Book 3: XDR Rising

by Fir100

With their missions completed, the two teams will meet up in the world of the Symphogears to reunite with Kanade and Serena's allies and to investigate the original source of the Dimension Fragments, Gjallarhorn. And from there, a new multiversal team will be born.

4. New Bonds

Book 3: XDR Rising

Chapter 4: New Bonds

Last time, our heroes were gaining the upper hand against the abberations and Alca-Noise, but they were suddenly attacked by two chimeras named Diomedes and Briarios, and the Arrow Nemesis, hindering their progress. But despite that, they managed to defeat the chimeras, destroyed the Red Gates that spawned the chimeras and abberations, and captured the Nemesis which then became the Arrow Legion. And now, they're on their way to S.O.N.G HQ to ask for assistance in order to decipher the code of Gjallarhorn's last known location. But before we get to that, let's see how Akira and her team are doing, shall we?

---

The Sands of Time

Zi-O Liner, Dining Area

As the Zi-O Liner traveled through the Sands of Time towards its next destination; Akira, Woz, Kiana, Regina and Miriam are sitting on their chairs while having a small conversation with tea and snacks to pass the time until the train arrives at the Symphogear world. Everyone else is busy doing their own things either in the Lounge Area, Training Area, or the R&D Lab.

"Mmm… this tea is quite lovely." Miriam remarked after taking a sip of tea.

"That's green tea for ya. And it's quite healthy too." Akira replied while eating a biscuit. "I take it that your world doesn't have that kind of tea before?"

"Not really, I've only remembered drinking black tea instead." Miriam replied back.

"What kind of food do you have in your world, Miriam?" Kiana asked while eating some toast.

"The usual. Cakes, pizzas, deserts, steak, pretty much the same as your world, Kiana." Miriam answered.

"Huh, same with mine and Akira's world too." Regina remarked while drinking her tea.

"I see." Miriam responded. "Well, besides being a demon hunter, I'm also a good cook. I've even made food for other people during my travels."

"Ah, how very generous of you." Woz smiled while reading a book.

"I wonder if I could cook some of the dishes I've learned for all of you to try out?" Miriam pondered.

"I don't see why not. I wouldn't mind trying out some of your dishes." Akira approved. "Do you have a cookbook with you?"

"Hmm… one moment please." Miriam replied as she searched her pocket, until she found several recipes and showed them to the group. "This is all I have so far."

"Does it have pizza toast on it?" Kiana asked.

"Pizza… toast?" Miriam tilted her head in confusion. "I know I've made pizza before, but not pizza toast."

"It's like having pizza on a bread instead of a large dough." Kiana described. "I've made some myself during my breaks."

"Is that so? Would you be so kind enough to teach me how to make those?" Miriam asked.

"Sure thing, Miriam!" Kiana answered with a smile. "It's actually really easy to make one, or even a few more."

"Thank you, Kiana. I'll look forward to learn your dish." Miriam smiled back.

"Pizza toast, huh? I've never tried that before back in my world. Still, I wouldn't mind trying out that dish." Regina commented.

"Trust me, Regina, you'll love it." Kiana smiled.

"Make some for me too!" Akira requested with her hand raised.

However, their conversation was suddenly put to a halt when the Zi-O Liner began to slow down until it stopped completely.

"Wait, we've stopped? Did we reach our destination already?" Kiana questioned.

"Not quite." Woz spoke up, earning their attention. "Usually the train stops when it detects something unusual nearby that's not the Dimensional Quakes. It's how me and Naomi was able to discover Einstein before bringing her on board."

"In other words, more stranded people lost in the Sands of Time." Akira stated, earning a nod from Woz. "Well then…" She stood up from her seat. "Time to see who we've found this time. The trip to the Symphogear world can wait for just a little bit."

The others nodded in agreement before they stood up for their seats (except for Woz who chose to stay seated), head for the train entrance and opened the door. And what they saw outside shocked the group as they saw three girls trying to tend to one unconscious man who looks badly hurt with a few bandages on his stomach and forehead. He had short blonde hair, wearing a short brown shirt and some kind of purple hakama along with a large scythe next to him.

"My goodness…!" Miriam said in shock with her hand over her mouth when she and the others saw the injured man. "What on earth happened to that man?"

"Don't know, but that guy needs medical attention, ASAP!" Kiana grimly stated.

"What?"

"As Soon As Possible, Miriam." Regina clarified with a sweatdrop.

"Oh."

"Hey, you guys need some help?!" Akira shouted to the stranded ones, gaining their attention. "Quickly come on board the Zi-O Liner! We'll also help treat that man immediately!" She pointed them to the Zi-O Liner in a hurry.

The stranded ones looked at each other to ponder for a moment until they nodded in agreement. They then turned to Akira's group and gave them a nod of approval.

"Kiana, help me get that man on board and into the Medical Area immediately! Everyone else, lead them to the Dining Area and give them something to eat! They look very exhausted from being stranded out here for too long!" Akira ordered her teammates before she ran towards the injured man to help.

"Got it!" The others responded as they perform their tasks. Miriam and Regina lead the stranded ones inside the train first, while Akira and Kiana carried the unconscious man inside the train next once everyone went inside. After that, the door closed and the train began to move once more.

---

A few minutes later…

Mei, Bronya, Fu Hua, Himeko, Seele, Theresa, Kallen, Yae Sakura, Miriam, Regina and Woz, along with the three stranded people are now in the Dining Area, waiting for Akira and Kiana for any news about the man's condition. Miriam and Regina just briefly explained to their friends about what happened, while the stranded ones are properly fed thanks to Naomi offering some food and water.

"So more people were stranded due to the Dimensional Quakes, huh? Thank goodness you girls brought them here." Theresa said to Miriam and Regina.

"Though I'm more worried about that wounded man. I wonder what happened to him?" Himeko pondered.

Eventually, Akira and Kiana arrived, earning everyone's attention. "Well I've got some good news and bad news." Akira reported. "Good news is that the man is still hanging in there despite the injuries."

"Bad news however, he's in a deep coma and won't be waking up for a long while." Kiana added. "That's why Einstein instructed us to put him inside a medical capsule to keep him alive until he wakes up from his coma."

"Well, you two did the best you could to help him, at least." Mei replied.

"And don't worry about our guests, they've been properly fed and drank plenty of water." Fu Hua added.

"Thanks, girls." Akira smiled back before she took a seat in front of the guests to speak with them. "Now then, first things first. May we please have your names and where you come from so that we can get to know each other a little better?"

"Allow me to go first. My name is Noelle from the nation of Mondstadt; I'm a maid who's training to become a knight and be part of the Knights of Favonius." The girl with short lavender hair with lopsided bangs and olive green eyes introduced herself with a bow. Noelle is wearing a maid outfit along with a priestess hat, a cravat, and several roses on her dress. Her crimson dress has two bows, one at her hip and the other on her rear, the latter of which had some kind of orange round-shaped crystal orb that is sat on top of. Gilded white armor plating adorns her chest along with a pauldron upon her left shoulder. She also wears black tights beneath her armored boots. Her hair also has a braid that runs over her bangs and is clipped down by a shield hair clip.

"M-My name is Sucrose, also from Mondstadt; I'm an alchemist that specializes in bio-alchemy." The fair skinned girl with short light-green hair with a streak of blue, amber eyes, and wearing a pair of black-rimmed round spectacles, introduced herself. Sucrose is wearing some kind of alchemist uniform that has thick, white gloves, a blue corset with a ruffled hem, and a pair of white boots and black thigh-highs with garters. Also, a light green round-shaped crystal orb is attached as a brooch to her cape collar.

"And you can call me Lumine." The fair skinned girl with bright blonde hair and golden-yellow eyes, introduced herself. Lumine is wearing a sleeveless white dress with a scarf, bracers and gloves that cover only her thumb, with white stockings and boots. Her hairstyle is cut into a bob with bangs, exempt two sections of hair on each side of her head that have been left at shoulder-length, and decorated with light blue flowers and feathers.

"So Noelle, Sucrose and Lumine. Got it." Akira greeted back with a nod. "I'm Akira Naotora." She introduced herself before gesturing to her friends. "And these people are friends of mine; Kiana, Kallen, Mei, Sakura, Bronya, Seele, Fu Hua, Himeko, Theresa, Miriam, Regina and Woz."

"Nice to meet you." They greeted the guests with a bow.

"Wait a minute. I've just realized that Lumine never said where's she from." Kallen pointed out.

"Oh yeah, where are you from, Lumine?" Akira asked.

"Well, I'm actually from another world, travelling throughout the universe." Lumine answered.

"So you're some kind of multiversal traveler?" Seele guessed.

"Something like that, but then something happened to me during my travels." Lumine replied sadly.

"What happened?" Bronya asked.

"I was travelling throughout the universe alongside my twin brother Aether, until we were ambushed by an unknown god." Lumine explained.

"An unknown god, you say?" Woz pondered with his hand on his chin. "Do you know what that god looked like?"

"Well… it was a woman with glowing white hair and orange eyes. That's all I can remember." Lumine answered.

"Glowing white hair, orange eyes… Wait. Why does that god sound like the other me when possessed by the Herrscher of the Void?" Kiana thought with curiosity.

"Kiana, are you alright?" Mei asked.

"O-Oh, it's nothing." Kiana quickly waved off before turning to Lumine. "Anyway, what happened next?"

"Me and my brother tried to fight against the unknown god, but she was far too strong for us to handle." Lumine continued. "And then she attacked my brother with a swarm of dark cubes, trapping him inside. I tried to free my brother, but she ended up doing the same for me too. All I saw after that, is nothing but darkness." She then looked at the window. "And when I finally woke up, I somehow find myself stranded in that desert, with all of my powers gone. I've walked endlessly through that desert, hoping to find my brother or even any sign of people." She then turned to Noelle and Sucrose. "Until I found these two, helping out a very injured man who's still unconscious. I had to do something to help out, despite losing my powers."

"And that's when you met us, right?" Akira guessed, earning a nod from Lumine.

Everyone in the room felt sorry for what happened to Lumine and her brother, and feeling very worried at how strong that unknown god is. With powers that strong, they'll need to be very careful when facing her in the future, otherwise they'll share the twins' fate. Looks like the Neo Time Jackers aren't the only problem the heroes will have to deal with.

"Don't worry, Lumine. We'll help you find your brother." Miriam assured her.

"You will?"

"Of course! Come and travel with us, and maybe we'll find a way to get your powers back." Regina also assured.

"That, and you can't go anywhere without your powers. You're better off coming with us." Fu Hua added.

"So, what do you say, Lumine? Wanna join us?" Kiana offered.

Lumine was surprised that these kind people are willing to help find her brother and get her powers back. But with that unknown god still lurking around the multiverse, she'll need all the help she could get. That, and she had nowhere to go since her powers are gone. With that in mind, she made her decision. "Thank you, everyone. I'll gladly join your group." She accepted with a nod and a smile.

"Welcome to the team, Lumine!" Akira smiled back as she and Lumine shook hands together.

"Rejoice, Lumine!" Woz said. "This will be the beginning of your journey to find your brother and to regain your powers! Many trials await during your adventures with us, so I hope you're prepared for what's to come."

"If that's what it takes to find Aether and to get my powers back, then I'll face them head-on!" Lumine declared with a determined expression.

"Well said, traveler." Woz smiled at her resolve.

"Now then..." Akira began to ask Noelle and Sucrose. "You both said that you're from Mondstadt, correct?" The two confirmed it with a nod. "Which world is that? And how did you end up here?"

"Well, me and Noelle are from a world called Teyvat." Sucrose answered. "As for how we ended up here..." She began to sigh and turned to Noelle. "The problem starts with her."

"Well I can't just stand there and wait for the Knights of Favonius to deal with Stormterror! Otherwise, Mondstadt will be in grave danger overtime!" Noelle defended.

"Who's Stormterror?" Sakura asked.

"It's a large flying wind dragon."

"A wind dragon?!" Everyone exclaimed (except Sucrose and Woz, with the latter raising an eyebrow).

"But why would Stormterror attack Mondstadt? Did it have a grudge with someone living in that region?" Theresa questioned with her hand on her chin.

"No one knows." Noelle answered. "But I do know that if someone doesn't stop that dragon soon, Mondstadt will eventually be destroyed by its windstorms. Which is why I set off to deal with Stormterror myself living in his lair without telling anyone, even the knights."

"And you quickly went after Noelle to bring her back before she does something reckless, right?" Himeko asked Surcrose, who sighed and nodded in confirmation.

"While I do admire your determination and resolve to deal with the threat immediately, however that was too reckless to fight something that dangerous alone." Theresa stated to Noelle. "You should've asked for help or at least wait for the knights to deal with the threat instead."

"See, Noelle? I tried to warn you, but you were too stubborn." Sucrose sighed.

"I know you wanted to be a knight that badly, but you need to have patience. Taking shortcuts like that will not end well." Kallen advised Noelle, making her sigh with a bit of guilt.

"And besides, think about your friends or even the other knights if you never came back. I know that they'll definitely be worried sick." Seele added.

"Well... I guess you all have a point there. My behaviour was quite unbefitting for a maid, or even a knight." Noelle admitted before bowing apologetically. "I humbly apologize."

"Don't just apologize to us, apologize to Sucrose instead. She's the one trying to keep you safe." Akira pointed out.

Noelle nodded back before turning to Sucrose and bowed apologetically. "Forgive me, Sucrose. I didn't mean to cause trouble for you. I was only trying to be a knight like everyone else, especially Master Jean."

"I-It's no problem, Noelle. I know that you'll become a great knight someday." Sucrose bowed back. "But protecting your friends, the knights, and even Jean, are more important than that. I'm sure that Stormterror will be dealt with soon. Have faith in them for a while longer, okay?"

"I understand, Sucrose. Thank you." Noelle smiled and nodded back, with everyone else smiling.

"Good to see you two finally making up." Fu Hua smiled. "But who's Master Jean?"

"Ah, right. Her full name is Jean Gunnhildr, Acting Grand Master for the Knights of Favonius." Noelle answered.

"So she's basically one of the main protectors of Mondstadt, right?" Himeko guessed, earning a confirmed nod from Noelle.

"Master Jean is also known as the Dandelion Knight or the Lionfang Knight, just like her constellation." Sucrose said.

"The Leo constellation, correct?" Akira guessed, earning a confirmed nod from Sucrose. "Neat. My constellation is Libra, just like my brother. And as for Gaius, his constellation is Capricorn."

"The Bronya feels like we're getting off topic. We still need to know how did these two ended up in that desert." Bronya stated to the group while staring at Noelle and Sucrose.

"Ah, right. Our apologies for that." Noelle replied with a bow, with Sucrose also bowing. "I was almost halfway towards reaching Stormterror's Lair with Sucrose following close behind, until an unknown quake occurred. She was about to fall off, but I was able to grab her hand just in time, but then the quake got bigger, making us both fall inside. When we woke up later on, we ended up being stranded in that desert. But at least Sucrose was with me the entire time so I wouldn't get too lonely."

"I'm just glad you're okay, Noelle." Sucrose said.

"I'm fine, and I thank you for that." Noelle smiled back.

"Anyway..." Sucrose continued. "While we're traversing through the desert, we came across that unconscious wounded man, and he had a lot of blood pouring out of his body. We did the best we could, healing his wounds and covering them up with bandages to stop the blood flowing out. We tried to wake him up, but he was in a deep coma. A few minutes later, Lumine found us and did her best to help that man."

"And a few minutes after that, we found all of you." Regina finished, earning a nod from Noelle, Sucrose and Lumine.

Akira's group had serious expressions on their faces when the guests said something about an unknown quake. "I think I know what happened to you two, and maybe even that wounded man." Akira spoke to Noelle and Sucrose. "You were struck by a Dimensional Quake."

"A Dimensional Quake?" The guests repeated.

"What is that?" Lumine asked.

"Well it's a long story, but you three need to hear this." Akira answered before turning to the rest of her group. "You girls can go back to your daily routines, I can handle the rest from here."

"No problem, Akira." Kiana replied. "And after hearing about that unknown god from Lumine, I think I'm gonna train a bit more. Plus, Einstein wanted me to test out a new battlesuit for me when it's ready."

"Ah, that remind me. Tesla is also planning to test out my new battlesuit when its finished." Mei realized. "Let me train along with you, Kiana."

"Great! I could use a sparring partner." Kiana smiled back.

"Me and Himeko will oversee your training, you two." Fu Hua said to Kiana and Mei.

"In addition, you both will need to learn your powers properly. But we'll take it one step at a time." Himeko added.

"We appreciate your assistance, Himeko, Fu Hua." Mei responded with a bow, with Kiana also bowing.

"Sakura and I will also oversee your training, you two." Kallen said to Kiana and Mei.

"We'll also act as your sparring partners, so try not to work too hard. Understand?" Sakura added.

"Thanks, Kallen, Sakura." Kiana replied back with a smile.

"Wait, what about the pizza toast? I thought you were going to help me make that recipe." Miriam asked Kiana.

"Ah crap, I forgot." Kiana muttered in realization. "Sorry Miriam, but maybe after the training session, okay?"

"It's fine, I can wait for a while longer." Miriam understood.

"Thanks, Miriam." Kiana smiled back before turning to the guests. "Well it's nice meeting with you three. Hope we can get along!"

"Same to you and your friends too." Lumine nodded back and smiled. "Good luck on your training!"

"Let us know when we're about to arrive at our destination. For now, see you later!" Mei told Akira before she, Kiana, Himeko and Fu Hua left the Dining Area and head for the Training Area.

"The Bronya did not expect Kiana to be that determined instead of being lazy." Bronya commented.

"Well she's trying to protect her friends after hearing about Otto and Schicksal's dark truth. That's why she's that determined to become stronger to protect them." Seele stated.

"Oh."

"My father and Schicksal will be in for a very rude awakening when we get back to our world after becoming stronger than ever." Theresa said with a small devious grin. "He'll never see it coming."

"Agreed." Bronya nodded.

"Okay, I'm gonna go see how that wounded man is doing. See ya!" Theresa declared before leaving the area and heading for the Medical Area.

"I think I'll go prepare some meals while we wait." Miriam declared. "Regina, Bronya, Seele, would you three like to join me?"

"Oh, sure thing, Miriam!" Regina accepted. "Maybe I can learn how to cook along the way."

"Sounds good, Miriam." Seele also accepted.

"Very well." Bronya nodded.

"Right then, we'll see you later, everyone." Miriam bowed to the others before she, Regina, Bronya and Seele left the area and head for the Kitchen Area to prepare some meals.

"Not going anywhere, Woz?" Akira asked.

"Don't mind me, I'm just here to read a book." Woz replied while reading a book and sipping a cup of tea. "Please continue."

"Okay then." Akira responded with a shrug before turning to the guests and clearing her throat. "Ahem. Now then, it all started back in my world called Prime Earth, alongside my brother Zeo, and my close friend Gaius..."

---

Symphogear World - Tokyo, Japan

Guardian Base, Command Center

Daytime

Meanwhile back with the Rider's team, Zeo and Gaius in their civilian attire, are having a conversation with Prairie, along with Genjuro on the holo-screen, while everyone else (except the three operators in the command center) is having lunch at the cafeteria, along with a tour of the airship. They even did their introductions to the other members. Prairie informed the Riders that she had already explained to Genjuro about the events so far, from beginning to end. They were surprised at first that she would tell him everything without their permission, but they decided to let it slide just this once considering this was Kanade's former commander.

"And to think, you boys that are only having normal lives at first, are now the ones forming a team such as this." Genjuro remarked to the Riders.

"Well we had to do something instead of doing nothing, even if means becoming a Kamen Rider in the process." Zeo stated.

"And wherever he or his sister goes, I'll be right beside them for support." Gaius added.

"I see. Well I hope you boys are prepared for the many challenges that await in the future."

"From the moment we became Kamen Riders, there's no turning back. And we're gonna see it through to the very end." Gaius answered.

"But, me leading a large team like this is going to take getting used to if we're going to bring in new members to fight against the Neo Time Jackers, along with their own enemies." Zeo commented with a bit of concern.

"True. But I have faith in you." Prairie assured with a smile, while sitting on the command chair with her plushie on her lap. "Me and Genjuro will offer our support in leadership skills until you're confident enough to become a proper leader."

"Thanks, Prairie." Zeo smiled and nodded back.

"The same goes for you too, Gaius-kun. Just in case Zeo is absent during some missions, you'll need to learn how to become a co-leader as well."

"I understand, sir." Gaius nodded back.

"Oh, and don't worry about your secret identities. They're safe with us."

"Thank you, sir." Zeo replied. "Still can't believe some things that exist in our world, also exist in this world too. The Bruce Lee films, for example."

"The Transporter films are my favourite, though. And Jason Statham is a badass." Gaius commented.

"Also, Kamen Riders and Super Sentai are just tokusatsu shows. And Pretty Cure is an anime, a magical girl series anime." Zeo added.

"In other words, it's like you're living in an anime, right?"

"Yup." Zeo and Gaius answered, making Genjuro chuckle.

"I'm still at a loss for words, though." Prairie sweatdropped.

"No need to think about it too much, Prairie. Just roll with it." Zeo assured.

"And logic doesn't apply in a world such as this. The multiverse can be quite unpredictable." Gaius added.

"They have a point there."

"Hey, everyone!" Kohaku greeted when she arrived in the command center. "The others had just ate their meals and finished the tour of the Guardian Base. They should be arriving here in a few moments."

"Thanks for the heads up, Kohaku-kun. I'm gonna turn off the video call for a bit before surprising them. Don't tell them I was here." Genjuro declared before turning off the video call.

"I'd better surprise Hibiki and the others too." Prairie also declared as she moved her chair towards the large monitor. "Kohaku, you can send them in now."

"Got it." Kohaku complied as she briefly left the area to bring the others inside.

"I wonder how Hibiki and the others will react when they see Prairie for the first time?" Zeo questioned with a slight chuckle.

"Definitely the surprised reaction." Gaius replied, until they noticed Kohaku arrive with the rest of the group in their casual attire.

"And this is the Command Center." Kohaku announced to the newcomers, making them awe at the sight of the place.

Hibiki is wearing a dark blue long-sleeved sweater with white flower patterns on it, a yellow skirt with a pair of brown bands holding the skirt over her shoulders, and a pair of black boots with a pair of black and magenta horizontal-striped long socks. She also has a pair of red clips on each side of her hair.

Miku is wearing a light yellow long-sleeved blouse, a brown long skirt that reached her knees, and a pair of black boots with a pair of black knee-high socks. She also has a white bow tied on the back of her hair.

Chris is wearing a mostly maroon and white long-sleeved blouse, a dark brown skirt with a bit of red at the skirt-ends along with a brown rose, a small red and white petticoat underneath with red ribbons on each side, and a pair of red shoes with a pair of grey thigh-high socks with a bit of red on its ends. Her twintails are also being held by pink scrunchies.

Kirika is wearing a grey blouse with a dark green and magenta jacket, short black pants, and a pair of mostly black and green boots with a pair of white thigh-high socks with a bit of black on its ends. She also has an X-shaped hair clip on the left side of her bangs.

Shirabe is wearing a light purple long-sleeved shirt underneath a mostly pink blouse with a few white stripes and a bow on her right shoulder, and a pair of black boots with a pair of purple thigh-high socks with white horizontal stripes on its ends. Her pigtails are also tied with pink ribbons.

"Good to see everyone here. How's the tour of the Guardian Base?" Zeo asked the guests.

"I'm amazed at the number of facilities this airship has, Zeo." Shirabe replied. "Besides the cafeteria, there's an R&D Lab, Medical Room, Guest Rooms, all kinds of stuff."

"Well the Guardians are a peace-keeping force, after all. Gotta have the facilities we need in order to get the job done." Aile stated.

"Would be nice if the airship could also act like a submarine, just like S.O.N.G HQ." Kirika remarked.

"I don't think so. But it could work as a large boat." Vent answered.

"I still can't believe you and Serena-chan get to ride on an airship like this, Kanade-san! I'm so jealous!" Hibiki said.

"Hehe, and the view from the Sky Deck is breathtaking, and I'll bet it'll be better at night." Kanade replied.

"Ah! That means Miku and I will have a closer look at the stars! And maybe above the clouds!" Hibiki realized with excitement.

"Hibiki, you do realize that this is a military airship?" Miku sweatdropped.

"She has a point there, baka." Chris agreed and sighed.

"Well at least we're getting along with one another." Serena said.

"True, we're gonna be working together from now on." Ashe agreed, with Grey nodding.

"I still can't believe that there's a young girl who shares the same name as Serena's sister." Kirika commented.

"Only difference is that she has no last name and she's an orphan. The poor girl..." Shirabe pointed out.

"Don't worry, Shirabe, Kirika. My sister and I will keep taking care of her and the other two kids while helping them realize their potential." Reiko assured. "At least Jin got a head start when he and Dr. Fleuve build a Zikan Phone for me."

"Still can't believe you had some spare time to visit the R&D Lab and allowed the doctor to borrow the blueprints." Gaius said to Copen. "At least ask my permission first."

"Sorry about that." Copen apologized.

"Meh, no problem." Gaius shrugged. "I'm surprised that it actually worked."

"Bonus points for Jin helping the doctor out. He's going to be a great scientist someday." Lola said.

"Agreed." Copen smiled.

"Uh, excuse me." Hibiki spoke up, earning everyone's attention (except Prairie). "Who's the person sitting on that chair, Gaius?" She pointed at the one sitting in said chair.

"Oh, that's-"

"It's okay, Gaius. I'll introduce myself instead." Prairie interjected before turning her chair around, stood up and face the newcomers. "Welcome, friends of Kanade and Serena. My name is Commander Prairie, leader of the Guardians."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"And cue shocked expression." Gunvolt thought. "In three... two... one..."

"EEEEHHHH?!"

"There it is." Gunvolt smirked.

"Hehe, yup." Joule giggled.

"Y-Y-You're the commander, dess?!" Kirika exclaimed while pointing at Prairie. "But you look like the same age as Serena!"

"Reminds me of the time when we first met Elfnein." Shirabe recalled. "And she also looked that young!"

"Wait, Elfnein was that young?!" Copen questioned, earning a nod from Shirabe. "Okay, did not expect that."

"Huh, and I was expecting Elfnein to look like a teenager or an adult." Gunvolt commented.

"Hehe, don't worry." Prairie spoke to the newcomers. "I get the same reaction when Vent, Aile, Grey and Ashe first met me. Right guys?"

"Mhm." The four Mega Men nodded.

"Yeah... Me, Serena-chan, GV, Copen, Zeo and Gaius also felt the same way when we first met Prairie." Kanade admitted while rubbing the back of her head.

"How the heck did someone like you, became a commander of a peace-keeping force such as this?" Chris questioned Prairie.

"Well... it's complicated." Prairie answered.

"It's kind of personal, Chris. Best not get into that until she's ready to answer it." Grey said.

"Oh... that." Chris understood. "Very well."

"Anyway, thank you for taking care of Kanade-san." Miku bowed to Prairie.

"Same goes for taking care of Serena." Shirabe also bowed, with Kirika also bowing.

"You're very welcome." Prairie nodded back before gesturing to the Riders. "Though you should probably thank Zeo and Gaius. They're the ones who saved them at first."

"Wait, 'saved'? What happened to them?" Chris asked.

"Well, it's a very long story." Zeo replied.

"But since the trip to S.O.N.G HQ will take a while, this is the perfect time to tell that story." Gaius added.

"But before that, let me add one more person to the room before we get started." Prairie said.

"And who would that be?" Hibiki asked.

In response, Prairie smiled as she pushed a button on her console, revealing the commander of S.O.N.G himself on the holo-screen and surprising the group (except Zeo and Gaius).

"Genjuro-san?!" Miku, Kirika and Shirabe exclaimed.

"Master?!" Hibiki exclaimed.

"Old Man?!" Chris exclaimed.

"So that's your commander, Kanade?" Gunvolt asked.

"Yep, that's Old Man Genjuro alright." Kanade replied with a smile.

"So this is the person Maria-neesan and the others are working alongside with." Serena remarked.

"He seems like a respectable person to work with, not to mention a hardened veteran." Copen commented.

"Boy, does he look handsome." Lola cooed.

"Lola, please behave." Joule sweatdropped.

"Hibiki-kun, Miku-kun, Chris-kun, Kirika-kun, Shirabe-kun, good to see you all safe and sound." Genjuro greeted.

"We're all fine, Master! We managed to pull through, thanks to Kanade-san and her new friends!" Hibiki replied with a smile.

Genjuro nodded before turning to his former operative. "Kanade-kun."

"Long time no see, old man." Kanade greeted back with a smile and a two-finger salute. "How are you and the others back at the base doing?"

"Doing just fine, thanks. Sakuya-kun and Aoi-kun are also doing well. Prairie-kun told me the whole story about how you came back to life and your adventures with your new friends. Good to know that you're still going strong."

"Heh, it'll take more than that to stop me and my friends. And I promised them that I won't make the same mistakes as last time." Kanade proclaimed.

"Well said, Kanade-kun. And welcome back." Genjuro smiled back before turning to the young Gear User. "And you must be Serena Cadenzavna Eve, younger sister of Maria Cadenzavna Eve."

"Yes, sir. It's nice to meet you, Genjuro-san." Serena greeted with a bow. "And thank you for taking care of my sister and my childhood friends."

"It's my pleasure, Serena-kun." Genjuro nodded before turning to the Mega Men. "And you four must be the Chosen Mega Men Prairie-kun told me about. Vent, Aile, Grey and Ashe, correct?"

"That's us, sir. A pleasure to meet you." Vent greeted with a salute, with the other Mega Men also saluting.

"Heh, at ease, Vent-kun. No need to be so formal. Any friends of Kanade-kun are also friends of mine."

"Very well, sir." Vent smiled back as he and the others lowered their hand.

Genjuro then turned to the Azure Striker and the Luminous Avenger. "And you two must be Gunvolt the Azure Striker and Copen Kamizono the Luminous Avenger."

"And you must be Kanade's commander. Nice to finally meet you at last, sir." Gunvolt greeted, with Copen also nodding.

"Likewise. And your powers really surprised me, Azure Striker. It does remind me of an alchemist, but I know that you'll put those powers to good use."

"I plan to." Gunvolt nodded and smiled back.

"I guess Prairie had already told you about our relics and how we got them?" Copen asked.

"She did. Never thought there would be another Gungnir and Airgetlám fragment. But I know that you and Gunvolt-kun will make good use of the relics."

"We will. We did made a promise, after all." Copen replied with a nod before gesturing to Gunvolt. "Also, you can call him GV if you want."

"Heh, noted." Genjuro chuckled before turning to the two idols. "And you two must be Joule and Lola. The ones that have the power of 'The Muse' Septima."

"So Prairie told you about us too?" Joule asked, earning a nod from Genjuro. "Well, we were just using the power of our songs to support and protect our friends."

"I also take it that you also heard my song earlier? What do you think?" Lola asked.

"Not bad at all, Lola-kun. Not to mention that your song generated a lot of Phonic Gain."

"Well, Joule and I can only use the power of our songs for either emergencies or if GV and Copen said so." Lola stated.

"Fair enough. Makes me wonder what kind of singing voice Joule has."

"You'll get that chance eventually, sir." Joule replied with a wink.

"Heh, then that's another thing I'll look forward to."

"Now then." Zeo clasped his hands, earning everyone's attention. "With the introductions out of the way, it's time to finally tell that story. So listen up."

"First off: how did Kanade and Serena come back to life in the first place?" Gaius began. "The answer: it was because of a special Complete Relic called Gjallarhorn."

"Gjallarhorn?" Hibiki, Miku, Chris, Kirika and Shirabe repeated.

"Genjuro? If you will?" Prairie requested.

"Of course." Genjuro nodded before explaining. "It started only a few months before the Zwei Wing concert tragedy. Ryoko-kun was involved with a relic expedition until she stumbled upon a very rare ancient artifact and one of the most powerful Complete Relic ever created. That relic, is none other than Gjallarhorn."

"Wait... Ryoko-san found it?!" Hibiki exclaimed.

"The existence of Gjallarhorn had been kept classified, and only a select few knew about it." Elfnein explained as she arrived next to Genjuro. "By the way, my name is Elfnein. I'm a scientist for S.O.N.G."

Everyone (except Hibiki's group, Prairie, Zeo and Gaius) was surprised at Elfnein's appearance. This young girl was S.O.N.G's scientist?!

"Okay, I know Shirabe already told us that Elfnein is young, but I still can't believe it." Copen commented.

"Not to mention that she's kinda cute." Lola added, making Elfnein blush for a bit.

"She may be young, but she's quite intelligent and has always helped us during desperate times." Genjuro stated.

"Alright, I'll take your word for it." Copen acknowledged. "Please continue."

"Right." Elfnein replied while clearing her throat. "Anyway, Gjallarhorn is a unique, but very dangerous relic, with the power to connect to other worlds and dimensions. That relic is so classified that it had been experimented in absolute secrecy in an unknown location."

"Not only that, Genjuro and I are also one of those few people who knew about that relic's existence." Kanade added, shocking Hibiki's group.

"You and Master were also involved?!" Hibiki exclaimed, earning a nod from Kanade and Genjuro.

"Did Tsubasa-san also knew about it?" Miku asked.

"I promised Genjuro not to tell Tsubasa about it because he was afraid that she might do something reckless during the whole project." Kanade answered. "Not only that, it will leave our world defenceless without an Attuned to deal with the Noise if me and Tsubasa are both involved with the project. That's why Genjuro chose me over Tsubasa, and I was willing to do everything I could to protect my world, even if it means hiding the truth."

"Kanade-san..." Hibiki said.

"May I continue?" Genjuro asked the group, who then nodded back. "Right then. According to Ryoko-kun's research data, Gjallarhorn can only react when an abnormality occurs from another world, opening a path to said world. So far, it only happened twice."

"The first one that occurred is from an unknown world. Genjuro and Ryoko sent me to that world to resolve it, which I did just that without too much injuries." Kanade added.

"What kind of world was it?" Chris asked.

"That... I'm not entirely sure. Guess I've must've forgotten what that world looked like." Kanade admitted.

"Not the kind of answer I was expecting." Chris sighed. "Anyway, what's the second occurrence?"

"...It was during the Zwei Wing concert tragedy, and during Nehushtan's activation experiment." Genjuro revealed.

"What?!" Chris, Hibiki and Miku exclaimed in shock.

"The concert overlapped with Nehushtan going berserk, and the only solution to deal with it is to wait it out."

"And in the end, a terrible price was made due to lack of action." Elfnein added. "And since then, the project was discontinued as Gjallarhorn did not react to any more abnormalities, and was left unattended in an unknown secret location."

"...Until recently, when a group called the Neo Time Jackers somehow found its location and planned to steal the Complete Relic for their diabolical schemes." Zeo added.

"The Neo Time Jackers?" Hibiki and her group repeated.

"They are also the ones that turned me and Serena into Another Riders, corrupted versions of the Kamen Riders." Kanade frowned.

"They turned you and Serena-chan into monsters?!" Hibiki exclaimed, with her group also in shock.

"Yes." Serena confirmed with a nod. "It's a good thing Zeo and Gaius became Kamen Riders and freed us from their corruption."

"Phew... thank goodness for that, dess." Kirika sighed with relief. "I do not want to imagine Serena as a monster."

"The Neo Time Jackers were this close to stealing the entire relic, until an unknown third party interfered, broke the relic into many fragments, and scattered them all across the multiverse." Prairie said.

"A third party? Who was it?" Miku asked.

"No one knows, but maybe we'll find out who they were once we locate Gjallarhorn's last known location. There might have some kind of computer room that had some old footage recorded from the cameras." Prairie replied. "Still, it was a risky move for that third party, but it's better than the Neo Time Jackers stealing the entire relic."

"Makes sense." Chris understood. "If those bastards did manage to steal the entire relic, well we're pretty much screwed."

"Agreed. Now that Gjallarhorn's introduction is out of the way, it's time to begin the whole story. Zeo-kun, Gaius-kun, if you would." Genjuro said, earning a nod from the Riders.

And so, Zeo and Gaius told Hibiki's group about the events that occurred so far. Starting from the beginning, back in their own world called Prime Earth where they and Akira first became chosen ones before saving Kanade, Serena, Kallen and Yae Sakura that were turned into monsters. Then they met Woz and gaining access to the Zi-O Liner, a dimension travelling bullet train where he explained their roles as multiversal saviours along with their mission that involved stopping the Neo Time Jackers and saving the worlds from the Distortions.

Then comes their first mission in Gunvolt's world where they first met Gunvolt, Copen, Joule and Lola; meeting their allies while Quinn and Nori gave Gunvolt and Copen the pendants as good luck charms; their battle with Eden and their Adepts along with their first run-in with one of the Neo Time Jacker generals named Eins; the discovery of the Legatus and the X-Baton, along with the battle of the Axe Nemesis; the final battle with Eden's leader Zonda while extracting the Distortion with the Distortion Ridewatch to save Gunvolt's world and also saving Copen's sister Mytyl; Eins stealing a Glaive Pendant from Xiao and Nori that contained a piece of 'The Muse' Septima before sending a chimera named Laius to stop them before retreating; Gunvolt, Copen, Joule and Lola's meeting with Finé, also known as Ryoko Sakurai, who unlocked the powers of the pendants which revealed to be the relics fragments of Gungnir and Airgetlám, along with gaining access to their Faust Robes and obtaining a USB Memory Drive that contained the location of the Symphogear world and the last known location of Gjallarhorn; defeating the chimera before escaping Eden's HQ Fortress and heading back to the Medical Facility to check up on Mytyl and the others; and then Gunvolt, Copen, Joule and Lola joining the team while bidding their friends farewell.

After that, they had their first meeting with Grey, Ashe and the Guardians; then rescuing Kohaku, Reiko, the three orphaned kids, and Vent and Aile while battling the Sword Nemesis in an underground lab; and lastly destroying the lab after stealing the blueprints, weapons and armours, before setting off to the Symphogear world to locate Genjuro in order to find clues on Gjallarhorn's whereabouts.

"And so... here we are." Zeo finished the story, leaving Hibiki and her group completely speechless and in shock at what had happened so far.

"No way. You two met Finé?! And she unlocked the power of your Faust Robes?!" Hibiki asked Gunvolt and Copen in shock, and earning a confirmed nod.

"Zeo-san, Gaius-san, Kanade-san and Serena-chan... they've been through a lot..." Miku commented.

"Damn... never thought Copen would be that much of a jerk during that first meeting." Chris also commented.

"It... wasn't a good first impression to be honest." Copen admitted.

"Humans and Adepts going into war with each other... it's not a pleasant sight." Shirabe commented.

"I don't even know who started that pointless war in the first place, dess." Kirika added.

"This is what fear can do to a person." Gaius stated. "Fear leads to Anger; Anger leads to Hate; and Hate leads to Suffering, for both sides. There is no true right and wrong answer."

"That's the scary thing about the conflict between humans and adepts." Gunvolt added. "The only way for those two races to co-exist with each other is for both of them to stop fighting entirely and cut off their grudge full of hate. Copen and I settling our differences peacefully is the first real step towards peace between the two races."

"It took a lot of convincing for me to accept that being an Adept Slayer is not worth it." Copen also added. "But Serena, Kanade, Zeo, Gaius, and even Gunvolt, managed to pull through and helped me sever that hateful grudge for good, and I'm deeply grateful for their help for showing me the true light."

"Yeah, you really should learn how to show compassion to others instead of being a blind crusader." Kanade told Copen.

"I'm doing a good job so far considering how many friends I've made during this adventure." Copen smirked back.

"And he can finally stop being such a loner!" Lola cheerfully added.

"Lola, you don't need to rub it in." Copen deadpanned.

"Just stating the facts, Boss."

"I wouldn't call it that."

"So the Neo Time Jackers, huh? Those are our new enemies from now on. Well, so much for peace and quiet." Chris commented.

"To be honest, peace can't last forever. So we must take action and stop them before its too late." Serena stated.

"Hey, Hibiki-chan. Do you really think that humans and adepts can live peacefully?" Kanade asked. "I just wanted to hear your opinion on this."

"Of course it's possible! Gunvolt and Copen's teamwork are proof of that." Hibiki answered. "They put their differences aside and worked together to save Copen's sister and defeat Zonda. As for me, Chris-chan, Kirika-chan, Shirabe-chan and even Maria-san started off as enemies."

"My sister, Kirika and Shirabe fought you and your friends?!" Serena exclaimed in shock.

"Though to be honest, we were being manipulated by a really crazy person named Dr. Ver." Shirabe pointed out.

"And he's also the person who murdered Nastassja by launching her to the moon." Kirika added.

"He did what?!" Copen exclaimed while Serena gasped in shock.

"Okay, did not expect Serena's mom to be murdered like that." Gunvolt remarked with a frown. "Where is he now?"

"He's dead." Chris answered.

"Oh. Well good gacking riddance. What about you, Chris? How did you start off as an antagonist before joining S.O.N.G?" Gunvolt asked.

"Well, I was working under Finé, who also started off as an antagonist." Chris explained. "We were using an artifact called Solomon's Cane, which has the ability to summon Noise at will."

"What?!" Everyone (except Hibiki's group and Genjuro) exclaimed at what they just heard. That dangerous artifact could summon Noise at will?!

"Finé only saw me as a tool, and she eventually threw me away when I became useless to her." Chris continued. "But thanks to Hibiki, Miku, and Old Man Genjuro, I finally have a place called home. I've even became a sempai for Kirika and Shirabe. Oh, and Kanade? About what happened to the old base hidden under the previous Lydian Academy, Finé was the one who did that."

"Damn... didn't know Finé was that ruthless to you, Chris-chan." Kanade responded. "Makes me wonder about the nicer Finé that GV and Copen met."

"You can thank Hibiki for that." Chris gestured her head towards Hibiki. "After we defeated Finé, she was the one who made Finé finally understand with her words of kindness."

"I see. So it's because of you that Finé became a kind and gentle person when we first met her." Joule said to Hibiki.

"Ah, one other thing, Genjuro. Finé sends her best regards to you." Lola mentioned.

"Is that so? Heh, good to know." Genjuro smiled.

"And I'll also remember the final words Finé said to us before we left." Gunvolt said.

"What were her final words, GV?" Hibiki asked.

"Believe in the song of our hearts." Gunvolt answered with a smile.

"That's... the same last words she said to me before she died!" Hibiki gasped.

"So you're the reason for that, huh? You're one very special girl, Hibiki Tachibana." Copen smiled.

"Thanks, Copen." Hibiki smiled back.

"By the way, what ever happened to Solomon's Cane?" Vent asked.

"Well, I threw it into the portal of the Noise homeworld, destroying both the cane and the portal at the same time." Miku answered.

"Oh, so that's how you destroyed the portal to end the Noise threat permanently." Gunvolt recalled from hearing her story earlier. "Way to kill two birds with one stone, Miku. Nicely done."

"Thanks, GV." Miku smiled back.

"So Gaius found the Legatus and X-Baton in Gunvolt's world. I wonder who was the original owner of that device since it doesn't belong to that world in the first place?" Elfnein pondered.

"Speaking of owners, I think I remember Eins said something about Laius wanting his Legatus back." Serena recalled, until her eyes widen in shock upon realization. "Wait... then that means...!"

"Serena-chan, what's wrong?" Kanade asked.

"Gaius, that chimera named Laius... was he human to begin with?" Serena asked, making everyone in the room gasp in absolute shock.

Gaius was silent for a moment before taking one deep breath as he began to answer. "...Yes. The original owner of the Legatus, was turned into a chimera thanks to Eins."

"Then... those abberations, the chimeras, the Nemesis and Legion, were they also once human?" Hibiki asked.

"...Yes." Gaius grimly answered, shocking everyone once again.

"So that's the truth of the chimeras..." Copen said. "I didn't know it was that bad..."

"There's a reason why humans were turned into chimeras in the first place. And that was before Eins had the ability to infect someone." Gaius continued.

"Infect? So it's like some kind of virus?" Grey guessed.

"Something like that." Zeo answered. "Think of them as zombies where one bite from them causes you to become a zombie yourself."

"So what was the virus called?" Vent asked.

"It's called Red Matter; an unknown substance which is described as 'solid corruption." Gaius explained. "And the chimeras are full of that stuff. If humans comes into contact with Red Matter, it will slowly corrupt them as they undergo a process called a Redshift, causing them to turn into abberations overtime. As for where the Red Matter comes from, it's from the Astral Plane."

"The Astral Plane?!" Everyone (except Zeo) exclaimed.

"And this is the other reason why those Red Gates to the Astral Plane need to be destroyed." Zeo stated. "If those Red Gates are left open for far too long..."

"...Then the entire area will be covered with Red Matter?!" Elfnein gasped in realization, earning a nod from Zeo and Gaius.

"And all of those innocent people will become abberations overtime." Genjuro frowned. "It's like dealing with a zombie apocalypse, but worse."

"I thought the Noise was bad, but this is even worse..." Miku remarked.

"It's a good thing Gaius used the Legatus to destroy those Red Gates before the situation became worse." Prairie stated.

"Yeah, but I can't be in two places at once." Gaius pointed out as he materialized the Legatus onto his hand via Zikan Phone and showed it to everyone. "That's why I wanted Copen to help me build another one to make our jobs easier. Good thing this Legatus contained some blueprints on it, along with the X-Baton."

"Don't worry, Gaius. I'll get the job done with Dr. Fleuve's help." Copen assured.

"Please do. You're doing us a big favour with this." Gaius nodded back.

"You can also have Elfnein to assist you, Copen. I've already gave her my permission to help out." Prairie suggested.

"Is that so?" Copen responded with a raised eyebrow before turning to the young scientist. "Think you're up for the task, Elfnein?"

"You can leave it to me, Copen-san. I'll help out however I can." Elfnein assured with resolve. "And besides, I did help out Hibiki-san and the others by giving them their upgrades, including Project: Ignite."

"Project: Ignite?" Gunvolt, Copen, Joule, Lola, Kanade and Serena repeated.

"It involves utilizing a shard of the relic Dáinsleif to create the Ignite Modules, allowing access to a new power called Ignite Form."

"Ignite.../Form..." Kanade and Serena repeated the name of the Gear System's new power.

"Didn't know the Gear System had that kind of power before. Most impressive, Elfnein." Copen complimented.

"Thank you. There are other forms the Gear System could unlock under the right circumstances, but we'll leave that discussion for another time."

"No problem."

"Hey Hibiki-chan, do you and the others still have those Ignite Modules?" Kanade asked.

"Unfortunately we lost them during the final battle with the leader of the Bavarian Illuminati, Adam Weishaput." Hibiki answered.

"Bummer. My Gear could seriously use an upgrade in our fight against the Neo Time Jackers." Kanade replied back.

"Same goes for my Gear too." Serena added.

"You sure you both can handle the Ignite Modules?" Chris asked Kanade and Serena. "It's a little dangerous to use during the first time we tried it, and it hurts like hell. But overtime, we finally managed to control that power."

"So it's like some kind of a Berserk System?" Reiko guessed, earning a confirmed nod from Chris. "I see. I'm surprised that you and the others were able to control that power."

"It was very difficult to master that new power, but we eventually managed to pull through." Shirabe said.

"And we even got to do more powerful combination attacks together, dess!" Kirika added.

"Maybe there's a fragment of Dáinsleif somewhere hidden in the other worlds." Gunvolt pondered. "If it does, we'd better make sure its in our safe hands and not the wrong ones."

"Agreed." Genjuro nodded. "There's bound to be someone who's willing to use those dangerous relics only to seek for more power."

"So true." Ashe agreed before turning to Zeo and Gaius. "Anyway, back to the chimera problem. Is there no cure at all for those infected victims?"

"Actually, there is." Gaius answered, surprising the group (except Zeo). "The ones infected by Red Matter can be saved, but it must be before the redshift happens."

"How can they be saved?" Miku asked.

"The Legion has a special ability to perform a Blueshift onto an infected person, fully curing them." Gaius answered. "So far, only the Sword Legion seems to have that ability. Don't know about the other Legions since I haven't tried that out yet."

"So far, you have the Axe Legion, Sword Legion, and now the Arrow Legion, so that's three." Aile surmised. "Blueshift, huh? Does that mean the Legions contain Blue Matter or something?"

"Blue Matter, hmm?" Zeo pondered with his hand on his chin. "Now that you mention it, the Legions do have a blue color scheme while the Nemesis have a red one."

"And about the way you capture the Nemesis using the Legatus, Gaius." Lola added. "It became a Legion after a few seconds with some concentration. Does that mean the Legatus also contained Blue Matter?"

"To be honest, I don't know how the scientists in their world built this Legatus." Gaius replied. "But I do know where it's made from in that world; The Aegis Research Institute or ARI for short. It's a research facility that develops several counter-chimeric drugs and weapons. It also acts as a medical facility to treat redshift victims."

"The ARI, huh? Maybe that's how they were able to develop Blue Matter." Elfnein remarked.

"At least we found a way to cure the redshift victims, but they must be cured before its too late." Genjuro added.

"I wonder what the estimated time limit is before the victims became abberations? But I'm guessing the time limit may vary due to how much Red Matter was infected onto a person." Prairie also added.

"Anyway, I'm sorry for hiding the dark truth of the chimeras like that." Gaius apologized to the group. "I never thought that someone was able to figure it out."

"It's okay, Gaius. I just happened to figure it out after observing their behaviour." Copen replied. "Like I said earlier, I'm not angry at you for hiding the truth like that considering how bad it is. But since you told us that there's a cure for those victims, maybe there's still hope to save them."

"It may be too late to save the ones that are already turned into abberations, but it's not too late to save the ones that are infected." Gunvolt stated.

"The least we could do for the ones that turned into abberations is to destroy them in order to end their pain and suffering." Zeo added. "I wanted those poor souls to rest peacefully and not see them suffer even further."

"I guess you're right. What happened, happened after all." Hibiki agreed. "We can't save everyone, but even so, that won't stop us from trying to save as many people as we could. That's what being a hero is, right?"

"Heh, well said little kouhai." Kanade smiled, with everyone else also smiling.

"Ma'am! We've spotted a large submarine at the docks. And it has a S.O.N.G logo on it." Tulip reported, earning everyone's attention.

"Looks like you've arrived at the destination. I'm gonna end the transmission now to meet you and the others in person." Genjuro said.

"No problem, Genjuro. Thank you for your time." Prairie bowed.

"See you in a bit, Old Man!" Kanade said with a grin and a two-finger salute.

"Heh. Likewise, Kanade-kun." Genjuro smirked back before ending the transmission.

"Okay, me and Rei will check up on the kids again. You guys can go on without us." Kohaku told the group with Reiko nodding.

"No problem, Kohaku. Take care of them properly, okay?" Chris replied.

"We will. See ya, everyone!" Kohaku replied back as she left the area with Reiko walking beside her.

"Gardénia, land the airship on the open area of the docks." Prairie ordered.

"Yes, ma'am." The operator complied as she took control of the airship.

"Well then, time to meet the commander of S.O.N.G in person. Maybe even get a free tour of the submarine if possible." Zeo declared.

"I'm gonna drop by the R&D Lab for a while to drop off the Legatus and the X-Baton for Dr. Flueve to examine. I'll catch up in a bit." Gaius declared before leaving the area.

"Sure thing, Gaius. Take your time!" Serena replied as they watched him leave.

"With that said, let's get moving." Prairie declared as she placed her plushie on the table before leaving the area first, while everyone else (except the operators) following behind her.

---

Genjuro, Elfnein, Sakuya and Aoi waited outside S.O.N.G HQ as they witnessed the Guardian Base landing onto the open area of the docks. S.O.N.G HQ looked like a large white and blue submarine with a few red and yellow highlights. It also housed several white helicopters on the helipad. Once the Guardian Base finished their landing, the entrance door opened up, allowing several Guardian troops to move out and line-up on the left and right side before saluting. And soon after, Commander Prairie arrived as she walked towards Genjuro and the others, with Zeo, Gaius, Kanade, Serena, Gunvolt, Joule, Copen, Lola, Hibiki, Miku, Chris, Kirika, Shirabe, Vent, Aile, Grey and Ashe following behind her until she stopped in front of the S.O.N.G commander.

"Commander Genjuro Kazanari of S.O.N.G, I presume?" Prairie greeted.

"Correct." Genjuro nodded. "And you must be Commander Prairie of the Guardians. On behalf of the people of this world; Welcome."

"Likewise." Prairie smiled back as the two commanders shook hands. "At ease!" She ordered the troops to stand at ease, to which they did so.

"Kanade Amou." Genjuro said as he walked towards the first Gungnir User. "Welcome home, old friend."

"It's good to be back, Old Man." Kanade smirked as she and Genjuro shook hands. "Hope you don't mind if I rejoin the team."

"Heh, wouldn't have it any other way, Kanade-kun." Genjuro smirked back before they stop shaking hands. He then turned to the young Airgetlám User. "Nice to see you in person, Serena-kun."

"Likewise, Genjuro-san." Serena nodded. "And I also want to be part of S.O.N.G so that I can fight alongside Maria-neesan, Kirika and Shirabe."

"You're welcome to join the team." Genjuro nodded back as he and Serena shook hands.

"(Would be nice if Serena or Kanade join the Guardians instead.)" Ashe whispered.

"(Ashe, you do realize that those two belong in this world to begin with? It wouldn't be right to take them away from their home like that.)" Grey whispered back.

"(Okay okay, no need to get serious, Grey. It was only a small joke.)"

"Once again, I can't believe someone so young can be a scientist." Copen said to Elfnein.

"I get that sometimes. Either way, I'm looking forward to working with you, Copen-san." Elfnein replied.

"Likewise. I'm counting on you, Elfnein." Copen replied back as he and Elfnein shook hands for a bit before letting go.

"Prairie-san, do you have the USB Drive for Gjallarhorn's location?" Elfnein asked.

"Right over here." Prairie replied as she took out the USB Drive from her pocket and gave it to Elfnein.

"Once I finish deciphering the data, I'll contact you as soon as possible." Elfnein said.

"Please do." Prairie nodded. "That way, we can find some clues about what happened next after the relic was shattered."

"In the meantime, I need Prairie-kun, Zeo-kun and Gaius-kun to come to the command center with me." Genjuro said. "The Japanese government wanted a full explanation about the chimera attacks."

Zeo sighed in response. "Ugh, I was afraid of this. I never have to deal with the government before."

"Don't worry, I've got your back. Just follow my orders and you'll be just fine." Genjuro assured.

"You'll also have my support, Zeo." Prairie added.

"Thanks, you two." Zeo smiled back.

"One other thing, I'd suggest you come to the meeting as Kamen Riders, just to keep your identities a secret." Genjuro advised.

"Sounds reasonable." Gaius replied in agreement. "It's best if the government doesn't know who we really are."

"If the government is involved, I guess that means we're not a secret organization anymore?" Kanade questioned Genjuro.

"Nope." Genjuro answered. "We're a public organization now, and our duties are to assist in disasters around the world that are too great for normal humans to overcome."

"I see. Hope they don't try anything stupid like using the Symphogear System for their own weapons." Kanade replied.

"Don't worry, they won't go that far." Genjuro assured.

"Kanade-san, Serena-san, is it okay if you'll both come with me to the Medical Room?" Elfnein requested. "I want to perform a quick check-up on your condition and even with the relics."

"Sure thing, Elfnein-chan." Kanade nodded. "Though I am a bit curious is to why though."

"When I saw your previous records, your relic compatibility is low when you sang the Superb Song." Elfnein explained to Kanade. "But after hearing about your adventures in Gunvolt's world, especially during the battle at Eden HQ, it makes me wonder that your compatibility is not low anymore since you're able to use your Symphogear for a very long time."

"Hey, you're right!" Kanade realized. "I didn't even lose that much power and I could still keep going!"

"Did she somehow have her relic compatibility high? How is that possible?" Serena questioned.

"Won't know until we find out for ourselves." Kanade replied before turning to Elfnein. "I'm counting on you, Elfnein-chan."

"Leave it to me." Elfnein nodded back.

"The rest of you will follow me as I'll give you the tour of S.O.N.G HQ." Aoi instructed the others.

"Looking forward to see what your base has to offer compared to ours." Vent said to Hibiki.

"Trust me, Vent-san. You'll love it!" Hibiki replied with a smile.

"You don't mind if I request supplies for the Guardian Base? Our supplies might be a bit limited at the moment." Prairie requested.

"No problem. I'll ask Sakuya-kun to provide assistance along with his agents." Genjuro approved.

"Thon, if you would?" Prairie spoke to the Guardian troop.

"You got it, ma'am." Thon nodded back before turning to the troops. "Alright boys and girls, let's get started with resupplying the Guardian Base! Move out!"

"Sir, yes sir!" The Guardian troops complied as they, along with the S.O.N.G agents, begin their tasks with Thon and Sakuya supervising the process.

"We'll contact you once we're done with the meeting. Until then, enjoy the tour." Genjuro told the others.

"See you later, Master! Prairie-san! Zeo-san! Gaius-san!" Hibiki waved goodbye as they watched the commanders and the Riders head inside the base and towards the command center.

"Right then. Kanade-san, Serena-san and myself will go on ahead towards the Medical Lab." Elfnein declared.

"We'll see you guys later!" Kanade waved to the others as she, Serena and Elfnein head inside next and towards the Medical Lab.

"Okay, time to begin the tour of S.O.N.G HQ." Aoi said to the others. "Everyone stay close and if there's any questions during the tour, feel free to ask me, Hibiki or her friends."

"Got it. Lead the way, Aoi." Aile replied before everyone followed behind Aoi as they enter the submarine base.

---

Zi-O Liner, Dining Area

"...And that's pretty much it on what's been happening lately." Akira finished her explanation to Lumine, Noelle and Sucrose. And her entire story made them speechless for a moment.

"The Neo Time Jackers... so those are the ones responsible for those Distortions and the Dimensional Quakes." Lumine remarked.

"I never thought other worlds existed beyond the world of Teyvat." Sucrose added.

"Still, if we don't stop them, not even our world will be spared. And I thought the Abyss Order was troublesome." Noelle also added.

"The Abyss Order? What's that?" Akira asked.

"A mysterious, but powerful legion of monsters from the Abyss, who are the enemies of humanity and surface civilization." Noelle explained.

"Do the Abyss Order have some kind of leader?" Akira asked.

"I think so, but there's not much info about the Abyss Order." Sucrose answered. "Only info we have about them are the Abyss Mages, Abyss Heralds, and the Ruin Machines. Those are the dangerous ones, with the former two leading the monsters."

"I see. If we ever get a chance to travel to Teyvat, we'll be extra careful when we deal with the Abyss Order and its legion." Akira replied.

"Good. But in the meantime, we will gladly assist you on your quest." Noelle declared, with Sucrose nodding.

"Thanks, you too. Good to have you two be part of the team." Akira replied with a smile.

"I've already decided to be part of your team to help me search for my brother, but after hearing about this, the threat might be even bigger than I thought. I'll help you out on your mission, the Neo Time Jackers will not get away with this." Lumine declared.

"Good to hear, Lumine." Akira smiled back. "But first thing's first, we need to regroup with my brother and Gaius at the Symphogear world before we plan our next course of action."

"We understand. No need to rush, and I'm curious to see what your brother looks like." Lumine replied, before noticing the crystal orbs on Noelle and Sucrose's outfit. "By the way, what are those crystal orb you are wearing?"

"Oh, this?" Noelle responded before she and Sucrose showed them the crystals. "Those are actually our Visions."

"Visions?" Akira and Lumine responded.

"Well, now there's a subject that peaked my interest." Woz said as he closed his book and sat with Akira and the others. "Do explain what are Visions."

"Allow me to explain." Sucrose spoke up. "Visions are gifts bestowed upon humans whom the Seven Archons recognize. They grant the user elemental abilities based on the element of their given Vision."

"And by Seven Archons meaning that there's seven elements, right?" Akira guessed.

"Correct." Sucrose confirmed. "For me, it's the Anemo element, the power of Wind."

"And for me, it's the Geo element, the power of Earth." Noelle added.

"The other five elements are Pyro for Fire; Cryo for Ice; Electro for Thunder; Hydro for Water; and lastly Dendro for Nature."

"Seven elemental Archons watching over the world of Teyvat. Quite interesting." Woz remarked.

"Mhm." Noelle nodded. "And each country is being watched over by an Archon. For the nation of Mondstadt, Barbatos the Anemo Archon watches over us."

"As for the Geo Archon Morax, he watches over the nation of Liyue." Sucrose added.

"I see." Lumine noted. "What about the other five Archons? Which nations do they watch over?"

"Well... I don't have much info about the other five nations and Archons, but I do have a bit of info about one country." Sucrose answered.

"And what nation is that?" Akira asked.

"The nation of Inazuma, and the Archon that is watching over that country is Baal, the Electro Archon."

"Fascinating... I wouldn't mind exploring the nations when we get the chance to travel to Teyvat." Woz commented.

"Same for me too." Akira agreed.

"And me, as well." Lumine also agreed.

"You can start with the nation of Mondstadt, a perfect place to start your adventure." Noelle suggested. "I'll even introduce you to Jean and the other knights, if you don't mind."

"Well, we gotta have a starting point when exploring a new world." Akira stated. "Alright then, Mondstadt it is."

"And if we're lucky, we might find some clues about the Dimension Fragment and Lumine's missing brother." Sucrose added.

"I guess its worth a shot, since sitting around and doing nothing won't find any answers." Lumine agreed.

"May I have your attention please?" Naomi's voice rang though the speakers, earning everyone's attention. "We'll be arriving at our destination in about 30 minutes. Please make sure you ate enough food, have enough rest, and took a nice shower before we arrive. Thank you for your time!"

"It seems that we'll be arriving at the Symphogear world pretty soon." Woz stated.

"Guess so." Akira nodded before the girls stood up from their seats. "I'll escort you three to the Bathing Area and also show you were the Dining Area is. Can't travel with an empty stomach or smell like rotten cheese."

"That would be wise." Noelle agreed. "I've lost count on how long we were in that desert."

"A-Agreed." Sucrose nodded. "Plus, I am a bit curious on what this Zi-O Liner has."

"Think of this as a really, really fast carriage." Akira described. "And since you're an alchemist, I can also show you the R&D Lab."

"R&D Lab?"

"Research and Development Laboratory."

"This place has a lab? I did not expect that." Sucrose responded.

"Let's just take a nice bath and have some food before we check out the Zi-O Liner." Lumine declared.

"You're gonna have to get used to it since we're going to be teammates from now on." Akira advised.

"Very well, Akira." Noelle bowed. "For now, please lead the way."

"Okay, follow me." Akira replied as she escorted the three girls to the Bathing Area, leaving Woz along to continue reading his book.

"...Teyvat, Seven Archons and that unknown god... Well, this story is about to get interesting..." Woz remarked with a smile as he took another sip of his tea.

---

Symphogear World

S.O.N.G HQ, Medical Room

Meanwhile at the Medical Room, Elfnein had just finished examining Kanade and Serena's bodies, along with their relics. Everyone is seated on their chairs as Elfnein is about to inform the examination results. "Well, looks like my hunch was indeed correct. Both you and Serena are completely compatible with your relics with no setbacks." The young scientist informed the two, making them surprised at the results.

"I see." Kanade responded. "That explains how I was able to wear the Gear System for so long."

"By the way, how DID you and Serena get your relic pendant?" Elfnein asked.

"To be honest, we're not entirely sure how we got them." Kanade answered.

"Unless..." Serena pondered.

"What's up, Serena-chan?" Kanade asked.

"The Dimensional Quakes." Serena replied. "Not only it brought us back to life, it also gave us our relics. Wait, it's more than just our relics we've obtained during that quake. It somehow altered our bodies, causing us to be fully compatible with our relics. Though to be honest, I was already fully compatible with Airgetlám from the very beginning."

"I see." Kanade understood. "Guess that means I won't need that LiNKER drug anymore to use my Symphogear."

"So that's how." Elfnein also understood. "I guess you could say that the Dimensional Quakes can be either a blessing or a curse."

"We still have to stop those Distortions by collecting the Gjallarhorn fragments across the multiverse before more harm could be made." Kanade stated.

"And we have to get to them before the Neo Time Jackers do." Serena added.

"Agreed." Elfnein nodded. "This dangerous relic started this entire mess, so it's now our responsibility to fix this mess."

"Though what happens if we DO get all of the Gjallarhorn fragments and put them back together?" Kanade asked.

"Let's not think about that part just yet. We'll eventually figure it out when the time comes." Elfnein replied.

"Fair enough." Serena nodded. "So, is there anything else we need?"

"Just some measurements for your new S.O.N.G uniforms. After that, you're free to go. I still need to examine the USB Drive so that I can find out where is Gjallarhorn's last known location in this world." Elfnein replied.

"Gotcha. Just try not to touch my chest by accident during the measurement process." Kanade replied back.

"K-Kanade-san!" Elfnein and Serena retorted while their face turned red.

"Hahaha! Relax, I'm kidding!" Kanade laughed. "Don't worry, as long as there's no guys peeking around, we're good."

---

Lounge Area

Meanwhile, Zeo and Gaius are relaxing at the Lounge Area on the large sofa after their meeting with the government at the command center. They were able to get full approval about their mission (while also hiding a few important parts of the story for safety reasons) along with obtaining supplies thanks to Genjuro and Prairie's assistance. After that, Genjuro requested the Riders to relax and explore the city while they await Akira's arrival and also the results of where the last known location of Gjallarhorn is hidden. Which is why the Riders are waiting for the others to finish the tour so that they could go for some sightseeing.

"Any messages from your sister yet?" Gaius asked Zeo who is checking his Zikan Phone for a response.

"Nothing yet. Guess she must be busy at the moment." Zeo replied before he put away his phone. "The least I could do now is to send a text message and hope to god that she responds."

"Oh well." Gaius shrugged. "Still, your sister is gonna freak out at how many allies we've gained, including having an airship and a submarine on our side."

"Heh, true." Zeo chuckled. "And I'm curious to see how many allies Akira has on her team. If Woz was able to discover Einstein at the Sands of Time, then I'm pretty sure my sister will also discover more stranded people in that desert during the trip, or maybe she found some in Shantae's world."

"Speaking of the Half-Genie Hero, I wonder if she'll get Shantae to join the team?"

"Won't know till we hear from Akira herself."

A few moments later, the guys noticed Hibiki, Miku, Chris, Kirika, Shirabe, Gunvolt, Copen, Joule, Lola, Vent, Aile, Grey and Ashe arriving before sitting down with them. "Good to see everyone here." Zeo greeted the arrivals. "So, how's the tour?"

"Pretty interesting facilities this submarine base has. And it's perfect for underwater sneak attacks." Copen commented.

"Compared to the Guardian Base, it does have similar facilities, except that ours were more advanced due to our world being from the future." Vent also commented.

"Though S.O.N.G HQ has one heck of a Training Room, which also acts like a Simulation Room." Ashe added.

"I'm surprised that the Guardian Base doesn't have a Training Room now that I think about it." Shirabe commented before turning to the Mega Men. "How are you and the other Guardians able to train yourselves to fight?"

"Usually we land the airship at open and deserted places to train and exercise without any distractions." Aile answered. "Thon is the captain of the Guardian troops who makes sure that the training exercises go smoothly and safely."

"Huh, so that's how. You guys have quite the trustworthy captain there." Chris commented.

"Thon may be a bit harsh, but he has a good heart." Vent replied.

"For me and Ashe however, we didn't start off as Guardians. We actually started as part of the Hunter's Guild, though Ashe is more experienced than I do." Grey said.

"Hunter's Guild?" Hibiki and the other Gear Users responded.

"The Hunter's Guild live by searching for lost technology and hunting down dangerous Mavericks for bounties. In other words, we're either doing treasure hunting or bounty hunting." Ashe explained.

"Ah! I think that's something straight out of an RPG game, dess!" Kirika said.

"I see. So even in the future, there's still such things as bounty and treasure hunters." Gunvolt mused.

"Wait, what are Mavericks?" Miku asked.

"Ah right, we never did mention about those yet." Vent realized. "Let's start off with what a Reploid is. Reploids are a race of sentient androids with free will and thought processes comparable to those of humans. And as for Mavericks, they are basically the bad versions of the Reploids due to viruses, reprogramming or even by their own free will thinking that humans are inferior."

"And well... I'm actually a Reploid." Grey revealed, shocking the Gear Users, Gunvolt, Copen, and the two idols.

"You're a Reploid?!" Hibiki exclaimed. "But you looked like a normal human being!"

"That's true, except for one tiny little detail." Aile pointed at the red triangle on Grey's forehead. "That red triangle mark on his forehead, signifies that Grey is indeed a Reploid. Some of the other Guardians are also Reploids, including Commander Prairie."

"Dess?! Your commander is also a Reploid?!" Kirika exclaimed, while everyone's eyes widen in shock again (except the Riders).

"Okay, did not expect that." Lola remarked in shock.

"The Hunter's Guild also has several Reploids working there." Ashe pointed out.

"Do the Reploids get along with humans?" Joule asked.

"Don't worry, there's no discrimination between races in the Hunter's Guild." Ashe assured. "Everyone in the Hunter's Guild act as one big family."

"The same goes for the humans and Reploids in the Guardians as well." Aile added.

"Glad to hear it." Joule smiled.

"If humans and Reploids can co-exist in peace, then so can humans and Adepts." Vent stated.

"He's right! It really is possible for different races to go hand in hand." Hibiki agreed. "It might be a tough road getting there, but even so, that dream will become a reality."

"That's good to know." Gunvolt smiled before turning to Copen. "If they can do it, so can we. Right, Copen?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Copen replied. "And... sorry about what has happened between us in the past when I tried to kill you."

"It's no problem. The past is the past, after all. So it's time to move forward towards a better future, for all of us." Gunvolt assured as he offered Copen a fist-bump.

"Right. A better future, for all of us." Copen smiled back as he accepted the fist-bump.

"Don't forget about us. Me and Lola will be there to support the both of you." Joule reminded.

"That's right!" Lola cheerfully added as she did a high-five with Joule.

"Don't also forget about me and the others! We'll always be there to support you." Hibiki smiled as she offered a fist-bump with Gunvolt and Copen.

"The same goes for us too." Vent added and also offered a fist-bump.

"And also us." Zeo added while also offering a fist-bump.

Gunvolt and Copen can't help but smile at their resolve. With their new friends working together hand-in-hand, perhaps that dream of co-existence with other races will become a reality. "Thanks everyone." Gunvolt smiled back as he and Copen accepted their fist-bumps, with their bonds stronger than ever.

"Yo! What did we miss?" Kanade greeted as she and Serena had just arrived.

"Well not much, just forming a stronger bond with each other." Zeo replied. "So, how'd the examination go?"

"Looks like Elfnein-chan's hunch was correct." Kanade replied back. "I'm fully compatible with my relic, so I won't be needing that LiNKER drug anymore to use my Symphogear."

"LiNKER?" Copen responded.

"It's a drug that allows us to use our Symphogears by forcing the rate of compatibility for our relics. Myself, Kiri-chan and Maria are the ones that needed LiNKER to transform." Shirabe explained.

"In other words, without LiNKER, you can't use your Symphogears." Lola surmised, earning a nod from Kirika and Shirabe.

"As for me however, I was already fully compatible with my relic, so I have no need for LiNKER to transform." Serena pointed out.

"Who was the one who made that drug?" Gunvolt asked.

"Ryoko Sakurai." Kanade answered.

"Wait, Ryoko made that drug?!" Joule exclaimed.

"One other thing, Dr. Ver also made a stronger but safer version of LiNKER." Kirika pointed out.

"Wait, that crazy doctor made an even better version of that drug?!" Lola exclaimed.

"Yep. Good thing Elfnein got the formula for that drug, so I'm pretty sure that she'll make better use of it." Chris stated.

"That's good to know." Aile replied. "It's better in her hands instead of Dr. Ver."

"Wait, how did Kanade-san became fully compatible with her relic without the use of LiNKER?" Miku questioned.

"Well... it's because of that Dimensional Quake." Kanade answered. "Looks like the quake that revived me and Serena and regaining our relics aren't the only things that happened. It somehow altered our bodies, allowing full compatibilities with the relics. Well, mostly me when it comes to compatibilities."

"I see. So those Dimensional Quakes are either a blessing or a curse." Zeo commented.

"Funny, Elfnein told us the same thing." Serena said.

"Huh, fancy that." Gaius replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Anyway, Elfnein-chan's gonna be busy for a while deciphering Gjallarhorn's last known location, so for now, it's time for us to go out and have fun in the city!" Kanade declared with a raised fist.

"Alright! I get to have fun with Kanade-san and her new friends!" Hibiki cheered.

"There's plenty of places me and Shirabe wanted to show you, Serena. You'll love it, dess!" Kirika added.

"Hehe, I'll look forward to it then." Serena replied with a smile.

"Well I am curious to see how your city looks like, and to see what kinds of clothes they have in stores." Aile said before looking at herself. "Not only that, I think I could use some new clothes to spice things up."

"Uh, guys? There's two small problems." Zeo spoke up. "One: We need to find a way to disguise Kanade from the crowd since she was a former idol, or might still be deceased. And two..." He then pointed at Grey. "His outfit with the cables stuck on his back."

"Now that you mention it, you never wore any other clothes before except the one you're wearing right now." Ashe realized.

"It's okay, you guys can go on without me." Grey assured. "I'll stay here and help out the Guardians and S.O.N.G with their chores."

"Are you sure, Grey? It could get a bit lonely at times." Vent questioned.

"Well, at least Model A will be with me." Grey replied.

"You do realize that Model A is shared between you and Ashe, right?" Aile mentioned.

"...Oh."

"That's fine. You can have Model A for now." Ashe said as she took out the Biometal from her pocket and gave it to Grey.

Hibiki and her group responded with awe at the sight of the Biometal. "So this is how you were able to transform into a Mega Man." Hibiki said.

"Yeah, but only Chosen Mega Men can speak with the Biometals." Grey pointed out as the Biometal began to float beside him. "And they can do this since they're sentient."

"Ooohh..." Hibiki and her group were in awe again, while Shirabe's eyes sparkled.

"Hey Grey, I think Shirabe likes me." Model A said.

"Model A said that you liked the Biometal, Shirabe." Grey said.

"Y-You don't have to tell her that!"

"Hehe, that's good to know." Shirabe giggled.

"Hey if you're staying here, could you do me a small favour?" Gaius asked the reploid.

"What's up?" Grey responded.

"Could you hop by the R&B Lab at Guardian Base to help out Dr. Fleuve and Jin for a while?" Gaius requested. "They are planning to build more Zikan Phones for all of us to use, especially Hibiki and the others."

"Sure, I can do that." Grey accepted.

"Make one with my color while you're at it, dess!" Kirika added.

"No problem, Kirika." Grey nodded before he stood up from his seat, grabbed the floating Model A and placed it into his pocket. "Well then, I'd better get going."

"I'll also buy some clothes for you to wear, can't let you wear that all the time." Aile told the reploid.

"Thanks, Aile. Just make sure Ashe doesn't buy any embarrassing clothes for me instead." Grey replied.

"Now why would I do that?" Ashe questioned while looking away and hiding a smirk.

"You're not very good at lying, you know." Grey deadpanned, making everyone else laugh in response. "Right then, I'm off. Have fun, guys!" He waved goodbye before leaving the area.

"See you when we get back, Grey!" Miku replied back before turning to Kanade. "Now what about you, Kanade-san? How are you going to hide your identity?"

"Well, Quinn gave me a pair of glasses and a nice hat to fix that problem." Kanade responded before materializing the red-rimmed glasses and a black newsboy cap via Zikan Phone and then putting them on. "Well? What do you think?"

"Wow! You look really cool wearing that, Kanade-san!" Hibiki complimented.

"Heh, thanks, Hibiki-chan." Kanade smiled back.

"Amazing... so the Zikan Phone can also materialize and store objects." Shirabe commented with awe.

"Not only that, it also functions as a blaster." Zeo pointed out as he briefly took out his Zikan Phone and turned it 45 degrees on the upper part of the phone.

"The phone's also a gun?!" Chris gawked. "Okay, gotta give credit to the one making a phone like that."

"How much storage space can the Zikan Phone hold?" Vent asked while Zeo put away his phone.

"After examining the phone, well quite a lot. But not for storing heavy objects such as vehicles." Copen answered.

"Noted." Gaius nodded. "I mean it does makes sense why it can't do that."

"Okay then, time to go our and have fun!" Zeo declared as everyone else stood up from their seats with a bit of excitement.

"Wait a minute, I just realized one more important thing." Gunvolt spoke up.

"What would that be, GV?" Joule asked.

"What are we going to do about money?"

"..." Gunvolt's realization felt like a big facepalm to the group that's not part of the Symphogear world. They never thought through about money issues or exchange rates in other worlds.

"...Crap. Forgot about that one tiny detail." Gaius sighed.

"Really? NOW you just realized that part?" Chris deadpanned.

"Uhh... do they accept exchange rates for E-Crystals?" Aile questioned.

"Energy Crystals are currency in our world." Vent pointed out.

"I'm... not entirely sure." Miku answered.

"That's okay! S.O.N.G will cover our expenses... I think." Hibiki said.

"Or we'll have to use our own money for now." Shirabe said.

"Sorry about that." Lola apologized.

"It's okay, Lola! Just have fun, either way!" Hibiki assured.

"Dess!" Kirika agreed with a nod.

"We'll tell Old Man Genjuro about our money problems when we get back. I'm sure he'll think of something." Kanade said.

"Good idea." Serena agreed before turning to Joule and Lola. "Also, you two might need to hide your wings. Don't want too much people to notice you."

"Ah, you're right." Joule realized before she and Lola dispersed their wings. "There we go."

"Though what about my current outfit? It's not gonna stand out too much, right?" Lola asked while looking at herself.

"I'm pretty sure they'll think its just a cosplay outfit. No need to worry about it too much." Gaius assured.

"Anything else we need before we get going?" Zeo asked the group, which then shook heads in confirmation. "Alright, then let's go!" He declared with a raised fist.

"Yeah!" Everyone follow up as they left the room to head out for the city for some entertainment.

---

During the day, Hibiki led the group to a clothing store to buy or try out some new clothes. They even did a little fashion show to the guys, though Aile, Ashe, Joule and Lola insisted Vent, Gunvolt and Copen to join in on the show. Eventually, they bought the clothes they needed, including some for Grey that's not too embarrassing, while Joule, Lola, Vent, Aile and Ashe wore their new casual outfits.

Vent is wearing a black shirt with a blue open jacket with red highlights on top, dark blue jeans with a brown belt strapped around his waist, and blue sneakers with red highlights along with black socks.

Aile is wearing a black shirt with a light blue closed jacket with red highlights on top, white shorts with a black belt strapped around her waist, and light-blue shoes with red highlights along with black knee-high stockings.

Ashe is wearing a cyan shirt with an orange jacket with red highlights on top, grey shorts with a grey belt strapped around her waist, and orange shoes with white highlights along with black knee-high stockings.

Joule is wearing a pale blue dress with cream highlights, pale blue short sleeves, and pale blue shoes with cream highlights along with white socks.

Lola is wearing a red shirt with white highlights, red shorts, black elbow-length gloves with red highlights on her fingers and thumbs, and black shoes with red highlights along with white thigh-high stockings.

Next up on their entertainment tour is the cinema to watch an action movie recommended by Hibiki. It had plenty of action, some drama, a few funny moments, and explosions. Most of the girls cried a bit at some of the drama bits, except Ashe who chose to sleep past it instead, while the guys were impressed with the action scenes and improvisations, which made some of them pondering about some ideas for their own skills along with combination attacks.

After the movie, the group decided to have some ice cream before heading for the arcade once they finished. At the arcade, Copen, Chris, Ashe and Lola played a shooting game to see who can reach the highest score; Zeo, Gaius, Vent and Aile played a rhythm game called Beat Saber; Kirika, Shirabe and Serena played some fun games to win credits in order to exchange for prizes; and as for Hibiki, Kanade, Miku, Gunvolt and Joule...

"Kanade-san! I promise that I WILL win you that stuffed toy, or my name isn't Hibiki Tachibana!"

...they're playing a crane game.

"You sure you can handle it, Hibiki-chan?" Kanade asked.

"Heiki, hecchara! I wasn't able to get a stuffed toy for Tsubasa-san last time, but this time, I WILL get it!" Hibiki replied.

"I'll be rooting for you!" Joule supported.

"Hibiki and I spent the day together with Tsubasa-san a few years ago to have fun." Miku explained.

"Ah, I see." Gunvolt understood. "No wonder Hibiki looked so determined to win that prize."

"Though her way of playing that crane game is... questionable."

"Define 'questionable'." Gunvolt raised an eyebrow.

Miku shook her head in response. "...Never mind. It'll probably won't happen again since she learned her lesson."

Hibiki then inserted the credit for the crane game, slammed the 'Start' button, and then...

"KYAAAAAHHH!"

"...I take it back, it's happening again!" Miku corrected as she covered her ears from hearing Hibiki's war cry.

"Why is she screaming over a crane game?" Joule questioned with a sweatdrop.

"I have no gacking clue." Gunvolt also sweatdropped.

The crane managed to latch onto a stuffed toy rabbit Hibiki is aiming for, until it lost its grip during the ascension as the toy fell back down.

"No way! I lost again?!" Hibiki exclaimed. "I thought they've fixed this rigged machine! Or am I still cursed?!"

"It's neither the end of the world nor your curse, little kouhai." Kanade said with a sweatdrop. "You can still try again. Don't give up, okay?"

"Kanade-san... Yeah, you're right! It's still too early to give up! I'll keep on trying till I get that toy rabbit!" Hibiki declared.

"Um, Hibiki? Remember not to spend too much, we still need it for the rest of the trip." Miku reminded.

"...Oh."

"Hmm..." Gunvolt took a closer look at the crane game, and saw the toy rabbit sitting right next to the toy dog. "Hey, mind if I give this game a go?"

"O-Oh! Sure thing, GV." Hibiki replied as she took a step back while Gunvolt took his turn to play the game.

Gunvolt aimed the crane right above the two stuffed toys before it began to descend. It latched onto both toys before ascending and moving towards the goal slowly. Once it's above the goal, the crane dropped both toys into the hole, winning the game.

=Winner!=

"Jackpot." Gunvolt smirked as he collected his prizes from the dispenser and showed them to the girls. "And that's how it's done."

"Whoa...!" The girls were in awe as they applauded the Azure Striker for winning not one, but two prizes at once.

"That was great, GV!" Hibiki praised him. "How did you do it?"

"When I saw those two stuffed toys sitting very close to each other, it gave me a chance to go for a two-for-one special." Gunvolt explained. "Then I aimed the crane at the right angle and position above the two toys, and then took that chance. It was risky, but it was worth it when you pull it off."

"Heh, that's the Azure Striker for ya!" Kanade grinned. "So, who are you gonna give those plushies to? I can bet it's gonna be Joule."

"Well... one of them anyway." Gunvolt replied before turning to his partner. "Joule, which plushie do you want?"

"Hmm..." Joule pondered for a bit before taking the dog plushie. "I'll just take this one. I would pick the bunny, but I wanna give that one to Hibiki since she worked so hard to get it."

"Really?!" Hibiki responded in surprise, and earned a nod from Joule. "Thanks, Joule!"

"You're welcome." Joule smiled back as she took the rabbit plushie from Gunvolt and gave it to Hibiki.

"On second thought, you can keep the plushie, Hibiki-chan. I'm not gonna take away Joule's kindness like that." Kanade decided. "I'll win the next prize on my own instead."

"Good luck with that, Kanade." Gunvolt wished her luck as he stepped away from the machine, allowing Kanade to have a turn at the game.

"Just watch me, GV." Kanade smirked back as she began to play, with her friends cheering her on.

---

After their time at the arcade, the next stop is the karaoke place to sing some songs. Zeo however, was feeling a bit worried about one important thing during the whole trip. "Hmm... hope we don't spend too much money on karaoke, as much as we wanted to go there." He pondered.

"Relax, I'm sure Old Man Genjuro will sort this out when we get back." Kanade assured.

"Though I think Chris overdid it with the shooting game." Joule stated while glancing at her.

"Hey, I nearly had Copen there! He just got lucky, that's all!" Chris said with her arms crossed.

"I was just trying to keep everyone alive, that's all." Copen defended. "Also had to take those chances with the bonus points."

"Don't worry, Chris. Better luck next time." Lola said.

"Fine... but I'm not gonna lose next time!" Chris proclaimed.

"You're welcome to try." Copen countered with a smirk.

"Well at least I managed to beat Lola." Ashe commented with her hands behind her head.

"I never shot a gun myself, to be honest. I was always a combat pod before I became like this." Lola admitted.

"Ah, okay. Still, practice makes perfect. You'll get the hang of it eventually." Ashe replied.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Lola smiled back.

"Speaking of high scores, me and Vent were tied with that rhythm game involving beam sabers." Aile said.

"Hey, you two are twins. What do you expect?" Zeo replied.

"Though Aile is a bit more skilled with the ZX Buster, while I excel at using the ZX Saber." Vent stated.

"Ah, got it." Zeo nodded.

"So, did you have a good time, Serena?" Shirabe asked.

"Though it's too bad we weren't able to help you win any prizes, dess." Kirika added.

"That's okay, you two. I can try harder next time." Serena replied with a smile before turning to the others. "Besides, I still had fun spending time will all of you."

"Glad to hear it, Serena." Gunvolt smiled back. "You never got a chance to go out like this before?"

"Nope, not in the slightest." Serena shook her head.

"Same goes for me and Kiri-chan in the past." Shirabe added.

"Dess." Kirika also added.

"I see..." Gunvolt replied, until he heard a ringtone from somewhere, making everyone stop for a moment. "Hold on, is someone calling?"

"Ah, sorry. That was me." Gaius spoke up as he took out his ringing Zikan Phone before answering the voice call. "Gaius here, what's up?"

"It's me, Genjuro. Not much, Gaius-kun. Just wondering where are you and the others now."

"Oh hey Chief. We're just heading for the karaoke lounge to have fun singing songs. I just hope we have enough money to spend at that place." Gaius replied.

"Ah, I was just about to talk about the money issues. S.O.N.G will reimburse some money to you and the others for resupply or entertainment purposes. All I need is some IDs so that we can start setting up some bank accounts before we can send the money. And don't worry, we'll keep them confidential."

"Oh thank god, you're a lifesaver." Gaius sighed with relief. "At least we're able to solve our money problems for a bit. Only thing now is to find some jobs to earn our own money."

"Fair enough. Oh, and if you're wondering how I was able to get your frequency, I recently got my own Zikan Phone made by Dr. Fleuve. And Prairie-kun also shared me her contact number, along with the others."

"So that's how you're able to call me. Alright then, is there anything else?"

"No, that's all for now. I'll contact you again if anything new shows up. Till then, have fun!"

"Thanks, Chief. See ya." Gaius ended the call and put away the phone. "Guess you're right after all, Kanade. Genjuro really is gonna sort out our money problems."

"Told ya so." Kanade smirked back. "With that said, time to go karaoke!"

"Yeah!" Everyone else responded as they continue their trip to a karaoke place until they arrived at said location in a few minutes.

Once inside the karapke lounge, everyone took turns singing their favourite songs, including some of their own. Though Vent, Aile, Ashe, Gunvolt and Copen chose not to sing but instead offered support and cheering them on. First off is Hibiki singing Gekisou Gungnir, the very first song she sang when she first awakened Gungnir. Next is Kanade who sang Gyakkou no Resolve, a new song from the former idol that Hibiki and the rest of her friends never heard of before. After that is Miku's turn who sang Eiai Promise. Next up was Chris who sang Lasting Song, which surprised Gunvolt, Copen, Joule, Lola, Vent, Aile, Ashe, Kanade and Serena for having a very beautiful and calm voice when she sang that song. Next up is Kirika and Shirabe singing a duet called Just Loving X-Edge. After that is Serena's turn who sang Kono Ima wo Ikite, a new song no one heard of before, but a very good one. Next up is Joule who sang Beyond the Blue, one of first songs she sang to support Gunvolt when they started working together. And once it was Lola's turn to sing...

"Well, I don't have a signature song when I first obtained 'The Muse' Septima. Though the only one I can think of is Igniter." Lola admitted.

"That's alright, Lola-chan. Any one of your songs will do." Hibiki replied.

"Still, your singing voice is kinda cool when I first heard it." Chris commented.

"Hmm..." Lola pondered with her hand on her chin. "Actually... there is this one song I wanted to try out. While I was resting inside Copen's relic, I was writing a new song about his new role as a Luminous Avenger."

"Is that so?" Copen responded with a raised eyebrow. "Is it finished?"

"Yep, even tried to sing the new song myself." Lola replied before turning to the group. "Now I want to hear all of your opinions of that song."

"So we're basically song judges now?" Kanade questioned.

"Maybe."

"What is the name of that new song, Lola?" Joule asked.

"Luminous Promise."

"Luminous... Promise..." Gunvolt repeated the new song name. "Alright, go for it!"

"Do your best, Lola!" Hibiki supported.

"You got it, GV! Hibiki!" Lola replied with a salute. "Everyone, please listen to my new song!"

Everyone clapped for her as she took a deep breath before she began to sing her new song.

(Play BGM: Luminous Promise by Lola)

Kimi no sekai wo kagayakaseru yo
Shirogane no protocol

Once Lola sang her first lyrics, she began to dance, with everyone else supporting her as they waved their glowsticks while being entranced by her new song. And it's about to get better from here.

Ano hi nakushita kagi doko ni aru no?
Onaji me wo shita hito deau tame

Azayaka na, chemical wa
Misekake no, soragoto
Koukai genkai koeta
Sono saki ni ki ga tuite...

Negai kanau power-energy boku ga
Kimi ni ageru kara
Hitotsu dake demo kinou wo kaeta
Nakushita mirai, hikari wo tsukamu
Protocol!

"Whoa, go Lola!" Kanade cheered for the idol.

"Go for it!" Serena also cheered.

"You're doing great!" Shirabe also supported.

"Dess, Dess, Dess!" Kirika added.

Ima mo kuyanda mama
Sagashiteru no?
Chigau karada wo motsu
Bokutachi wa

Machi kirenu gyouretsu wa
Itsuwari no recovery
Koukai genkai koeta
Sono saki ni ki ga tsuite...

Kodoku harau power-energy boku ga
Kimi ni ageru kara
Hitori dake demo akiramenaide
Nakushita mirai hikari wa mieru…

"So this is the song of the Luminous Avenger... Not bad at all, Lola." Gunvolt remarked.

"I agree. Copen's no longer an Adept Slayer, so this song fits perfectly for him." Joule added.

"Okay, did not expect Lola to sing a really cool song like this." Zeo commented.

"I'll say. In fact, I might add this to my favourite's list." Gaius replied.

"Hito koto yuuki sae areba…"
"Ano toki te wo nobaseta nara…"
Jishin wa nakute kamawanai
Sono mama de ii
Boku ga soba ni iru
Kimi wo tsurete yuku

Negai kanau power-energy boku ga
Kodoku harau power-energy kimi ni

Ima nara dekiru hazu da yo
Kimi to bokura nara
Hitotsu dake demo kinou wa kawaru
Nakushita mirai hikari wo tsukamu
Protocol!

Once Lola sang the last of her lyrics, she did a few stylish dance moves as the song slowly comes to an end.

(BGM End)

Everyone began to clap for Lola as she took a graceful bow. "So, what do you guys think?" She asked.

"I think the answer's obvious since everyone is so entranced to your new song." Gunvolt replied with Joule nodding.

"Gotta admit, that's a pretty great song you wrote." Copen added.

"That was a really amazing song, Lola! I liked it a lot!" Hibiki smiled.

"If you're planning to go for an idol career someday, then you're definitely gonna go far." Kanade added.

"Thanks, everyone!" Lola smiled back, before turning to the Riders. "Okay boys, your turn!"

"What?!" The two exclaimed in shock, earning everyone's attention.

"Uh, Lola? Are you sure it's a good idea?" Zeo questioned.

"Well we are in a karaoke lounge to have fun. Plus, you two are the reason why we formed this team in the first place." Lola answered.

"True, but..."

"But what?" Shirabe asked.

"To be honest, we did sing a few songs in private. But when it comes with singing with so many friends watching, that's an entirely different story." Gaius admitted.

"So what's stopping you? I'd say go all out!" Kanade persuaded.

"I'm with Kanade on this!" Ashe agreed.

"Now now, let's not force them too much. I don't want to embarrass them." Joule said.

"I'll have to agree with Joule." Miku agreed.

"It's better to let them decide if they wanna sing or not." Vent stated before turning to the Riders. "It's your call. I'll respect your decision either way."

Zeo and Gaius took a moment to look at each other and ponder on their decision. After a few moments, they turned back to the group to answer. "Alright, but only one song." Gaius answered with Zeo nodding.

"Though it would be easier if we have some of our songs on our phones." Zeo added.

"Speaking of phones... Gaius, when I was building my Zikan Phone for the first time and examined your phone, turns out that it also functioned as a music player." Copen pointed out.

"Wait, it does?!" The Riders responded in surprise before they took out their phones and search for the music player function, until they found what they're looking for.

"Holy crap, you're right." Gaius said with his eyes widen.

"Not only that, there's a lot of songs stored in there. Good thing that it's sorted properly in playlist format." Zeo added while scrolling the list of songs.

"I... uh... even played that one song on that phone. I think it was called Finger on the Trigger." Copen admitted while scratching his cheek with his finger.

"Why does that song name sound awesome?" Chris questioned.

"Sing that song, guys! I wanna hear it!" Lola cheerfully demanded the Riders.

"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on there, Lola!" Zeo stopped her with his hands raised. "Me and Gaius were thinking of another song instead. And it's a damn good one too."

"And what song would that be?" Serena asked.

"A perfect song for rival battles. It's called Ranbu Escalation."

"Ranbu... Escalation..." Hibiki repeated the song name.

"I'm gonna go take a seat. This is your stage now!" Lola said as she took a seat and cheered for the Riders standing up and taking over, with the others also cheering for support.

"(Heh, I think she just quoted Kamen Rider Gaim's catchphrase there.)" Gaius whispered to Zeo.

"(Yep.)" Zeo whispered back with a smirk as he wireless connected the song from the Zikan Phone to the digital jukebox. After they picked up the mics, Zeo began to play the song.

(Play BGM: Ranbu Escalation by Zeo Naotora and Gaius Cornell)

Ore-tachi ga saikyou no
Chikara te ni ireta to shite
Sono ato ni kono me ni wa
Donna sekai utsuru no ka...

Arasoi wa mata arasoi no tane nokoshi
Toki ga tatsu mama kanashimi no mi wo sodateru

Nigetai no nara orireba ii kono BATORU wo
Risou narabete kanau hodo amakunai

Daremo ga

Jibun ga

Motomeru

Mirai wo mezase

Ore-tachi ga saikyou no
Chikara te ni ireta to shite
Sono ato ni kono me ni wa
Donna sekai utsuru no darou

Joukyou dakai shiteku hodo ni

Shihai suru hodo ni

Kiwami Escalation

"Wow, those guys really CAN sing." Gunvolt commented with surprise, earning an agreed nod from Joule.

"Heh, once again those Kamen Riders never cease to amaze us." Copen smirked.

Tomadoi no suki nerawareteru koto kizukazu
Aoi kajitsu no mama naraba tsuburete yuke

Genkai wo mata koeru tabi fuan ni naru
Doko ni chikazuki donna mono ushinau?

Modorenai

Tomarenai

Saigo ni

Kachi-nokoru made

Kono sekai saikyou no
PAWAA no kagi wo aketara
Oretachi no unmei wa
Doko e tsunagatte yuku darou

Yabou wa moesakatte

Kawaranai negai

Chikara Escalation Wow~

"Damn, those guys are killing it with this song." Vent commented.

"I agree." Aile nodded.

"I'm playing this song during my sparring matches with Grey." Ashe grinned.

Daremo tatakau riyuu ga ari

Daremo tomeru koto wa dekinai

Hajimaru masashiku

Ranse no

Gunyuukakkyo

Ore ga ima te ni ireta
Chikara ga donna mono demo

Dare yori mo saki wo iku
Rikutsu ni kawari wa nai sa

Ore-tachi ga saikyou no
Chikara te ni ireta to shite
Sono ato ni kono me ni wa
Donna sekai utsuru no darou

Joukyou dakai shiteku hodo ni

Shihai suru hodo ni

Kiwami Escalation

(BGM End)

Everyone clapped for the Riders after they sung that amazing song. "Wow! I never knew you two were that good at singing!" Hibiki commented.

"Well we have been practicing, but boy was it worth the effort." Zeo replied.

"Gotta admit, that song is really damn good." Chris commented.

"Glad you all liked it." Gaius replied.

"So what was that song about?" Miku asked.

"It's a story about two people fighting for ultimate power." Zeo explained. "One seeks power to become strong so that he'll never let the weak be trampled with; while the other seeks to protect everyone he held dear with his kindness intact, even if the world becomes hopeless."

Everyone was speechless at what that song really meant. "Wow..." Vent remarked.

"In other words, a clash between ideals." Gunvolt guessed, earning a nod from Zeo.

"Neither of those people are right and wrong." Gaius stated. "They both have relatable morals that are understandable, but only one shall stand, and the other shall fall."

"I see..." Copen responded.

"Though honestly, I'd rather take a third option, where everyone can live peacefully with no need of senseless violence. And I don't need ultimate power to do that, I'll just do it with my own hands." Zeo said.

"Well said, Zeo-san." Miku smiled, with everyone else smiling.

"Anyway, I think that's enough singing for one day." Zeo declared as he and Gaius put down the mics. "Wanna call it a day?"

"Well..." Hibiki began to ponder for a moment, until she had an idea. "Actually, there's one more place I wanted to show you guys."

"And what would that be?" Aile asked.

"Follow me and you'll find out!" Hibiki replied with a wink.

"It better not be something stupid." Chris glared.

"A-Ah, no! It's nothing like that Chris-chan, I promise!" Hibiki waved her hands in defence.

"Alright then, Hibiki. Lead the way." Ashe nodded as everyone stood up from their seats.

---

A few minutes later...

"Come on, everyone! Over here!" Hibiki called the others to catch up as they were heading up a large hill with Hibiki already ahead of them.

"A hill. Why is Hibiki making us go up a large hill?" Ashe complained.

"At this rate, I'm pretty sure that I can figure out what she's planning to show us." Vent said.

"The view of the city?" Aile guessed, earning a nod from Vent. "Takes me back when we did the same thing back in our world, looking over a large city.

"Yeah, and that was before we knew who our true enemies were." Vent replied.

"What true enemies?" Shirabe asked.

"We'll tell you some other time, it's a long story." Aile replied.

A few minutes of walking later, they finally reached the top of the hill where they saw a playground.

"A playground? That's what you're planning to show us?" Serena questioned Hibiki, who shook her head in response.

"No. It's what's beyond the playground that I wanted to show all of you." Hibiki answered as she grabbed Kanade and Serena's hand which surprised them, and gently dragged them towards the lookout, with everyone else following behind.

Once they arrived at the lookout, everyone was in awe at the spectacular view of the city. "Whoa..."

"I know, right?" Hibiki smiled back as she turned to the view and pointed at the places they've been through earlier at a distance. "See those places? That's where we've spent wonderful fun times together. All of us."

"Hey, that's the clothing store we've visited!" Ashe said as she pointed at said store.

"And that's must be the cinema we've also visited." Gunvolt said as he pointed at said cinema.

"Ah! I can see the arcade from here, dess!" Kirika said as she pointed at said arcade.

"Kanade-san, over there." Hibiki called her while pointing at a park. "That park over there, that's where me and Miku met up with Tsubasa-san before we spent time together to have fun last time."

"I see." Kanade replied. "Did she have a good time?"

"Yup! We all did!" Hibiki smiled before turning back to the view. "Everywhere we've been, everywhere we haven't, that's the world we know and love. It's because we've fought to protect this world so that we could live in it. Tsubasa-san didn't know about the whole world yet, but after I showed her this beautiful view, she finally understood."

"That's good to know, Hibiki-chan." Kanade smiled back. "Y'know, when I was out jogging a few years back, I just happened to look at a similar view kinda like this one and I've began to realize something. After all of the fighting's done and when this conflict with the Neo Time Jackers and Gjallarhorn is over, we can finally stop and enjoy this beautiful world. I've fought to protect this world, and now that I was given a second chance, I can still do that now. Don't you agree, Serena-chan?"

"Yes, you're absolutely right." Serena nodded back and smiled with everyone else also smiling.

"I was also planning to show Tsubasa this amazing view when I was still alive, but you've already did that job for me. So thanks for that, little kouhai." Kanade smiled at her successor.

"You're welcome, Kanade-san!" Hibiki smiled back.

"We're not gonna let the Neo Time Jackers destroy this beautiful world, or any of the other worlds." Zeo stated as he and Gaius turned to the group. "That's why we chose to fight instead of doing nothing. That's why we've decided to become chosen ones, whether it was becoming a Kamen Rider, a Pretty Cure, a Mega Man, or an Attuned. Is everyone with me and Gaius?"

"I think the answer is pretty much obvious, so there's no way I'm turning back now." Kanade smirked back.

"Me and Kanade-san were with you two from the beginning, and we're not gonna stop there." Serena smiled.

"And remember, you're the reason why this team is formed in the first place." Gunvolt reminded.

"And you're the reason why we've settled our differences and chose to join your team." Copen added.

"Wherever GV and Copen goes, me and Lola will always be right beside them." Joule said.

"That's right!" Lola cheerfully agreed.

"Looks like it's not just ours or this world that needs protecting." Vent remarked. "Other worlds also needed our help."

"And it's our job to protect and save those worlds. That's why me, Vent and even the Guardians chose to join you two." Aile added.

"The same goes for me and Grey as well. I'm looking forward to what kinds of adventures has in store for us!" Ashe also added with a small grin.

"Don't forget about me and Kiri-chan as well. We'll also join your team to support your mission." Shirabe said.

"I wanna see the other worlds too, dess!" Kirika cheerfully added.

"So I guess we're officially multiversal saviours, now? Oh well, at least I won't get too bored travelling to other worlds. It might be kind of exciting." Chris remarked with a slight grin.

"I'll be there to help you guys too! I want to help more people living in the other worlds, and to stop the ones from abusing them. My fist, my life, they're both my Symphogear!" Hibiki smiled.

"Wherever Hibiki goes, I'll be right beside her. And don't forget about S.O.N.G too since they'll also support you." Miku added.

"Everyone..." Zeo whispered when he saw everyone's feelings. From the very start of this journey, it was only him, his best friend Gaius, her sister Akira, Kanade, Serena, Kallen, Sakura, Woz and Einstein, along with the Zi-O Liner. And now, his team grew even larger, along with obtaining an airship and a submarine. He can't help but smile at what he and Gaius had accomplished so far. But he knows that this is only just the beginning. "Thank you so much." He thanked them before he turned back to the view and began to look at the sky. "But this is only just the beginning. Once we reunite with my sister and her team, meet up with Tsubasa and Maria, and find out about Gjallarhorn's deciphered data, that's where the real fun starts."

"Damn straight." Gaius agreed as he and everyone else looked at the same direction with determination on their faces. "We're gonna start travelling to the other worlds, stop those Distortions caused by the Gjallarhorn Fragments and extract them, and permanently defeat the Neo Time Jackers."

"What about that unknown third party?" Gunvolt asked as he recalled the ones that broke Gjallarhorn in the first place.

"We'll find out eventually during our adventures, I can guarantee that." Zeo replied as he continued to look at the sky with a smile on his face. "Akira Naotora, my dear sister. Me, Gaius, and the rest of my new friends are waiting for you, here in this world. See you again soon, sis..."

---

Chapter 4: New Bonds

END

---

New members joining the team:

Genshin Impact series

Lumine (Female Traveler)

Noelle

Sucrose

Author's Note: Finally I get to add these favourite characters from Genshin Impact, a really popular game. The team will eventually travel to Teyvat someday in a future story. Also to note that Lumine did not meet Paimon yet, but she will once they arrive at Teyvat. I'm not gonna include that unknown guy to the team yet because he's too injured and in a deep coma, but he'll join once he finally wakes up. But I did leave out a few hints on his identity, so if you can figure out who he is, then kudos to you. Anyway, the meetup between the two teams will finally happen; but how will it happen? Well, only time will tell...

But before I end this chapter, I wanna give a quick shoutout to a few fanfic authors for their amazing stories that made me finally write my first fanfic while I was still a normal user faving stories that I like:

Ashbel Longhart

jexi the hunter

David Ishihara

D.K.N

seanzilla115

Xovercreator

Shunya Toshiki

Okay, that's it for now. Stay safe and see you in the next chapter!