Symphohgear Trill

Chapter 13: Shadows Cast under Light

The set up for the operation, which as planned was beginning at the crack of dawn: Four black cars and one smaller, more discreet white vehicle. The four black cars were manned by the typical men in black, Ryouko and Hibiki planned to take the white car and watch Durandal themselves, figuring that keeping it close to one of the Symphogears would be best. While elsewhere, Ritsudo and Kyomei would be riding in the chopper with Genjuuro, keeping a wider watch of the situation and ready to drop in if the situation got too hectic.

"We've set checkpoints under the pretense of looking for the defense minister's assassins." Genjuuro finished off the reading, everyone lined up before him and Ryouko, "We're heading straight for the Memory Ruins!"

"I call it "Plan: Keep the Road to Yourself"!" Ryouko added, the groups then splitting off.

For the first few hours leading into the middle of the day, things completely silent along the empty highway except for the buzz of the chopper's rotors in the air well above the cars. Kyomei occasionally peered out to look at the cars below with Genjuuro, the convoy currently nearing the city. Things had gone smoothly, but they weren't about to let themselves get cocky and not expect something to come for them. If the theory held true, then somebody was likely expecting them at some point.

And true enough, what they were expecting came to pass. The three in the chopper gasped when a portion of the highway cracked and gave out, one of the black cars going over and slamming into the wall of the gap, dropping into the water like a brick. Of course it would be the bridge were an attack started, a place far more suited for a surprise attack out of the blue.

"What the hell?!" Ritsudo yelped, Kyomei wide eyed, Genjuuro getting on the comm line.

"We're under attack! We don't have any visual, but it has to be the Noise!" Genjuuro snapped, Kyomei and Ritsudo looking at each other, that glance confirming for both that they were thinking the exact same thing, the two yelping when the next car to go got launched up from a sewer plate, "The sewers, the Noise are attacking from the sewers!"

"Well ain't that awfully coordinated for a bunch of dumb Noise?" Ritsudo quipped.

"Which means they're being controlled! It has to be those two we fought before!" Kyomei said, Ritsudo nodding. The two raised their arms as the next car went up, "That's not good…"

"You said it." Ritsudo muttered.

"Genjuuro-kun, aren't things getting a little bad?" Ryouko's voice came over from the radio, Ritsudo and Kyomei tuning in, "If there's an explosion at the factory up ahead, Durandal will…"

"I know!" Genjuuro replied, Ritsudo and Kyomei moving to the other side of the chopper to look over the nearby factory. "The reason that the Noise are only attacking our cars, is to avoid damaging Durandal! If they're after Durandal, out best move is to go somewhere dangerous, and limit their options!"

"The question is if our enemies really care that much about collateral." Kyomei said.

"What are the odds?" Ryouko said.

"I'm making this up as I go along! I have no idea!" Genjurro said, Ritsudo and Kyomei looking back at the man with stilted looks.

"You're the salt of the earth, sir." Ritsudo said, Kyomei putting a hand to his face.

"But, sometimes you have to adapt!" Kyomei said, going from facepalming to pulling his pendant out. "Commander, we'll drop as soon as we're over the factory!"

"As soon as you do, deploy your Symphogears and engage as you meet up with Ryouko-kun and Hibiki-kun. Don't let anything stand in your way!" Genjurro ordered, the boys nodding as they went to the open doors.

"Ready, Ritsudo-san?" Kyomei said, Ritsudo chuckling as he readied Murakumo.

"Whenever you are!"

"Then let's go!"

With a tap of their hands, as Noise began to swarm onto the sections of the factory below, both of them jumped. And as they fell, even amid the swirling air, the calls they sang reverberated around them.

"Scindia Ame-no-Murakumo tron."

"Fugite Verum Gandiva Tron."

As they descended, Kyomei attacked immediately, drawing his hand crossbows and raining bolts down on the Noise below as they closed in on Ryouko and Hibiki's flipped card. Ritsudo got down faster with a burst of air following him, lashing at the Noise coming too close with a trail of water from his blade extending the range immensely.

"Thanks, Ritsu!" Hibiki nodded to the boy as she pulled the cased Durandal out of the car, grumbling as she did. "Ryouko-san this is heavy!"

"Then let's leave it and run!" Ryouko joked, Ritsudo shooting an unamused glare her way.

"Not the time to be joking around!" Ritsudo snapped, smirking as he looked up and found exactly who he'd been expecting too: Chris and Scordatura, the two looking down at the others from a higher point, clearly ready for a fight. "You two go! Kyomei and I will hold off the Noise and follow!"

"And we can hold off the Nehushtan girl and the Araedhbar user!" Kyomei stated, skidding back and firing his bows off into the Noise. "Mind if I take the lead?"

"Go right ahead!" Ritsudo replied, giving a flick of his wrist to shift his grip, causing a panel on the guard to open, revealing an arranged set of small gems of different colors, the yellow one glowing as the white blade began humming with electricity.

~Where does all the food sustaining us come from? We belong out on the streets begging for our lives. Even the dazzling sun that greeted us when we woke up will be lost again in the dark of the night. What on earth is this that God has given all of us? Venture forth, find the truth that we seek – start out!~

Scordatura leapt down as the Noise attacked in earnest, the swam managing to separate the boys from Ryouko and Hibiki as the car exploded. And once that was confirmed, Scordatura came down on the two with his spear lashing flames from all around it that struck at the two.

Ritsudo dashed right through, his electrified sword slamming right into the shaft of the spear as Scordatura quickly adjusted to block. Kyomei struck with the opening that was seemingly made. As the arrows flew at him, Scordatura threw his free hand up, swatting them aside before gripping his spear and whipping it aside to knock Ritsudo back.

"Ame-no-Murakumo and Gandiva… heh, this matchup is a fun one, even if neither of your have partners to Synchronize with at the moment! Either way… allow me to test that resolve yet again!"

"Here it comes!"

Ritsudo spoke as Scordatura spun the spear around, it's shell casting away telling of what he was doing. The burning weapon was loosed to act on it's own, splitting through the air and aiming for both of the Tuners, Ritsudo deflecting it with a quick parry. Kyomei rolled under the thing, and his eyes went wide as after sailing past a short way, it immediately stopped and reared back around. Luckily though, Kyomei had a defensive tool in the form of his shoulder cape, the item immediately stiffening as the spear crashed into it, sparks flying as it scraped off and then went flying back to its wielder, leaving a dark scorch on the cape as it went back to normal.

~There's a miracle that has been stolen from these hands of mine. We're so close to finding out what is the secret to a brand new destiny! And these tears that are falling down from your eyes, one day they will become the source of your pride!~

As Kyomei switched back to his crossbows and started peppering the area with bolts, Scordatura blocked with a spin of his spear. The masked man dodged as Ritsudo struck at him, then blocking the sword with his free hand's gauntlet, a segment of it opening and locking the blade into place, though Ritsudo didn't falter as he kept his grip tight.

"The sword glows brightly now. But then tell me, Kenzaki Ritsudo, what drives you now hmm?!"

"What, you forget already?!" Ritsudo showed a smirk as he pulled his blade free and struck again, streaks of lightning following the blade likes claws as the blow landed clean on Scordatura's side, a crack of sound going through the air as his foe was knocked back. "I said I want to be a hero! I'm not going to let any more people die needlessly in this world!"

"Admirable but naïve!" Scordatura struck back after splitting his spear into two, getting into another weapon lock with Ritsudo. "No matter how powerful you may become, it's impossible to save everybody!"

"You think I don't know that?! My life has been defined by death!" Ritsudo countered, kicking Scordatura away. "I've lost enough people to know that much. We can't escape death no matter how hard we try. But if I have the power to save people from dying against their own terms, to create a better world without things like the Noise or pointless wars, then I'll use it to do what I think is right!"

"Heh, well said!"

As the fight between the Tuners continued, more Noise summoned by Chris turned their attention to the fleeing Hibiki and Ryouko. Some blasted past the car, causing the vehicle to explode. Hibiki went flying from the shockwave, and the case in her arms clattered to the ground.

With a small sigh, Ryouko stopped and turned, lifting her hand. And from it, as more Noise lunged, a purple barrier of hexagonal light formed in front of her and Hibiki. The impacts blew the air around the woman all over, causing her hair to come loose and fall down, and her glasses flying. Hibiki almost swore it was like just that slight shift nearly made Ryouko look like an entirely different person for a second… like a flash of blonde hair and tanned skin showed for just a moment.

"Ryouko-san?"

"It can't be helped. You'll do whatever you want how you want to, right?" Ryouko looked to Hibiki, the girl giving a nod as she stood up.

"I'm going to sing!" Hibiki took in a breath and put a hand near her chest, a gleam in the shape of a forte shining just there.

"Balwisyall nescell Gungnir Tron."

Unlike when she'd be in a clumsy stance before, now when Hibiki readied herself, her footing was far steadier and her form better. The days of training with Genjurro weren't going to be wasted. Because simply put, if she couldn't form an Armed Gear like the others, then she'd use her whole body as a weapon in place of one.

~Straight ahead... I can't look at you. I stuffed that smile of mine that's like an excuse. "One step, one step at a time, just a little more..." Ah, I convey this brave song to the tomorrow I believe in.~

Dodging the first wave, Hibiki stumbled as the heel of her boots hit a pipe, giving a hiss. The things were only in the way, so there was one option: Smash them off. With two quick moves, the heels on Hibiki's feet were smashed off, leaving her free to take a flatter stance. Her eyes darted around as the Noise drew in closer, and when on lunged, Hibiki threw an arm forward quickly, her fist smashing into the Noise, the force of the blow smashing through the creature's body before it burst away into ash.

~I'm sure, I'm sure it will come true. There's no such thing as improbable. This huge feeling of fearing fighting... Now, blast it away with this energy! 100 percent full throttle! Let's exchange our ideas on the dream we hold tightly because we don't have time for dripping tears. I have something in me that I have to protect. Yes, burn up! Flare of sparkling life.~

And the rest followed suit. Clearly practiced punches and kicks, minimalist dodges and quick reactions. Hibiki was blowing through the Noise far easier now than in any of her earlier fights, her moves coming from all kinds of styles she'd seen in all those movies Genjurro had made her watch.

"Damn." Ritsudo let out an impressed whistle as he observed, stepping back and parrying when Scordatura stabbed at him. A heavy arrow falling between them made both jumped back, and Kyomei leapt between both with his main bow draw, glancing back at Ritsudo.

"Ritsudo-san, go help Tachibana-san with the Noise so we can keep Durandal. I'll keep him here."

"… got it." Ritsudo took a moment to respond, seeing that the look in Kyomei's eyes said enough. He leapt off with wind starting to fly from his blade, and Kyomei turned back to Scordatura as his fingers hovered over the bowstring of his weapon.

"I doubt you sent him off because you think you can actually defeat me on your own." Scordatura spun his spear into a casual hold, Kyomei still not lowering his guard. "Tell me, Aikawa Kyomei, what is it you want to know hmm? Your eyes tell me that much."

"Saves me the trouble. Then I'll be direct: Are you or are you not Hidaka Kotone beneath that mask?"

"Ohh? And what brings that about?"

"The way you move in a fight, how you maneuver that spear… hell even just how strong you are. I know all of that. You fight in the exact same way he does… and every time you're near, Ruyi Jingu Bang chimes. Like it knows it's user is close." Kyomei then lowered the bow, grabbing it with both hands and splitting it in two, grasping the ends as daggers in reverse hold as they straightened out. "Or, is it something else?"

"That is a rather complex question." Scordatura said, raising his spear back up. "If you want confirmation that he is alive, then I can indeed tell you that he is. The Compliant Staff is correct in it's resonance… but as for whether your friend is truly here right now, that would be a no."

"That doesn't answer my question!"

"You'll have that answer soon enough… but for now, no… I am only Scordatura. Until that boy's heart heals, it will be some time before the staff can be reclaimed."

"Tch… if you're gonna be obtuse about it. I guess the fight is still on."

Red lightning sparked around Kyomei's daggers as he rushed forward, the clash between him and Scordatura back on as their weapons collided in swathes of red and orange.

Whereas with Hibiki and Ritsudo, they were easily thinning out the Noise swarm with few issues, ash piling up with each one they took down. And above, as the two fought in easy synch with each other's movements, Chris looked at them with an annoyed expression.

"You're telling me those two can fight now?!" With a growl, Chris lashed one of her chain whips and sent it flying, aiming for Hibiki, but with a quick dash across the way, Ritsudo's blade crashed into it, sending the whip to the side. "How did he see that?!"

"Are you just gonna stand up there looking down on us all day, or you actually going to fight us like your friend huh?" Ritsudo said, aiming his sword at Chris.

"Tch. Fine, if you want to fight so badly, I will!"

Chris lashed out the whip again, Ritsudo catching it on his blade, the item wrapping around and locking in. Chris smirked as she went to pull, but she was stopped dead by Hibiki grabbing the chain and then ramming her feet into the ground, Ritsudo pulling his sword loose. With a yell, Hibiki pulled hard on the chain, Chris yelping as she was yanked into the air.

Ritsudo jumped with a trail of fire following him, ascending to Chris's height as she was still carried up. When he slashed, Chris used her other chain to counter it, but as the weapons collided, Hibiki pulled the chain she did have and pulled Chris right to the ground. Ritsudo followed up by gathering the flames around his blade and letting them loose, Chris countering by lobbing an energy ball at it, the two attacks impacting and exploding in midair, the shockwave sending both in opposite directions.

"Ritsu!" Hibiki reacted quickly and caught Ritsudo as he came sailing down, the boy nodding as he got back upright, both countering when Chris lashed at them with both chains at the same time.

"Amazing. Even without Synchronization they're fighting completely in synch with one another." Ryouko had a wide, awed look on as she watched the melee continue. Hibiki's lack of mastery over her Symphogear was balanced by her new skills, while Ritsudo had begun fostering skill to match the power of his Relic, meaning both were showing to be more than a match for Chris's Nehushtan Armor.

And then the case for Durandal began beeping, Ryouko looking to it with a gasp. The case opened and let out a hiss, steam pouring from it.

"This signal… no way, their Aufwachen Waves!"

Scordatura and Kyomei's duel came to a stop as the spearman halted, Kyomei raising a brow from sighting his bow as the masked man turned.

"Durandal, it's awakening." Scordatura said, Kyomei looking to the other three fighters with a gasp.

Chris was able to break Ritsudo away from her, and have a solid kick to Hibiki that sent her smashing to the ground. And as the dust kicked up, a piercing noise hit the air. Durandal's case burst wide open, the sword flying into the air and spinning to a halt in place, a ringing noise beginning to fill the space around them. Ritsudo flinched and put a hand to his head, looking at Murakumo as it too rang in his grip.

"It really is… Durandal is activating in response to their Aufwachen Waves." Ryouko's eyes went wide as Durandal began to glow brighter by the second.

Scordatura watched and gave a breath that said, surprisingly, uneasiness, which caught Kyomei by surprise as he noticed it. Chris however, saw the weapon and smirked.

"So this is Durandal." Chris chuckled and leapt, reaching out to the blade… only to get stalled when Hibiki jumped and shoulder rammed her out of the way.

"You can't have it!" Hibiki screamed as she reached out herself, grabbing onto Durandal as Chris went flying to the ground. But when she did, a loud keen pulsed through the air, a following hum of power beginning to sound. Hibiki landed on the ground with Durandal in her grasp, the blade's aura growing larger, but something was off. She was shuddering as she held it, her teeth grating as red lights flared in her eyes.

"Do something! Get that damn thing out of her hands before it goes wild!" Murakumo yelling in his mind snapped Ritsudo out of his shock.

As Ritsudo began to move, a pillar of light bursting up into the air made him stop dead, like a weight had suddenly forced him to stop, Murakumo letting out a growl. Hibiki now stood with that same half dark shroud over her, her eyes glowing red, all too akin to that time Ritsudo went berserk. And in her hands, Durandal changed. All the rust and age vanished as the blade extended to a complete state and the guard changed too, the sword becoming a shining gold colored accented by glowing blue lines running along its various parts.

"What did she do?" Chris gasped, and for some reason looking at Ryouko. When she saw the woman's ecstatic face, the girl let out a growl and pulled out the Staff of Solomon. "Don't show off your power!"

"The hell do you think you're doing?!" Ritsudo shouted as Chris summoned Noise behind Hibiki, but that feeling of being locked in place remained, and he let out a growl as he forced himself to stop moving. "Like hell I'm letting things go this way!"

"It's activated. You all may want to get out of the way! Or better yet, if you don't want this area to go up in flames, stop her!" Scordatura shouted above the roaring as Hibiki began to turn, the girl starting to bring the sword down.

"Get out of the way!" Ritsudo reacted quickly, dicing to the side and tackling Chris out of the way of the descending beam of light, the armored girl letting out a yell.

"The hell do you think you're doing?! I'm your enemy dammit!" Chris shouted.

"Don't care! I'm not going to let someone be in a situation where they could die in front of me! Besides, nobody deserves to die fighting! Your life should be on your own terms, and that includes how it ends!" Ritsudo snapped, Chris flinching before leaping off. Ritsudo clicked his tongue then turned, flinching as the blade of light came closer down. Then his eyes went wide. "Shit! It's gonna hit the main tower!"

"Tachibana stop!" Kyomei shouted as he started to move… and then a golden gleam showed from one of the armor panels at his waist.

The armor opened up, something flying from it and through the air as a bolt of light. Whatever it was collided with the falling blade of light, stopping it dead. For a few seconds the two lights stayed put, and Ryouko's eyes went wider as her expression showed shock as well. Then an explosion blasted through the air.

From the bottom of the blast, Ryouko had that same purple barrier up again. She was looking down at an unconscious Hibiki, the Durandal still in her grasp… and an all too pleasant smile on her face as she looked at the blade.

Scordatura lingered for a moment amid the rubble that was left, turning to gaze at something as it crashed into the ground. A staff, two meters in length and ebony black with styled white cravings across its length, the exposed end not buried in the ground topped by a golden cap with decorative engravings.

"So, a bit of your will responded to the Gungnir's resonance. Seems you're making progress, Hidaka Kotone. I hope you're prepared when the time comes."

With a twirl of his spear and a burst of flames, Scordatura vanished from sight. Kyomei just stared as he looked at the staff with wide eyes, Ritsudo following his eyes to it, looking at Murakumo as it hummed a bit.

"Ruyi Jingu Bang…" Kyomei murmured, Ritsudo's eyes going wide. "Koto."

A short while later, rescue personnel had arrived to start clearing out the damages left behind by the battle. Ritsudo and Kyomei were seated on some of it, and Kyomei was still staring at the Ruyji Jingu Bang, still propped up into the ground where it had fallen. The thing's sudden action had prevented more severe damages to the factory area, but as for why it did it, that was leaving Kyomei totally stumped.

"Maybe it had something to do with the Gungnir?" Kyomei tented his hands as he shut his eyes, giving a groan as he leaned his head down.

"What… what was that power?" Hibiki, still with her eyes closed, finally roused back awake, slowly opening her eyes. "I just remember things suddenly getting dark, and then a rush… did I really do that? My body moved all on it's own…"

Hibiki's eyes then shot open completely, the girl shooting upright, not noticing that she was still gripping Durandal. She spotted Ryouko standing before her pinning her hair back up, and Ritsudo was quick to run over,

"Hibiki-san! You alright?" Ritsudo knelt down, Hibiki nodding as he helped her up.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"And that was Durandal." Ryouko said, Hibiki and Ritsudo looking to her. "Like Ame-no-Murakumo, a complete Relic, awakened by your songs."

"We awakened it?" Hibiki murmured, looking down to the golden sword. Ritsudo clenching his hand over Murakumo's pendant as it hummed again, like the will of the Relic was agitated just being around Durandal.

"Well, it was probably moreso you, Hibiki-chan. It seems Murakumo didn't react well to Durandal." Ryouko said, and Ritsudo couldn't help but catch she seemed a bit pleased with that for some reason.

"But Murakumo doesn't come close to behaving like that." Ritsudo muttered.

"U-Uhm, I… Ryouko-san, what about your…" Hibiki stammered out, Ryouko giving a casual gesture as she placed her glasses back on, giving Hibiki a pat on the shoulder.

"Does it matter? We all survived didn't we?" The woman said, though to the confusion of the teenagers, she looked suddenly unsettled, the two glancing over to see she was looking over at Kyomei and Ruyi Jingu Bang. Kyomei was in the process of trying to unwedge the staff, and Ryouko just turned and walked off as her communicator rang.

"That was odd." Ritsudo said, Hibiki nodding and looking back at Ryouko.

"Come on… just move! Why is this thing so heavy?!" Kyomei grumbled as he kept pushing at the staff, then yelling when it suddenly gave way. As he stumbled and almost fell, he looked back as he heard clattering, the staff having returned to it's pendant form. As he picked it up, Kyomei thought about what Scordatura had said, gripping the pendant tightly. "Koto, just how close are you, if that's the case?"

"Closer than you think."

"Huh?!" Hearing the familiar voice of his senior made Kyomei flinch, looking around desperately for a source of the noise… only to realize it had been in his head. Ruyi Jingu Bang was humming in his hand, yet Kyomei had no idea just what that actually meant at the moment.

And elsewhere, where others couldn't reach by any normal means, Koto gave a chuckle. He opened his eyes back to the scenery of an overlook viewing the expanse of the city. He leaned on a hand as he snickered, then glanced over when he heard a shifting in the air.

"So, mind telling me what that stunt back there was about?" The voice that spoke was amused, Koto looking forward and chuckling again.

"It was nothing of my own doing really. My partner just got excited is all. He likes to act on his own if I let him. Though my partner isn't as unruly as that wild dog you have with you."

"Araedhbar is more obedient than you may think. It's simply that it is destined for another. I'm just borrowing it's strength for the time being, as it was convenient."

"Whatever you say I guess." Koto leaned back on the rail. "Heh… guess I'm starting to get impatient now."

"So her presence is helping I see. Well, considering the Durandal has awakened now, I doubt it'll be much longer. Once Kadingir rises and I put an end to this cycle she and I are in, my work will be done. Simply put, I want to know if you'll be prepared when that happens."

"Most likely. Nice to know you care."

"Hmph. You are my descendant. Why wouldn't I?" As the figure vanished, a few more words came from him as well. "The future should be left to those of the present after all. I'm a ghost from the past… I have no place in deciding the future."

"Heh, how wise of you." Koto chuckled as he looked ahead, a drift of orange feathers in front of him making him chuckle. "Well you've found quite the way to say hello now haven't you, Kanade?"

"Well I think it's kind of fun." Kanade chuckled as she stepped off of the railing, stretching her arms. "So, how do you think the two of them are doing eh?"

"To me it looks like our adorable juniors are doing just fine." Koto said, Kanade stepping next to him, wrapping a hand to his. "My question is how you feel about it."

"I just wanna see Tsubasa and Kyomei happy. But I'm here for reasons of my own." Kanade then gave a playful laugh, grabbing Koto and prompting him to snicker. "But what am I gonna do when you go back ehh? I'll get bored just watching with nobody to talk to."

"You two are insufferable." And then a voice like Koto's caught their attention, the two looking back to see a glowing golden money sitting elsewhere on the rail, hanging off it by it's tail. "It gets old after a bit y'know?"

"Oi, ape, I thought you went back to the staff to keep your eye on Kyomei." Koto said, the spirit money waving a hand. "Go back."

"Alright alright! Just saying hello yeesh. You tell me to go help and when I drop in you boot me out ehh? Same as always, partner." With a cheeping laugh, the monkey vanished, Koto clicking his tongue as he leaned on his free hand.

"Ahaha! And weren't you just praising him earlier?"

"Eh it's like an annoying brother."

"Haha, makes sense." Kanade then looked out over the city, Koto staring at her as the wind blew past. "When you do head back, make sure you keep smiling, alright Koto?"

"Yeah. Though, I doubt it'll be lonely." Koto said, ruffling Kanade's hair. "Cause you've got the three of us who won't forget a single thing."

"Of course. Thank you, Koto."

A/N

So I did a small little edit/retcon back in chapter 10. Ritsudo got a song change, from "Raise up Your Flag" to "Braver" by Luck Life. And as for things, now we've got them climbing up, things are gonna be fun going from here.