeanor was apparent as well.

Chris could only see one thing now. Only one thing was on her mind, everything else having fled the coils of her reason with every blackened spot that appeared on her skin. The beast did not even have time to be surprised before the gigantic laser cannon smashed into its frame from above, squishing it like tofu due to its massive weight. Black dust filled the air, and Chris breathed in, the cursed air flowing into her lungs.

There was a small moment of silence between the girl and the army around her.

And then she roared, the sound of her voice quaking the air around her. The Noise and the beasts stumbled from the the intensity of the soundwaves, the bellow of pure destruction disorienting them completely.

She planted a single foot forward, and tossed the laser cannon aside.

And in her hands, something else appeared. From what those in HQ could tell, it vaguely looked like a gun. It had a trigger and a barrel, but it was so ridiculous bulky it could barely even be called that. Otherworldly green light shone at its very center, and Chris aimed it right at the center of the enemies' formation.

The barrel shone with an emerald light, and Chris howled.

"EAT THIS, MOTHERFUCKERS!"

And fired.

'DOOM SLAYER'

A large green orb of energy erupted from the weapon's barrel. Almost immediately, all the Noise and beasts surrounding her were blown to smithereens as it passed next to them, green jets of electricity swinging out and striking everything they could touch. The super heated core continued onwards, its path of destruction unstoppable as every enemy it touched with its tendrils of lightning exploded into a shower of guts and dust that left none standing. Like a second sun in the night, it barreled through everything it came into contact with, and then proceeded to detonate upon striking a crumbled wall at the other end of the courtyard, vaporizing everything that was in its area of influence.

A quintessential red carpet was spread out before Chris from the aftermath of her attack, the remains of the enemies she downed spread out before her. Their entire eastern flank had been completely annihilated, leaving one of her sides free completely of enemy attacks.

Then, she turned around. Unwilling to let her fire again, the Noise and beasts charged with reckless abandon.

But they were too late.

A second emerald orb exploded towards them, and they like the rest were reduced to atoms. This time, it continued its travel through the air and towards the open sea, and Chris flashed a savage grin as her view of the ocean was once more unobstructed. The green orb eventually popped out of existence on its own, as its supply of enemies to kill had been reduced to nothing.

The giant weapon whirred, as if it was relishing in the mayhem it was causing. Steam and energy escaped its frame as it seemed to breathe in line with its wielder, and both were thirsty for more.

More destruction. More killing. Exterminate everything without end, until nothing remained.

The blackness continued to spread, now covering part of her face. Her previously purple eyes now shining with a deranged red hue, she pointed her weapon towards the next cluster of enemies.

And with a roar, fired again.

-!-

"Are you okay, Kiri-chan?" Shirabe asked her partner. It took a moment for the Ig-Alima wielder to respond, but soon enough her face graced Shirabe's display as she answered.

"Yeah, I'm okay," She said. Just for a tiny moment their insurmountable union had been broken following their forceful closure of the hole in reality, and will definitely return in due time. For now, they were checking on each other, making sure they were both alive and well. "We did good, but we are not done yet."

"Yes." Shirabe responded, her eyes narrowing. After all…

Their enemy was still very much alive.

In the time it took the two wielders to regain their composure and will Zababa back to her feet, the titan had done so as well. Its destroyed foot had regenerated, and it had shaken off the distraction caused by the missiles. Zababa turned around, staring at her opponent with the same even and expressionless face as before. With her primary objective complete, there was only one thing left to do.

Take the titan down.

It screeched loudly once again, indicating its anger and humiliation of defeat at her hands. Wordlessly, Zababa summoned her blades again, and they shone with the same ruby and emerald light; and so she charged in. The air swirled as her giant frame passed through, and she swung Shul-Shagana in a massive horizontal cleave. The titan responded by smashing its fist against it edge, careening it off course. Not stopping her assault, she repeated the action again with Ig-Alima, and once more the titan deflected it away. But despite its blocks, it still found itself being pushed back by her mighty strikes, holding back her swings with careful accuracy as to not let het blades cut into it again.

The two wielders knew for a fact that nothing short of total dismemberment will be enough to take the titan down. They had cut off its head and it still managed to come back, so the only solution was to erase it so completely not even the black smoke remained.

But how were they going to do that? Unfortunately for Kirika and Shirabe, they currently did not have anything so magnificent and overwhelming. Neither of the two wielders sported any sort of technique that could blow away opponents to kingdom come, but rather relied on their lightning fast reflexes and bag of tricks to take down their targets. They didn't have a convenient super blast of energy to solve all their problems, and that very same design flaw transferred over to Zababa as well.

So it came down to basically one thing: keep it at bay until Miku achieved victory, which shouldn't be too hard considering they currently have the upper hand. The two giant beings' strength was very nearly evenly matched, but Zababa had the advantage in intelligence, having two brains working in synchronicity to overpower their opponent. The titan was essentially nothing more than a black beast but on a humongous scale, making things a bit easier for the two.

And if they must, they'll cut it down to pieces time and time again.

Zababa spun, both blades screaming through the air towards the titan. Realizing the power behind her strike would be too much for it to block outright, it stepped back as much as it could to avoid the slash. The blow missed, but the shockwave left behind in its wake was more than enough to disorient it further, the air having been turned razor sharp from the speed. She kept up the pressure, and stabbed forward with both blades. In response, the titan held its fists in front of it, and the two tips crashed into its knuckles, forcing it back even more.

It slid across the ground as it held back her lunge, and Zababa poured more power into her arms in an attempt to pierce through its hands. Seeing that it was not working as she wanted, she quickly disengaged and closed the distance, instantly swinging down on its extended hands with Shul-Shagana. It stepped back, and she continued with another wild swing that forced it to tilt its head back to avoid.

Whatever its level of intelligence was, Shirabe and Kirika realized that it was smart enough to understand that trying to hit them with its light again would prove suicidal, and so the titan decided to focus on close combat rather than try to blindside them.

It was definitely waiting for something, but they were not about to let it get its hopes up. Zababa followed up with a swing from Ig-Alima which the titan deflected with its fist again. The repulsion forced Zababa's hand back, and the giant being took the opportunity to strike at her head. However, she moved it to the side, the fist grazing against the location in her head Kirika was positioned in. Dropping both her blades, the goddess grabbed the titan's extended hand by the wrist and pulled, once more causing it to stumble towards her awkwardly. Now with her opponent off balance, she called the two swords back to her hands and went on the attack.

The titan was too close to her to avoid the swing completely. It righted itself in the last possible second and attempted to escape, but was dealt a grievous blow as the two blades cleaved through its midsection, tearing deeply into it but not quite bisecting it. It staggered back and roared in pain, and Zababa kept up the assault, taking advantage of its suffering to unleash a fatal blow. The twin blades came down in an X shape, and carved into the titan's chest mightily, tearing into its frame once again in rapid succession.

It stumbled back even more, and now in far too much pain it fell to one knee, rubble shooting up into the air as its leg met the ground beneath it. It growled loudly, and raised its head to screech in her face once again.

But there was no mercy from the guardian goddess. Once again standing above her opponent, she swung her blades down for the execution.

-!-

Hibiki's ferocity increased tenfold following her dangerous declaration. Attacking with no end in sight, Miku grit her teeth as she blocked and deflected the wild swings she delivered, barely able to keep up with the pressure.

Even if Hibiki wasn't well versed in wielding a spear, and even if the concept she held was inferior to the one Miku held, the difference in skill was still very apparent. She had taken the fight fairly lightly beforehand, but now it was on a whole other level.

An insanely powerful overhead swing tore Miku out of the sky, launching her at breakneck speeds towards the ground. She grit her teeth, and hurriedly flipped over, floating just above the concrete.

Only for her eyes to widen when Hibiki appeared in front of her and swung, and Miku could do nothing but be struck in her stomach, the spear somehow not gouging her insides completely. She was thrown to the side, grinding against the concrete on her shoulder. Hibiki teleported above her, and in a last ditch effort Miku rolled out of the way just in time to avoid being pierced through the head. She flipped back up to her feet and fired a barrage of violet bolts at her opponent, who once again raised her spear as shield to avoid being damaged by them. The beams blew holes in the spear's construction, but the curses lining it quickly restored it to its former shape.

With smoke rising from the reformed holes, Hibiki held her spear by her side. "How does that feel, Miku?" She suddenly asked.

And she charged again, and the Shenshoujing wielder could barely prepare her fan in time to block the aggressive blows. They spear crashed against her fan with the sound of an explosion, time and time again, and she was once again hurtled through the air to the other side of the wreckage they had found themselves in. Gritting her teeth once again, she quickly took to the skies in order to avoid being pushed around, Hibiki hot on her heels.

She barely avoided a crazed thrust by twisting above it, and now upside down she fired her barrage again and again, aiming for Hibiki's wrist. It struck true, but failed to get the corrupted wielder to drop her weapon. Righting herself in the air, Miku spun in time to parry another lunge to the side.

Only to be blindsided when she was caught by the face again. Hibiki's tightened her hold, and at supersonic speeds dove towards the ground. Miku struggled against the palm squeezing her head, but her grip was akin to iron, unbending and unbroken.

Her attempts to escape were interrupted when she suddenly felt herself slam into concrete, excruciating pain shooting up her spine. But Hibiki wasn't done yet, and continued the gruesome carnage by dragging Miku through the dirt. The Shenshoujing wielder's head grinded against the bare earth, the only thing stopping her skull from being shaved away being the protection of her Symphogear.

"That's how it felt when I was pushed down flights of stairs day after day!" Hibiki screamed. She then threw Miku into the air, and now disoriented she could do nothing in response. Hibiki teleported above her and struck with her spear, hitting Miku's previously injured side with a violent swing. Miku's spine nearly snapped as she streaked through the air, crashing into the concrete below.

She groaned painfully, and was once again forced to roll out of the way as Hibiki stabbed towards her, missing her by an inch and ripping the earth beneath her apart. Dislodging her spear as Miku attempted to get back to her feet, Hibiki continued. "That's how it felt when I ran through the streets, trying to escape from bullies that wanted to beat me, and how it felt when they finally succeeded."

She again charged, and Miku could do nothing as she was kneed in the stomach. She doubled over as all air was forced out of her lungs, leaving her breathless. Looking down on her with disdain, Hibiki grabbed Miku by the hair and lifted her head up to stare her straight in the eyes.

The spear came up, and was pressed against the Shenshoujing wielder's throat.

"And that's how it felt that one day when I nearly lost my life just by going to the closest convenience store. That's how it felt when a strange man I didn't know assaulted me, putting a knife to my throat," She recounted with a tone laced with fury. "And that's how it felt when he stared me in the eyes with all his rage, screaming at me how it was my fault. How it was because of me his daughter died, and how he was going to make me pay for taking her away. That was what the thirteen year old me experienced just out of therapy."

Miku's eyes widened in shock. So shaken was she that she was left unable to respond, both physically and mentally, and so she was thrown across the rubble, her back slamming into one of the many piles. Hibiki trudged towards her, her revelations coming nonstop. "It was those very eyes you're looking at me with now. The same ones that everyone looked at me with; whether it was Tsubasa, or Chris, or Maria, or Kirika, or Shirabe, or anyone else. Those were the very same eyes every single person I met for the first time looked at me with. They only saw what they wanted to see, completely ignoring reality because they only cared about themselves."

Miku rose to her feet uneasily, trembling. She raised her fan and fired her beams, but they did nothing due to Hibiki using her spear to swat them away as she walked towards her. "I hadn't done anything to anyone, yet in their eyes I dared live. I dared to exist instead of someone they thought deserved it more. And all they saw in me was a killer. That's what I was, nothing more than a killer in their eyes, a murderer that took away people important to them. An idiot and a fool who screamed about wanting to make a happy world they couldn't be happy in, and I was the closest and easiest target they could take their frustrations on."

Every beam that Miku fired was easily deflected, despite its superior property. In pain and now bleeding, she couldn't completely focus on pushing as much power as possible into them, and so Hibiki easily ignored them. "A happy world? What a fucking joke. Why should I try to make something like that when all I ever experienced was hell?! Why should I give a damn about anyone else when the only thing I was given was hatred?!"

And she charged once again, swinging at Miku with all of her might. She put the fan between the blow and herself, and she could feel the spear hit with the full force of Hibiki's contempt and suffering behind it. "I convinced myself to believe in a lie because it was easy, because there was nothing else I could escape to! And yet, all I was given was nothing but curses! My dad making me depend on a stupid phrase he himself couldn't even believe in, and Kanade forcing her idiotic ideals on me like I cared about them at all!"

Miku was speechless, and could offer no response.

"But you already knew that, didn't you Miku? Or at least, the majority of it. Yes, you of all people stayed by my side, giving me the push to continue onwards despite everything. And yet, what did I gain from that? All I ever saw since that day was more death, more destruction, and more hatred; I tried to ignore it all, tried to brush it all away, using songs and excuses to make myself believe that I was doing what I really wanted. Yes, that's what you did. You cursed me by letting me live, by making me believe there was something worth living for. But now, you also look at me with those eyes...so tell me, is there anything left in this world I should care about?! Is there anything important I should give even half a shit about?!"

Another crushing swing that swept Miku off her feet struck her, and she was sent stumbling back, barely able to keep herself standing. "If you want to become like everyone else so much, then fine! You say this isn't what I wished for?! Well it sure as hell isn't, but I don't give a damn now! I'll make everyone's wish come true, just like they wanted, and become the killer they always wanted me to be! One by one I'll massacre every person in the world, just like they expected me to! And I'll start by getting rid of the hope that lights the way, just like how I was given a hope that was mercilessly crushed by others!"

It was unbearable.

That was the only thing that ran through Miku's mind.

The physical pain was trivial at this point, for what she was hearing was far, far more soul-crushing. Her heart was crying, shattering from the sound of Hibiki's anguish.

She tried. She really really tried to convince herself it was the demon talking, that it was trying to deceive her like before.

But…

That excuse became flimsy.

"You're the only one who ever mattered, so I'll do you a favor and spare you the horror of seeing the world end. I'll send you into an eternal, restful sleep, so you can dream forever about those so called 'happy days' you talked about while I raze everything to the ground. You deserve at least that much, for everything you've done for me."

It was pain beyond anything she could ever believe possible.

The sound of Hibiki's voice that had always spoken so gently to her, that had almost brought warmth to her life, now cursed her name. And the full, unbridled extent of her suffering, the depths she had no knowledge of, tore at her from the inside.

The gentle fists that had been clenched tightly for the sake of the world...were now being wielded against it as they were filled with anguish.

Her blows were painful, but they could not compare to her words.

She thought...she thought she knew her. She thought...that she fully understood.

And now, on this battlefield, Miku realized that she understood absolutely nothing. Her boasting to Maria more than a month ago had now become nothing more than a lie, something she made up in an attempt to sound sincere.

Another hard blow from the spear flung her fan away from her hand, and following that a punch connected with her stomach. Spittle flew out of her mouth, and she was promptly brought down to her knees before Hibiki, who looked down at her.

Miku coughed, trying to regain her composure. She half expected Hibiki to execute her right there, but instead found that no finishing blow came to behead her.

She raised her head, her vision blurry, and met Hibiki's gaze.

"But first, I need to make sure nobody will get in the way. Maybe I should have done this from the beginning, but I guess it doesn't matter now."

She raised her free hand into the air, and an orb of black light flared to life in her palm before dark rays erupted from it in all directions.

And All the Hopes of this World once again screamed in Miku's ears, wary of their nemesis' intentions. However, with her fighting spirit drained, Miku could do nothing but watch.

-!-

The pit of horror in Genjuro's stomach grew all the more deeper as he watched Hibiki do something they hadn't seen before. The sphere of dark light raged on in her hand, and they all looked with bated breaths as they waited for something to happen.

To hear Hibiki speak such words was a bigger heartbreak than he thought he could ever feel. To hear such a deep loathing for the world at large was not something he had ever expected to come from someone like her.

Yet now, in hindsight, it made all the sense in the world.

And yet, he did not have the luxury to dwell even on that.

"Commander, Chris-san's condition is deteriorating further!" One crew member yelled out to him.

He grit his teeth, and with the response he gave he silently begged the girl for forgiveness. "There's nothing we can do about that now! If we make it out of this, then we'll have Miku-kun blast her! Ichaival can be considered a lost cause for now, so leave her be! We have to continue assisting Maria-kun as much as we can!"

Yes, it didn't really matter at this point. If they won, then Chris could be reclaimed by sacrificing her relic; he was fine with that outcome, for in her current state she was much more effective at eliminating the Noise and beasts than ever before.

And so was the same with the others. In the end, it didn't even matter if they won or not; all they needed to do was to hold their own enemies at bay until Miku achieved victory.

But now, looking at the battle in its current state, he felt every vestige of hope get drained out of his frame. His heart sank as he watched Miku fall to her knees, unable to keep herself up under the assault of Hibiki's cries.

Yet he wanted to hold onto something. He wanted to hold onto the hope that was Miku's determination, her unequaled desire to get Hibiki back, despite the severe circumstances. That even though she heard such horrifying words, that she'll be able to pick herself up and return to the fight all the more invigorated.

But what would be the cost? It seemed to him that at this point that he would have to resort to his worst fear: sacrificing the wielders for the sake of victory.

And so, he steeled his heart, just like he had done many times in the past. Visions of many soldiers that had died due to his commands passed by his eyes, and returning to that mentality from many years ago, Genjuro forced his raging heart to calm forcefully.

"Tell engineering to pick up the pace. We can't let up on our barrage even for a moment."

"Sir! The engineers are already working at max capacity! They can't do more!"

"It doesn't matter," He responded coldly. "Either we all die here or only a few do. So long as we can keep firing the missiles, we'll do so by any means necessary. That's an order."

There was nothing the crew member could say in response.

It was then Elfnein's voice tore through the bridge, more alarmed than ever before. "Something...something strange is happening!" She yelled.

He looked to her at once, studying her carefully. "What is it?!"

"T-the miasma levels...they're going down! No, it's like...it's like it's being condensed into something else! Look!"

With a few rapid presses, she transferred the information to the main screen. Genjuro turned back to it, and his eyes narrowed at the strange calculations.

What she said was true. The overall miasma covering the city was slowly disappearing, yet instead of blanketing over the entire area it was instead being relegated to smaller yet many numerous spots, as if it was being collected there on purpose. Now there were a large number of darkened circles that dotted the city, several of them close to the wielders and some very far off from their locations.

But what was it? What could it mean?

It was then Adam spoke up.

"Oh no…" He murmured, his eyes narrowing.

It did not go over Genjuro's head. He immediately turned to him. "What is it? What do you know?"

"This...is very bad," Adam said, gritting his teeth. "I remember seeing something like this once, and it's not good for any of us. The tables we have worked so hard to turn...are now being turned back on us. This, together with the girl's defeat, might mark the final nail in the coffin for us."

"What?!" Genjuro asked in shock. "What are you talking about?!"

"You'll see right now. It's not even a secret at this point; however, be ready for something unlike anything you've ever seen before, for now the true horror begins."

-!-

Chris' next shot with her fearsome weapon tore through the Noise ranks once again, reducing their numbers even further. They still kept on coming in droves from all corners of the city, and so they seemed to be endless, even with the hole gone.

She turned around swiftly, punching a beast's head off with the back of her hand. She grinned, and from the direction it came she fired again, the green orb once more obliterating everything in its path.

It was proving to be a true blessing, this thing. Crushing the enemies without a care in the world was a liberating feeling she hadn't felt in a long time, and so going wild was a pleasure she never had the luxury of experiencing.

And now, it seemed that the fear of death was once again instilled in the Noise and beasts, as they no longer charged at her recklessly, but rather decided to hang back and surround her on all side save for her eastern flank. That was fine with her, as that definitely indicated that they were-

Something was different.

Immediately on guard, Chris turned to the uncovered flank, facing away from the army of Noise and beasts that she had mercilessly engaged in battle. She looked towards the empty area, her red eyes squinting as she caught sight of something that was…strange and out of place.

A dark cloud hung low, a fog of blackness obscuring her vision of whatever was in that area beforehand. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before, and it immediately put her on edge. Her hunter instincts flared wildly, and she raised her weapon in the direction if the fog, anxiously waiting to see what would happen.

And then her eyes widened.

Because she saw people.

They limped towards her haphazardly, their steps making no sound as they traversed the distance towards her location.

No, now that she looked closely, they weren't actually people.

However, they were something very close to that.

The humanoid shapes seemed to have their entire body be made of nothing but what looked like liquid darkness dripping nasty and disgusting mud with every step they took, and several seemed to even collapse and melt into puddles as they walked. But so numerous were they that it didn't matter, and Chris could tell for a fact that whatever they were, they were NOT friendly to her.

And that was all the confirmation she needed. Aiming her gun at the approaching anomaly, she fired the green orb. It made its way to them unabated, and the green jets of lightning zapped the pseudo humans head on, and each one struck was instantly liquified as it made its way into the fog only to then promptly collide with a solid structure and disappear.

Chris grinned. Yeah, they don't stand a chance against her-

All thoughts of victory instantly fled her mind as the melted beings reformed as fast as they had been vaporized, regaining their original shapes instantly as if they were never destroyed at all. As they got closer and closer to her, Chris could start hearing a low moaning sound coming from their direction that increased in volume with every step they took.

Thinking their survival to be a fluke, she aimed her weapon once more and prepared to press the trigger, only to be blindsided when the beasts standing behind her suddenly surged forward in their huge numbers.

Yet...they weren't aiming for her at all. Instead, the beasts seemed to ignore her existence completely, and only went towards the strange liquid humans that had spawned completely out of nowhere. They charged into their ranks, and the horrid creations did nothing except continue making their way to her, completely uncaring for the black beasts now mingled in their midst.

And then…

They took a bite.

It was so abnormal she couldn't even speak.

The beasts, for some strange and incomprehensible reason, began eating the liquid abominations. The humanoid shapes seemed to be absorbed into the beasts with every bite, but even with that their numbers did not seem to dwindle in the slightest. They continued limping towards her without care or thought, and the black beasts simply chewed and drank them as if it was a matter of course. There was no hesitation or concern on their part, and they simply did what came to them naturally.

It was morbidly fascinating, but Chris knew that whatever was going on, it was definitely not good for her. Unwilling to let them continue their strange ritual, she tightened her grip on her weapon's trigger.

At that moment, two things happened at once.

The first, a beast moved. She wasn't sure which of the many was it, but that didn't matter.

Second, her weapon exploded in a shower of metal shards as said beast's arm pierced through the entirety of its construction with one blow. Caught completely by surprise, Chris stumbled back by the sudden loss of the weight in her arms. She immediately planted her feet, and struck out with a punch towards the beast's face.

Only to find herself careening backwards and being thrown through the remains of a building as the beast's punch connected with her stomach faster than she could even react. The structure collapsed on top of her a second later, covering her in debris. Blanketed with dust, she dug her way out and stared out to where she had stood barely a minute before, perplexed at the sudden increased power of the beast.

Before she could contemplate further, that very same beast blurred towards her instantly, closing the distance in a flash and slamming its fist into her face, sending her barreling down the side of the rubble. She tumbled over again and again painfully, only to rise to one knee at the end of her roll.

"What the fuck-"

BOOM!

Something cracked. Coming at her faster than she could register it, the beast's fist struck her cheek at full force. She felt her jaw dislocate from the blow, and she was once again thrown back violently.

"G-guh…"

'What...what the hell is going on?' She wondered.

The sole beast advanced on her.

'Why the hell is it so strong?!'

-!-

(Play: Fate Stay Night OST - Breach)

Maria had to give Saint-Germain's recovery speed a tip of her hat. Only a few minutes truly passed since she put her down, and already the alchemist was speaking up again, albeit very roughly and with many pauses in her sentences.

Which turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as the moment she began to speak Maria found herself alarmed.

"Some...thing...is...coming...be...on guard…"

The cryptic warning only served as a prelude to what came a moment later. The black beasts suddenly disengaged from their position within the enemy army's formation and dashed backwards, heading towards something Maria could not see behind the wall of Noise. All she could hear was a low moaning sound somewhere in the distance.

And accompanying it was the sound of chewing, something that sounded severely out of place at this time.

"What...what is happening?"

Saint-Germain's eyes widened in an instant.

"SHIELD!"

Maria didn't even bother try to be surprised. Acting purely on instinct, her triangular defense bloomed to life in front of her.

And just in time too, as a beast slammed into it with full force, causing the shield to shatter instantly. Maria stumbled back from the recoil, caught completely off guard by the blow.

"Wha-"

Saint-Germain made a split second decision.

Her hand met the floor beneath her, and a magic circle came grew on it rapidly. Before the beast could attack again, it suddenly found its movements slowed down considerably as the makeshift barrier sprung into existence between it and Maria. Taking the opportunity to retreat, the Airgetlam wielder jumped back to stand by the fallen alchemist, who was now channeling power again.

"Saint-Germain, what are you doing?! What is going on?!" Maria asked incredulously.

"Something...changed…" She said painfully, still maintaining the slowing barrier with the little energy she had left. The beast, along with several of its compatriots attempted to reach the two through it, but the effect the slow had on them was surprisingly effective, holding them at bay for the moment.

When Maria looked back up, she narrowed her eyes at the now empty spot in the Noise ranks, and looked with confusion at the…things that limped towards them from behind. What more, she gasped as she saw one of the beast meatily and hungrily chew into one of them, tearing huge chunks out of its frame and swallowing right after.

"What...is that?"

"Clu...clustered...curses…" Saint-Germain breathed out. "The...miasma...became...them...condensed...the beasts...are...using them as...a power...source…"

"What?!"

That raised more questions for Maria than it answered. She couldn't make any sense out of what Saint-Germain said, and quite frankly she wished she didn't understand. Just seeing those...things that looked like people being consumed like prey in the wildlands almost made her want to hurl.

It was a grotesque scene made all the more absurd by the fact that said consumption made the beasts stronger than should ever be allowed.

"U-urgh…" The alchemist groaned in pain, her tiny supply of energy draining all the more with every second she kept the barrier running. "We...need...to...retreat...again…"

Before she could finish that sentence, a loud whooshing sound rattled the air above them again, and hurriedly Maria raised her shield once more, protecting the two of them from the oncoming blast wave. A second later, a missile exploded right in the space between the Noise and the humanoid shapes, sending a tower of fire and smoke high above.

Listening in to the comms as the wind and flames battered her shield, Maria held on.

"Confirmed hit!" A crew member announced.

The dust settled, and now completely out of power Saint-Germain's arm went limp, the barrier dissipating in short order. Maria looked on nervously, unsure of what to expect.

The Noise seemed to have been completely destroyed, which was good. There weren't exactly that many of them in the first place, so it made things a bit easier on her. The beasts were numerous but didn't break the one hundred mark, which was also good.

But in the aftermath of the missile hit, Maria looked on in shock to see that not only the vast majority of the beasts survived, but the strange humanoid things were completely unharmed, unfazed by the blast and simply continued limping their way towards her.

"What…"

"No effect?!"

Maria looked to Saint-Germain for an explanation.

"What is going on?!" She asked in a panic

And the alchemist breathed heavily again, barely able to answer. "They...are…"

-!-

The two combatants disengaged once again, jumping back to the two sides of the street. Kanade smirked once again, holding her spear in ready position. "You know, if I knew I was gonna die, I probably should have asked you to do this with me in the first place."

Tsubasa huffed in response. "You were always the wildest of the two of us. For that reason, I find myself hardly surprised; although I must admit the thought never once crossed my mind. It was never something I even tried to consider, for our partnership was far more valuable to me than any prospective fights we could have had."

Kanade chuckled, finding herself amused by her answer. "Y'know, I feel the same way. But still, some things you only get to experience once, so you gotta make sure to take the opportunity when you can. It's a damn shame really, that I get to have it only when I have one night to live it."

Tsubasa had nothing to offer her back. It was indeed, even in her own heart, a damn shame. She had wished that Kanade was truly alive again, but knew that such a wish would never come true.

Just seeing her again like this was enough for her. Even if it was just for one night...she'll spend that night with her until she disappears.

"Okay, no more depressing mushy stuff," Kanade suddenly declared. "Let's get back to things!"

Tsubasa nodded. "Right!"

And just as Tsubasa spoke, Kanade charged towards her in blinding speeds, her spear upraised. Ready to block the blow, the Ame-no-Habakiri wielder placed her sword before her as a shield, prepared for the exchange.

Only to be caught by surprise as Kanade slid to a stop at the halfway point. Tsubasa looked at her with wide eyes, confused by the sudden halt in her charge.

But nothing was more confusing than the manner in which her opponent's eyes narrowed, staring at something Tsubasa could not see behind her. She could not help but speak up in response. "Kanade?"

"Tsubasa," The red head said cautiously. "I know this will sound weird, but I need you to come over here."

"What?" Tsubasa let out. "What are you-"

"She can't be serious…" Kanade mumbled to herself, clenching her teeth. "Look, things just took a bad turn. We might have to pause our dance for a bit."

"What? What do you mean?"

Kanade raised her spear, pointing it at something behind Tsubasa. "Because of that."

Puzzled by her former partner's words, Tsubasa turned around to look at what Kanade was referring to.

And promptly all thought processes ceased due to what she was seeing.

Humanoid shapes that seemed to be made of liquid limped towards the two of them from the far end of the street, a low moaning sound accompanying their appearance. Tsubasa took a step back on reflex, wary of these unknown beings that had appeared completely out of nowhere.

"What...are these things?" She said in shock, backtracking even more.

Kanade kept her spear raised, her eyes narrowing as her gaze remained locked on the approaching humanoids. "They are a fucking bad idea, that's what they are. Geez, I don't know what's going on over there, but I guess the missy is really fucked in the head now."

Tsubasa looked at her incredulously as she made her way back, eventually finding herself standing by Kanade's side. "What? What are you talking about?"

"It's a bit difficult to explain, but the best thing I can say is that they're kind of like ghosts...or zombies...or whatever else that is messed up in this world," The red head said, watching the aforementioned beings continue getting closer. Her eyes kept on watching them carefully until the moment she turned her head to the side, spying something else that began to approach. "And it looks like these things are giving our friends here plenty of courage too."

Tsubasa followed her gaze, and saw how several black beasts began to surround the two of them on all sides, rising from behind the cover of the rubble that littered the area.

"Kanade, what is-"

"Okay I got a better word for those things: wraiths. She made the miasma take actual, physical form, and that's what it looks like. What's more," She said, pointing to the beasts. "These things can consume them to become stronger. But that's even worse because the wraiths can't actually be destroyed. Best advice I can give you now is to buckle up, because the ride is just starting now."

"Kanade…" Tsubasa murmured. "But...why are you telling me this? I thought-"

"I want to beat you at your best, Tsubasa. And these things...yeah, they're just gonna give us all a very bad time, especially since we can't kill them. Also, don't let them touch you in any way, especially with the little toy you got working right now."

"The little toy…" Tsubasa repeated to herself, raising her sword as both the beasts and the so called 'wraiths' closed in on the two of them. "You mean...the Super Ignite Module?"

"Whatever that thing is called, yeah," Kanade confirmed, her eyes darting about. "Listen, I'm gonna help you out. I don't like these things, even if I'm technically on the missy's side. Let's do this like we used to, Tsubasa. I guess fighting together for a bit won't be too bad either."

"Kanade…"

What kind of strange circumstances did they just find themselves in? A minute ago, they were about to clash for the hundredth time, but in the span of a few seconds everything turned on its head the moment those wraiths appeared. Kanade seemed to be extremely cautious of them, much more than she did than the black beasts.

It made her anxious, which was something she did not expect to be feeling at the moment.

"Very well, then let's do this like we used to." Tsubasa said, standing by her former partner's side.

"That's more like it," Kanade said with a smile. "Listen, these things are basically a whole bunch of grudges given the shape that fit them the most. She basically clumped that nasty stuff all together in this fucked up form that makes less sense the more you look at it."

"I...see…" Tsubasa answered, finding it difficult to truly comprehend what Kanade was talking about. "You said I shouldn't let them touch me, but why is that?"

Kanade crouched low, prepared for the clash. "Because they'll fuck up your shit in more ways than one…"

-!-

Another full swing nearly decapitated the titan, the giant being barely able to avoid the blow in time. Zababa kept up her assault, slashing and aiming for its limbs. Its fists crashed against the edges of her blades, deflecting them to the side, but it was a futile effort on its part.

Zababa was stronger than it at the moment, that was an unmistakable fact. The titan could barely hold her back as it continuously staggered and stumbled, evading fatal blows by the skin of its teeth.

It had managed to avoid being beheaded again earlier by leaping to the side, destroying even more structures in its wake. Having been deprived of their victory for the second time, Shirabe and Kirika vowed to not let it escape again.

Shul-Shagana and Ig-Alima were swung together again in an X shape at the titan's chest. In response, it quickly raised its fists in front of it to block the blow, and the two struggled against each other, Zababa attempting to slice through its hands with nothing but pure force. It tried to push her off, but the strength behind the strike left it unable to do anything in order to throw her off.

Shirabe and Kirika pushed further, as much as they could. This was the golden opportunity. They could not let it escape again-

Suddenly, a warning sign lit up both of their cockpits. Hurriedly checking out what it was, the two's eyes narrowed as they noticed it was indicating something strange was happening.

'ALERT: POWER DRAIN'

"What?"

A diagram of Zababa's body appeared next to the warning, and a red flash highlighted her feet. Kirika narrowed her eyes, and quickly activated the outside cameras to understand what the hell was going on.

What met her sight was astonishing.

What looked like a huge amount of liquid humans were congregated around Zababa's feet, and one by one each of them bit into her frame, their teeth sinking into the metal making up her feet.

"What the heck are those things-"

A groaning sound forced her attention back to their opponent. Her eyes widened in shock as the clash suddenly became much more even, the previously struggling titan now managing to force Zababa back little by little, the blades no longer able to keep the pressure on it.

"Wh-wha?!"

Any other sound of surprise was cut off as the titan violently pushed the goddess back, causing her to nearly lose her balance and backpedal. Taking the opportunity to strike while she was defenseless, the titan's fist roared forward, and hurriedly Zababa raised her blades to block the blow.

And the two wielders could only watch with dumbstruck expressions as the two legendary swords shattered into pieces, the ruby and emerald shards raining down on the ground below.

"What the heck is going on?!"

-!-

"You have got to be joking."

"I'm not, that's precisely what they are," Adam explained. "This is what happens when someone with nearly infinite power shapes something according to their twisted mind."

Genjuro could barely believe it. The advantage they had worked so painstakingly hard to gain was summarily stolen from them in a single move on Hibiki's part. She simply raised her hand, and all of their hopes were dashed as she brought these ungodly abominations into existence with a single thought.

"This...this is messed up," Sakuya could only say in horror. "These numbers...I can't even make sense of them at all! And what the beasts are doing...that's just…"

"It's like even something as mundane as her eating habits were twisted beyond belief," Tomosato added. "They way they're eating them...it's almost exactly like she does it…"

"This is very bad," Genjuro said through clenched teeth. "What is the status of the wielders?!"

The answers came in rapid fire.

"Chris-san is being pushed back!"

"Zababa's swords were destroyed!"

"Maria-san is barely able to hold her ground!"

"Tsubasa-san and Kanade-san have teamed up, and are turning on the wraiths!"

"Miku-san is unresponsive!"

It was hell.

There was no mistaking it; this is what hell looks like.

"How...how can such things exist?" He could only ask in bewilderment.

"Because that's the might of All the Evils of this World," Adam told him. "You could even call them the returned souls of the damned. The grudges of the past have taken on a physical form, and will continue to absorb curses and grudges into themselves by any means necessary. That is why Zababa is losing power."

"The god-slaying power that makes up her form...is being drained…" Elfnein murmured. "What...what are we supposed to do?!"

Adam huffed, and looked to her from the corner of his eyes. "Isn't it obvious?"

She met his gaze with wide eyes.

"We pray for a miracle."

-!-

"U-ugh…"

How many times was she kicked and pushed around like this so far? She couldn't even begin to count.

Hibiki was relentless. She didn't stop even for a second, and nothing Miku could did managed to even dent her now.

And she didn't understand why. How, how was it she was losing so badly now?!

"You're probably wondering why you're losing, right?" Hibiki suddenly said, catching her by surprise with her apparent mind reading. "It's written all over your face. What did you think Miku? That a month or so of training will be enough for you to close the gap? Please, you know it's not that simple. It's doesn't matter how strong the concept you have is; my divine power is just too much for you. Last time I didn't want to fight you, but now is different."

Another punch slammed into the Shenshoujing user's stomach. "I'm done holding back, even on you. You're so stubborn, just like me, so that's the only way you'll understand."

Miku was sent flying backwards again, and she rolled on the ground helplessly. She could feel her head split open despite the Shenshoujing's protection, and blood flowed down her face as she tried to rise back to her feet.

"That's right," Hibiki continued. "It's always about the fighting, always about the death. That's what the Symphogears were for, and that's what we're here for. We fight, we kill, and we stop caring. I'm tired of it, and I know you're tired of it. But people will never stop fighting, and never stop hating. So this is the only way the world will understand: by destroying everything they held dear, and making them see the hell that I saw."

She trudged towards the fallen wielder with heavy steps. "I'm sorry it has to be this way, Miku. I didn't want things to end up like this, but just like how you had no problem fighting me back then for the sake of what you believed, then I too won't hesitate."

She had to deny her.

She had to deny her.

She had to deny her.

She had to deny her.

But...the world had already done that on its own.

So if she did it too...then who would be left to stand by her side?

'I can't...let it end like this…' She thought to herself.

She could vaguely remember someone telling her something, but she wasn't sure where or when. It was a strong, yet hopeful voice, that she did remember...but not what was talked about.

But it didn't matter. She had to...She had to…

Despite herself, she rose to her feet uneasily. Holding both hands before her, her fan materialized back into her grip, and she stood facing Hibiki defiantly.

"I won't...give up. I'll...take...Hibiki...back…"

The words left her mouth in a weak tone, yet still determined.

She gripped the handle tighter, and memories of sunshine filled her mind.

And she recited the oath she had made to herself, using it as a foothold.

"I'll take back...our happy days…no matter what..."