For the first time in a while, it was fairly quiet in S.O.N.G's bridge. The various members worked slowly and silently, and only the sound of tapping keyboards echoed in the small space.

Or, it should have been. But there was one person there, or in this case a head, that would not keep quiet.

"Play it again." He said, instructing the member he was paired up with.

For the last few hours, Adam Weishaupt has been engrossed in exactly one thing: watching clips of Tachibana Hibiki on repeat. The confused male member had seen this particular one dozens of times by now, and he could by heart recite every single action and word those on it had said.

However, he could not understand what exactly the defeated leader of the Illuminati could possibly be gaining from watching this video so many times. What was he trying to understand? What sort of information was he trying to gleam from it?

The man had asked him a few times, but Adam simply ignored him and kept on watching the clip. Every so often, Adam would instruct him to stop the video at a certain point, and he could see as the head's eyes narrowed at several particular instances.

A few minutes later, the clip ended. The man let out a sigh, finally hoping to get his rest.

"Play it again." Adam simply said. The man's eyes widened, but he let out another sigh, this one defeated, and went on to play the clip again.

Adam for his part, found every viewing of the video slightly more enlightening. He was rewatching the clip of the battle in the school, and every time he made another interesting observation, whether it was about the Symphogears themselves, their dynamics with each other, or even Saint-Germain's sudden power up and abilities.

But there was one thing that constantly stumped him: Tachibana Hibiki herself. It seemed that no matter how many times he rewatched, he could just not come to an understanding as to what she was.

He knew exactly what happened to her: she fused with the divine power, prompting the god-slaying one from Gungnir to burst out and bring out the curses with it, which corrupted her mind. But that did not explain why she was transforming. It did not explain why she was suddenly becoming stronger by the minute, and why she seemingly started developing abilities out of nowhere. Teleportation, creation of life, and tearing holes in reality are all natural abilities of the divine power, as it uses the logic of the universe that is not understood by humans.

But that did not explain how she was learning out to use it so quickly. He himself was a creation of divine beings, and all the knowledge of their power took him decades to understand, and he was made to be an absolute genius. Yet, Tachibana Hibiki managed to use and understand them in less than twenty four hours! And not just any abilities, but some of the most difficult ones as well.

That was the part that made no sense to him. It was just not possible she was talented or smart enough to so fully control it. He knew about the extent of her cleverness and her ability to seemingly destroy logic or reason with her fists, but such a thing cannot be applied to divine power. She can only react to things she understands, something that is on the level of humanity as a whole.

In essence, humanity has the ability to observe the entire universe down to its most basic particles. In time, they will freely roam the stars and the galaxies and be able to reach the innermost secret of the atom. However, all of that lies on the physical plane of the universe, the one that is governed by physics and logic. No matter how advanced they become, that will be their limit.

The divine, along with its power, lie on a plane far too out of reach for humanity to understand. It is an existence that predates the universe, and is in fact part of what gave birth to it in the first place. After all, the Big Bang could not have possibly occurred if there hadn't been something to cause it in the first place. And that something was the divine power, the power wielded by the gods themselves. Only something as potent as that could cause a reaction so tremendous it would form a universe.

It is something so beyond human understanding that simply observing it should render them speechless due to its otherworldliness.

Yet here was Tachibana Hibiki, wielding it like it was a playground toy!

It was blasphemy! Something like this should have destroyed her in an instant! Even if she was somehow free of sin and had the ability to harness it, that does not mean she should have done so!

So why, why was she so strong?! Why was she stronger than himself?! And why is she becoming even stronger?!

That was the only conclusion he could reach from watching the same clip on repeat for the past few hours. But he could not obtain any answers from it. It did however give him a focus.

He just needed more evidence. He needed more clips, he needed more readings. He needed her to appear again and he needed to study her as thoroughly as he could. The strange mutation the Aufwachen wavelength went through was the first hint to his answer. He had also gone over the records from last night, and he had to admit it truly was something to look at. He had compared it to the usual one, and there were so many difference it was hard to believe it was the same relic.

But at its core, it was. As if the divine power, along with the curses were interposing themselves on top of it. Yet, because of the sheer contradiction between the two powers, it caused the signal itself to warp under the stress.

And that brought him to the second, unexplainable phenomena he witnessed: he had earlier told the commander, as well as the Adaptors, that the two powers were in a chaotic harmony within her being.

But when he looked at the patterns again...it seemed like the black veins, which indicated the god-slaying power, were expanding. They were covering more and more of the limited area on the screen, and in contrast, the blue veins that indicated the divine power were...slowly disappearing?

And that was just another aspect that left him confused. If the divine power is vanishing...then why is she not becoming weaker? Just what is going on here? And why is it happening so soon?

So many questions, so little answers, and so little time. It's been awhile since Adam ever found himself being challenged like this. In some ways it is refreshing, yet in others disconcerting. But he could not allow that to keep him down. Even in a situation as dire as this, he knew that in the end, he's the one that's going to win.

So for now, cooperate. Use them to find the answers he required, and when Tachibana Hibiki is stripped of the divine power, snatch it when their guard is down. But first, he had to make sure they actually succeeded in doing so...which proved to be the hard part.

As Adam continued contemplating and formulating plans in his head, the door to the bridge slid open. Aoi turned her head around, her eyes heavy from fatigue and constantly looking at the screen.

And then they lit up in surprise. "Commander?!"

Then as one all of the bridge members turned around to look at the door, and they smiled as they saw Genjuro, seemingly none the worse for wear, walking in wearing a new set of his red collared shirt and khaki pants.

They cheered as he sat down on his chair, and he smiled widely. "Yo, looks like I've worried you."

"Nah," One of the members yelled. "We knew you'll be okay after a few hours of rest. Nothing can keep you down."

"Heh, I appreciate the concern." Genjuro responded. He looked back to the screen before him, going over the displayed readings. "Now get back to work you fools, the celebrations can come later."

They nodded with a grin on their faces, and then turned back to their consoles, their spirits renewed. Adam raised an eyebrow as even the man he was stuck to somehow became more energetic than before, and typed away rapidly in his console as he went between assisting the severed head and doing his own work.

Adam stopped his work to speak up for a moment. "You sure are an appreciated commander." He said.

"Hmph, if I wasn't I'd already be dead," Genjuro responded. "But enough about that. What did you find so far?"

Adam looked momentarily back to the screen he had been studying for the past few hours. "Plenty and nothing at all at the same time, I have to say."

Genjuro raised an eyebrow at the strange response. "Meaning?"

"Meaning that even though I might have obtained some answers, it only raised more questions. More questions that can be answered if we had a bit more data, which unfortunately you don't. Quite a shame." Adam answered.

Genjuro narrowed his eyes. Ah, so he was trying to take a dig at them. Well, whatever. "It is indeed quite a shame," He responded. "Maybe next time we'll get some more. Who knows? That largely depends on you and what you share."

The leader of the Illuminati huffed and looked back to his screen. "Well, then let me tell you what I have discovered so far, oh great venerated commander," He said mockingly. "First, it seems there is a lot more going on here than we initially believed. There is a contradiction between what should be happening to the god-slayer and what actually is happening."

"What do you mean?" Genjuro asked. The other bridge members stopped their typing to listen to Adam as well.

Adam nodded to the man he worked with, and he promptly transferred the Aufwachen data to the giant display on the front of the bridge. Gungnir's original signal flashed orange as it spun in place. "As you know, this is the original Aufwachen signal belonging to Tachibana Hibiki's Gungnir." He said. He nodded again to the man, who tapped away on his keyboard. A second screen appeared next to the first. "And this is the same signal that you detected when she first hatched from the cocoon. As you can see, there are major changes to it, although the original is still coherent underneath."

Genjuro studied the two signals before him, successfully following Adam's explanation. The original signal was an orange colored flower with spearlike formations protruding from it. It was nothing special to look at, about as exceptional as the others. It was the new one that gave him pause. He had seen it that night, but did not give it too much thought as they were far too busy being shocked to study it right away.

In the new signal, he could see the original within. However, from the very inside of the flower shape were now glowing blue colored vein running along it, and they were even leaking from the formation itself, growing over the empty space on the small screen it was displayed it. That was, he reckoned, an indication that the Gungnir itself is housing the divine power, but it cannot hold it in its entirety.

But that would have been fine...if it wasn't for the pitch black hole sitting right at the center of the flower.

Genjuro didn't need to be a genius to understand what that was. That dark abyss was none other than the god-slaying power...the very same one that twisted Hibiki's mind. He could see how black veins leaked out from the black hole to the flower at large, and how some of them were touching the blue veins signifying the divine power. All in all, it looked like the flower was diseased and being eaten alive by two different yet potent pathogens at once.

"How did we always miss this?" He asked, his eyes narrowed. Since Val Verde where they first fought against a divine presence, they have never, ever bothered to look at the Aufwachen signal. If they had, they might have been able to isolate it before this incident ever took place.

"Because as I told you, the god-slaying power reacts proportionally to the amount of divine presence that it discovers. It only makes sense that when confronted by such a huge concentration of divine power, it will react far more viciously and violently. And what's more, it will not regress until the divine power disappears first." Adam explained, throwing Genjuro's assumption out of the window. "But here is where things become interesting."

He nodded to the man again, who brought up another recorded signal.

And this time, Genjuro noticed with wide eyes, that it was not nearly as pretty.

The first thing he noticed was the black hole in the center had become bigger than before, having taken over the entire middle section of the flower. But even worse than that, the entire structure of it, particularly the spearlike protrusions were being warped inwardly towards the darkness itself. But even more interestingly, the blue veins of the divine power were far fewer in number, and there were many more of the black veins in their stead, and now they too were leaking out of the flower itself and began to fill in the empty space on the screen.

"This is the signal recorded after her first outburst in the courtyard of the school. In almost an instant, the area of effect of the curses had dramatically increased and began to take over more of the original signal, not to mention that it is now also breaking its shape as well." Adam continued. Now the three iterations of Gungnir's Aufwachen wavelengths were displayed side by side on the screen, accentuating the radical changes it had undergone in the past twenty four hours.

It was incredibly disturbing to look at.

"This is messed up." Fujitaka commented.

"Messed up is putting it lightly," Genjuro added. "This is a very important and curious find, but what exactly does it mean and what can we do about it?"

Adam smirked. "For starters, there's nothing you can do about it. At least, not you yourself mind you." He said. Genjuro glared at him in response, causing Aoi to look at him curiously. "What does it mean exactly? Several things, in fact. The first is the fairly obvious one: the influence of the curses is spreading further every time you fight her. I assume it happened because she experienced an emotional trauma when the little lady confronted her. As the curses are primarily composed of raw emotion, it is only logical they would react when their user enters the same wavelength as them. This is however when it becomes dangerous."

The three signals swirled slowly on the screen, their hypnotizing movements adding more to the mysterious atmosphere that had fallen on the bridge. "It becomes a vicious cycle. Every time she has a strong emotional reaction, the curses spread more, twisting her mind further. That makes her susceptible to more breakdowns, which then cause the curses to spread more. You can understand where that leads from here." Adam said.

Genjuro indeed understood where it leads. Eventually, Hibiki will get swallowed up by the curses themselves as she will eventually lose control over them. If the Aufwachen signal is any indication, Gungnir itself is also slowly losing cohesion as a Symphogear. The curses will eventually become so powerful that Hibiki will be reduced to nothing short of a raging berserker, just like during the time she was fused with the fragment from Kanade.

But it won't be the same as before. No, it will be much, much worse, as it might become a state that she will never return from.

However...something seemed to be missing.

"Hold on," Genjuro said. "Where does the divine power factor into all of this?"

That was the moment Adam's expression hardened, and he glared at the display above him. "That is a good question, and one that has trumped me until now. As you can see on the third display, there are more of the black veins and fewer of the blue ones. What I can infer from that is that the divine power is...disappearing, so to say. That the curses, the god-slaying power, is finally doing what it's supposed to and eradicating it as it should."

The commander however realized that something was amiss in his explanation. "You don't seem very convinced."

"No," Adam replied. "And that is because of the fact that if it's supposed to be erasing the divine power...why is she not getting any weaker? No, she's actually getting stronger as the curses spread, and that is the reason why she spontaneously started developing abilities that she should not have for centuries. That is the exact part of it that confuses me, and that is why I require another observation. I need her to reappear so I can see the signal again. I am sure that once I have that final piece, I will be able to formulate an answer."

Genjuro put a hand on his chin in contemplation. "I'm afraid that if she reappears now, it will be over for us. We just do not have the manpower to confront her now that the wielders are all injured and cannot fight with their full potential. We have to hope that she does not appear until they recover, at the very least."

The commander crossed his arms over his chest. Adam just smiled at what he said.

"Do you now?" Adam asked completely unconvinced, but decided to say nothing more. If Genjuro thought he could hide his intentions from him then he is sadly mistaken. Adam knew exactly what Genjuro's plan was from the very beginning. But he figured it did not matter if he publicly revealed it or not, since once the time comes he'll know when to apply it.

Genjuro did not respond to him, indicating the end of their conversation. "Tomosato, Fujitaka, have a full scan of the city active at all times. We are looking for everything, especially Aufwachen. If she decides to reappear now we have to be able to know instantly where she is and how we will respond. Assign everyone a section that they must watch over with real-time visuals. It's entirely possible we might miss it somehow, so don't lose focus." He commanded.

His two direct subordinates acknowledged his orders, and immediately went to fulfilling them. He continued. "Furthermore, we must-"

And then the sound of a hail rose his Fujitaka's terminal. "Commander…" He said reluctantly. "It's...from Kamakura."

There was a collective groan from pretty much everyone on the bridge. Genjuro sighed in defeat. "What timing," He said, mentally preparing himself. "Put him through."

Fujitaka nodded.

A few button presses later, the video call display lit up.

Showing the face of a very angry Kazanari Fudou.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS, GENJURO?!" He screamed, slamming his fist onto his table on the other end. Several bridge members flinched at the sudden noise. "How will you explain this humiliation?! You have done nothing but fail constantly!"

The mentioned commander steeled himself, keeping calm in the face of his father's outburst. "We are facing more difficulties than we could have expected. This is a field we are not familiar with, so we can't just-"

"You said that the moment you have information you will pass it on to me. I did not receive an update even after your battle in the school grounds ended. It is your duty to keep me informed, Genjuro! Do not think that you are allowed to overstep your boundaries!"

"Sir, with all due respect, I did not-"

"Furthermore, your subordinates have failed in taking down the enemy as they should have, and they have returned empty handed and injured as well! Are they so incompetent that they cannot take down a single opponent despite the power they were constantly granted?!" Fudou yelled, making sure his complaints and superiority were on full display here.

Genjuro narrowed his eyes. If there was one thing that Fudou could have done to cause his anger to rise, it was insulting the girls. But he couldn't allow it to show on his face or in his speech in any manner. It would be the exact reaction that Fudou was trying to get out of him.

"The problem lies not in their own abilities, but with the enemy's," Genjuro said, biting back his frustration at having to refer to Hibiki as such. "The problem is that she is just too strong. I was not lying when I said we are dealing with something we have absolutely no experience in. She has abilities that defy reason and as a result makes it very difficult to form an effective plan of action against her."

Fudou slammed his fist onto his table again. "That is nothing but an excuse! Do you really believe those foreigners will accept such a thing?! They've already attempted to drop their bomb once, what makes you believe they won't try to do so again?! Do you want the country to burn, Genjuro?!"

"Of course I don't!" Genjuro answered, his tone slightly more elevated. He rose from his chair and stared the head of the Kazanari agency straight in the eyes. "But everyone saw how that bomb had absolutely no effect. Even if they drop thousands of them and erase the country from the face of the map, that does not guarantee it will succeed in taking her down! She cannot be defeated by conventional means, and that includes nuclear bombs AND Symphogear!"

Fudou grit his teeth in fury. "And that is why you should have handed over the girl when I ordered you to! Had you simply done as you were told, we wouldn't be in this crisis! This entire incident is on your shoulders, Genjuro! How do you plan to answer for that?"

Ah, of course. The regular 'This is your fault' routine. How many times has he heard that in the past? It was easy for Fudou to blame him for everything, although not without good reason. Despite his unlikability, the Kazanari head was no fool. If Fudou said that you messed up, you really messed up. And Genjuro already knew this whole thing was on his shoulders.

But that was the one thing he wouldn't budge on, no matter what his father says. "I already told you why I couldn't hand her over and I will not change my mind on the subject."

"Do not think you can fool me, Genjuro! I can read you like an open book. You plan on using her anyway now that you have run out of options, don't you?" Fudou said in a surprising moment of calmness.

Genjuro grit his teeth in frustration, working hard to make sure his shock was not shown.

'Shit, he figured that out already?' Genjuro thought through his clenched teeth. This was bad. He wanted to hide this fact from him. Even if tried to deny it, Fudou will see right through him.

"In that case, Genjuro, do as you will...for now," Fudou suddenly announced, forcing the entire bridge to stare at him in shock. What was this sudden change of heart? No, he couldn't. He was planning to- "But make no mistake, once this incident is resolved, you will hand them both over to me. That is an order. Should you fail to obey, I cannot guarantee the safety of your subordinates...or their families."

A sudden rush of fear and anxiety swept through every single person on the bridge, their horror openly expressed. Several shivered in place at his threat, and refused to look at his face any further. "Take that into consideration. Until then, you will provide me with the information I desire. Is that understood?"

Genjuro put his hands to his sides and bowed formally. "Yes."

Fudou humphed one last time, and then the connection cut, restoring the screen. Genjuro raised himself back to normal position, stared hard at the display, and let out the one word fitting to convey his thoughts.

"Shit."

A very uncomfortable silence fell on the bridge as the crew members wondered about Fudou's warning. Despite their lack of formal contact with him, they knew he was not playing around. His influence in the country and the cabinet was well known to them, and they knew that if he desired he could have them all charged with treason, then arrested, and then finally executed. And after that, their families would follow. That was the old traditional method of discipline that Fudou favoured, despite the fact that modern laws prohibited much of that.

It just didn't matter with him. He could just have them all assassinated and declare it as a work accident, and nobody in the court would believe them if they tried to persecute him. His pull in the government was far too strong and far too deep to just ignore.

And that made the situation all the more difficult.

Not only that, Fudou made Genjuro's plan clear as day to all of his subordinates, so any element of surprise he had was now lost. With more people in on the secret, it would be harder to keep it from the one person who should not know about it: Hibiki. If she ever found out what he was planning before they were ready, nothing would stop her from coming to HQ personally and blowing them all up to smithereens.

As the commander was contemplating his next move, something caught his hearing. It was a rising sound, as if someone was breathing out of their nose and huffing constantly.

Then, the sound rose, and he could start hearing chuckling. That sound caught the attention of everyone else on the bridge, and they looked around to find the source.

It wasn't very difficult to locate.

Adam, having remained exactly where he was the entire time, was desperately trying to hold back his laughter. The crew members looked at him with eyes wide and stared at him hard, yet he ignored their appalled gazes and simply continued chuckling to himself.

And then he just let it all go, and let out a full blown laughter that echoed throughout the bridge. He laughed and laughed and laughed, and nobody seemed to dare to try and stop him. So shocked were they by the fact that he found their situation so amusing that they were frozen in place, unable to move.

He laughed. And laughed. And laughed.

An eternity seemed to pass by the time his maddened cackling lowered, and he finally began to form coherent words. "This is far too priceless! To think...To think such a man could exist in the present world! I have not seen or heard something so amusing in centuries!"

Genjuro sent him a piercing glare, but Adam simply ignored it. "A true oppressor in the modern age! And to think you fools are actually terrified! What an absolute farce! I cannot believe that Fine and Carol Dienheim lost to the likes of you!"

His derisive laughter continued, and the bridge members cringed at the stinging words.

But Genjuro was far, far from amused. "So I see you think this is funny."

"Of course it is!" The head of the Illuminati answered. "You have the power of the old world at the palm of your hand, and yet you cower in fear before this nobody. Please, even a school child would know to not take him seriously. His empty threats are only to be ignored, nothing more than that."

"You don't seem to be very knowledge about what kind of influence he holds in this country. He was not making his threats lightly. He can and will have us all killed if we dare cross him, as much as I loathe to admit it."

"And what of it?" Adam asked. "Need I remind you that you are the one who holds the reigns for those girls, not him? It would be quite easy for you to just let them loose on him and his supporters and get rid of what you declare is a problem."

"That is not something I can do," Genjuro responded. "Don't get me wrong, I did think about it in the past-"

"Good."

"-but that would only backfire on us. I can't brute force my way through this problem, not this time. I do appreciate your concern but I'll have to pass on that. Right now, we have a much bigger problem we have to deal with. There would be no point plotting his downfall if Hibiki-kun wipes us all out before that." Genjuro said with a slight smirk. A moment later his expression changed to one of deep thought, contemplating on his next course of action.

"Well then, it would be prudent to thoroughly investigate that arm we managed to obtain, is it not? As I told you, it holds the key to holding her back, or at the very least, her quite fascinating creations. I am quite sure it will extend the Symphogears' lifespan by a significant margin." Adam commented, reminding Genjuro of the very interesting find they had.

Yes, that arm. Following the battle in the school, all of the Adaptors along with Saint-Germain and Miku were airlifted back to headquarters for treatment. Several teams however remained behind to secure the area, making sure that no one had accidentally been caught in the fighting. As they were making their rounds, they found something extremely peculiar: a severed arm from one of the beasts. For some reason, that arm did not disappear along with its owner, and had somehow survived the intense fighting and had been overlooked by Hibiki completely.

Almost immediately they placed it into a safe container and shipped it off to headquarters, and it was currently residing in Elfnein's lab. To Genjuro's surprise, when the arm was delivered to her lab she had declared that she had finished ALL of the necessary adjustments and upgrades for the Shenshoujing, a fact that he appreciated. With this, they could focus on studying the arm. However, the reason to do so eluded him for the first few hours, but then Adam Weishaupt claimed something incredibly ridiculous:

That the arm could be used for their benefit. How? They had no idea, but that was exactly what Elfnein was investigating.

Genjuro had to commend the homunculus for her hard and invaluable work. From the day she had joined them, she has done nothing but benefit them and help them as much as she could, and she would work day and night while forgoing sleep and hunger in order to give them the best possible results. She had delivered the Ignite Module and the Fool's Stone upgrades, both of which helped the wielders gain the upper hand against their opponents.

She was also the one who had come up with the original calculations and predictions as to how Hibiki would turn out once the cocoon would hatch, and how exactly they would tackle it and get her back. The very fact that not only did her predictions fail, but the eventual result was way beyond what any of them could have imagined. It was a hard blow to her pride both as a scientist and an alchemist, and since then she had done nothing but try her hardest to give true, undeniably real results.

She is a genius stuck in the body of a small, insecure child, yet when push comes to shove she has the courage to pull off anything. She did not flinch at all when Chris grabbed her by the collar the first time she introduced the Ignite Module and announced they would be tapping into the berserk state. She stood against Carol even finding out she was an unwitting mole, and had continued to help them without any expected rewards.

And Genjuro knew that the very reason she joined them in the first place was because of the girls. 'I just can't measure up.' He told himself. They may gather under him, but in the end these girls were the ones who are the pride and joy of the section, and the entire reason for its existence. Without them, the country and the world would no longer exist.

He had taken them completely for granted, especially Hibiki-kun.

And now he found himself in an inescapable dilemma and that for the first time in a very long time, he was at his wits' end. His only use now was to serve as command for them...and hope they could do what he could not.

"Why do you think that arm will be useful?" Genjuro asked Adam, who continued watching the earlier clip he had paused.

"The god-slaying power, if nothing else." Adam answered nonchalantly.

That answer was enough for Genjuro to slam his hands on his console, jolting everyone from their deep concentration and fear. They all turned to look at him in surprise, as his reaction came completely out of left-field.

"The god-slaying power?! Are you mad?!"

"I am not," Adam said calmly. "What do you think those beasts were made of?" He asked Genjuro, waiting to see if he knew the correct answer.

"From what we gathered, a combination of her blood and those curses. Our reading on them showed a deep concentration of them at their core and branching out to the form of a human." Genjuro answered from memory.

"You are correct, but not completely. Those beasts are indeed composed of her blood, and are indeed essentially the curses given form...but that is not all. For you see, in their core lies an abundance of divine power. It is through that from which they are formed, and that power does not reside in the arm any longer." Adam explained, motioning for the man helping him to bring up the initial scans and images of the arm. "Meaning it is just a cluster of curses right now. Nothing but pure god-slaying power given form. That could be very useful, don't you think?"

But Genjuro merely narrowed his eyes, not completely convinced. "You want to expose the wielders to this thing without the proper means to control it? We don't know what kind of effect it will have now that it's out in the open. Trying to incorporate it into the gears might have them all give into madness, and then our hope will be lost. And nothing says Hibiki-kun won't just be able to take it from them the moment she sees them."

"See, that's where you are wrong," Adam corrected him. "Those curses seek only to destroy one thing: any and all semblances of divine power. With their intended opponents pretty much composed of it, its effectiveness will be unmatched. Of course, with the divine power apparently disappearing from Tachibana Hibiki, it is safe to assume that her beasts will eventually be rid of it as well. But I believe as a start it will be enough. Enough to put your special plan into action."

The special plan...Genjuro grimaced. How many times did he feel that he lacked control over the situation? Way too many, that's for sure. It really came down to just her, didn't it. "We'll think it over and see what we can do. Right now, with all of the wielders injured they are not going to be fighting anything."

"Well then, I guess you should hurry," Adam said. "Never know when she'll show up again. I do hope quite soon. It will be boring otherwise."

-!-

Maria wiped her brow with her sleeve after putting Miku down on the bed in their shared quarters. The girl had cried herself to sleep, and the four of them had watched her and stayed with her the entire time. So exhausted was she that she did not stir at all the entire time Maria carried her. The elder was mildly surprised by how light she was.

She covered Miku up with the blanket and switched off the lamp, basking the room in comfortable darkness. Maria could feel the exhaustion creeping up on her as well, but she couldn't allow herself to sleep just yet. She first had to make sure that Chris, Kirika, and Shirabe went getting tucked in and resting as well. It wouldn't do if she fell asleep and then discovered that one of them did not.

She looked at Miku's sleeping face, watching her breath out and in slowly now that she calmed down a bit. The scene in the cafeteria was one of the more heartbreaking moments she had ever seen in her life, and being a significant part of it only made her all the more emotional. It took all of her willpower to not start crying as well, something that both Chris and Kirika failed in doing.

There was no blaming them. It wasn't just Miku who felt helpless and powerless in the face of such overwhelming despair. It was also time for them to finally understand what kind of situation they found themselves in, and it didn't surprise Maria that they got emotional and distressed quickly.

That was why she was adamant about getting some sleep. Sleep helps a muddled mind relax and restart, and upon waking up they'll be feeling much better and have a far clearer outlook on current events.

At least, that's what she hoped. The users might be able to regain their bearings, but Miku was most definitely not, not any time soon. Her love ran deep, and as such she was the one most affected by this change.

Yet Maria knew...she just knew...that Miku would be the one to bring salvation. How she didn't know, but she just had a feeling. Like it was a primal, animalistic instinct that screamed at her that she must do all she can to support her, and that's how everything will work out in the end.

Realizing she had wondered off, Maria shook her head and turned back to the door, leaving the quarters behind. The door closed behind her, and she leaned on the nearest wall and sighed.

No, she had to stay strong. Every moment that she was worried about herself she could be worried about the others.

"Maria?" She heard a soft, reluctant voice ask.

She lifted her head up, and spotted Kirika, in her pajamas, peering around the corner. "Kirika? What's wrong? You should be sleeping."

The Ig-Alima user turned her her to the side sheepishly. "I...couldn't fall asleep. Maybe it's because it's...not really bedtime yet? But I dunno. Shirabe was sleeping and it was kind of cold and.."

Maria blinked a few times, and let out an amused sigh. She walked up to Kirika and held her hand. "Come on, let's go back to bed."

Blushing lightly, Kirika nodded and went quiet, following after her elder.

A few moments later, the two of them entered Kirika and Shirabe's shared quarters. Leading the girl to her bed, Maria took over and tucked her in, covering her up all the way to her neck. "I'll stay with you until you fall asleep, okay?" She said, listening with one ear to Shirabe's soft breaths. Good, she was in a deep sleep right now. She didn't want to wake her up by accident.

Kirika nodded, which Maria found very cute while she was covered up by the blanket. But then, a small slender hand peeked from under it. Maria noticed it, gave Kirika a small smile, then took the offered hand in her own.

"It's been a while since I've done this for you, hasn't it?" She said softly. "You've always slept with Shirabe, but whenever you were feeling sad and distressed you always came to me. I guess old habits die hard, right?"

"Yes…" Kirika responded. "I just...couldn't stop thinking about Hibiki-san...and Miku-san. I still can't believe everything that happened. It just...doesn't feel real, y'know? I wish I could go to sleep, wake up, and everything will be fine."

Maria gripped her hand tightly as she kept on speaking. "But I know that's not how it works. I know I'm naive, but I'm not delusional. I just...want everything to go back to normal. Why can't we just have that?"

The elder rubbed the back of her Kirika's hand, and she could see tear begin to swell up in her eyes again. 'She really is too emotional sometimes.' She told herself, but figured such a thing will never change. That's just how Kirika was; she got emotionally invested in the things she cared about, which leads to these sort of episodes.

Maria wouldn't exchange it for anything in the world.

"I agree, Kirika. But things won't go back to normal just because we wish for it," Maria said solemnly. "The only way to do so will be to take it back with our own hands."

"But we couldn't do anything! Everything we tried to do ended up in failu-"

"Shhhhh…." Maria whispered, putting a finger on her lips to quiet her down. Her voice rose a bit too much and it might wake Shirabe up. She looked behind her, seeing the mentioned girl stir slightly, but otherwise remain unaffected.

Kirika put her free hand on her mouth to stop any more noise escaping, and Maria smiled. "It's just like I told Miku-san. Please, don't lose hope. I know things look bleak and dark, but we can't allow ourselves to fall into despair. So long as we stay strong, I know we can overcome any obstacle. Even one as great as this."

The blonde petite girl thought for a moment. "Do you really believe Miku-san will be the one to bring her back?" She asked, curious.

"I don't believe so," Maria answered confidently. "I know so. She knows her better than any of us do, and she is the only one among us Hibiki is not willing to risk losing. I am more than certain that Miku-san's feelings are reciprocated. It's up to us to give her the opportunity to confess them."

Kirika gave her a wide grin. "And the power of love trumps all evil!" She exclaimed, but quietly this time.

The elder couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "Yes, the power of love does indeed defeat all evils, so I know someone like Miku-san will be able to it. Love like hers is hard to come by."

"Hey! Shirabe and I love each other a lot too! We won't be outdone!" Kirika said excitedly, her previous downed mood all but forgotten.

"Fufu," Maria let out involuntarily at Kirika's adorable boast. "I don't doubt that. But right now it's our duty and responsibility to help a friend that is hurting. It will be best to just focus on that."

"Hmm...I guess you're right." Kirika agreed, and fell silent. Maria was like a mom all the time, making sure they were alright as if they were her own children. She is not that much older than them, yet she still acts while considering the two of them before anything else. She held unyielding and a forever strong motherly love towards them.

Which then brought an interesting question to her mind, one which she felt she had to ask. "Hey Maria, I have a question."

Maria tilted her held. "Yes?"

"I have to ask…"

"Hm?"

"Do you...also have someone you love like that?"

Maria's eyes widened in response to the strange and surprising question. It came so out of nowhere that it took her a moment to process the fact that Kirika asked it.

And then a flash of blue passed through her mind, and instantly her face reddened to the point she had to hide her blush with her free hand. She tilted her head down at the intrusive thoughts.

Kirika grinned triumphantly, happy she managed to catch the usually calm Maria off guard. "Maria," She prodded on. "Your face is as red as the tomatoes the nice old lady gave us."

The elder removed her hand and pouted, her face still flush. Then, she grabbed the blanket with both hands and pulled it over Kirika's grinning face, making sure she couldn't see her face anymore.

She couldn't believe she fell for that. It was such a dirty move, asking something like that of her. Especially since it garnered the reaction Kirika had been hoping for.

It wasn't like Maria hadn't thought about such things. She was a person as much as the rest of them, and she was prone to her own fantasizing and imagination as well. But love? As in the feeling of desiring someone else and all of its implications? No way. No way she could allow herself to-

Silky blue hair fluttering in the wind.

She shook her head at the scandalous thought. She could never admit it. Never ever ever ever ever ever ever. It was bad enough to have these thoughts run through her head, but to actually try and act on them? No way. She couldn't be like Kirika and Shirabe, or Miku and Hibiki. No way. She had to think about other things. There were more important things to worry about.

Her grip on the blanket loosened, and her blush receded somewhat. Kirika looked up at her with a curious smile. "Did...did I say something wrong?"

"No, you just...caught me by surprise is all. As to answer your question...hmm…"

She tapped her lips with her finger.

"That's a secret."

Kirika pouted in response. "Hey, that's not fair! I want to know about Maria's love too!"

"Well, maybe one day, but right now we have more important things to worry about, like you getting some rest." Maria responded, slightly chiding her junior.

Kirika pursed her lips. "Alright alright, fine." She said while smiling.

Maria sent her a smile back, and tucked her in once again. "Good night Kirika, sleep well." She said, and reached over and gave her a peck on the forehead. Kirika giggled in response.

"Yes, good night Maria. You sleep well too."

And with that said, Maria left the girl's room.

Making a beeline for one exact location.

It took her about a minute of walking, but eventually she reached her destination: the medical room. She entered, treading quietly as she noticed that Saint-Germain was fast asleep in the bed closest to the door.

But it was not her she was here for.

She passed by the alchemist's bed, silently grabbing the one chair that still remained by Genjuro's former bed, and placed it beside the encased pod shaped bed at the far corner of the room. She sat down, and took a good look at the figure resting within it.

The figure of Kazanari Tsubasa, who has remained in stasis since the previous night.

Maria, for her part, could not believe how lonely she felt without the sentinel's constant presence around her. She knew for a fact that the blue flash she had seen in her mind after Kirika's question undoubtedly belonged to her. She was no fool, she knew exactly what that meant.

But she knew that nothing would come out of it. She was content as she was, simply being able to be together with everyone. Ever since Mom died, Maria had felt like a fish out of water, being forced to act as an idol to keep up a charade while also having her duties as a Symphogear user. Yet eventually she found that she was starting to enjoy it, being able to take up Kanade's place next to Tsubasa.

Yes, take up. Maria knew that that everything she has...initially belonged to someone else. Airgetlam belonged to Serena. Her job as Tsubasa's partner belonged to Kanade. A vast majority of her techniques and abilities...were simply copied from others. So many of the things that she held dear to her, that she felt were precious, were simply leftovers from other people. She knew it was a very pessimistic way of looking at it, but she couldn't help it. Her life as an incessant worry-wart only strengthened these kind of feelings without her consent, and she found it difficult to steer away from them.

Except one thing. She knew the feeling she has, directed at the blue haired girl that declared herself a blade, was her own. It was the one thing that was truly hers, belonged to her, and would remain hers forever.

And that is why she would do nothing. She was content in having, in relishing in that feeling. She knew that if anything in that dynamic change, that feeling might also change. That what she holds precious might once again...slip through her fingers.

She couldn't allow that. There was no way she could allow that.

Maria leaned her head against the pod, appreciating the cool feeling coming off the glass. She closed her eyes and let her mind wander. She had a few things to say to the girl. It was best to keep her updated on what's been going on.

"Hey Tsubasa," She said, her eyes still closed. "I don't know if you can hear me, but a lot has been going on lately. I thought you'd want to know."

No response came from the unconscious blue haired figure within.

She didn't expect any. Well, as they say, the best way to confront your problems is to talk about them.

"Well, after you blacked out, things went south very quickly…"

-!-

Elfnein had completely lost track of time, and for good reason. Doing maintenance on six Symphogear pendants was always a long process, even if it was a simple one. The four users had handed them over to her for the checkup after the battle, and now even the Lapis that belonged to Saint-Germain rested next to the rest, its heart shape a sharp contrast from the cylinders that were the Symphogear pendants.

It almost made her forget that one of these pendants was not like the others. Her face fell as she realized that in place of the Gungnir, now rested the Shenshoujing. A Gear that should not have seen the light of day was now going to become a part, and if she was not wrong, the very center of their force.

The divine spear was gone, replaced by a simple ancient mirror.

Yet that mirror did not reflect despair and evil like the last time it was used. No, this time it reflected hope, and strength, and camaraderie. This time, it would be truly used for the sake of the world.

At least, that's what she hoped.

She had finished her work on the Gears and the Lapis earlier in the day, freeing up her time to study the pitch black arm that rested within the glass container before her. It was a nasty thing to look at, but Elfnein knew exactly what she expected of it. The minds of alchemists work very similarly in their approach to the world, so it was no surprise she came to the same hypothesis Adam did.

He just didn't have the skills...or the limbs to do anything about it.

Various readings popped up on her terminal as she prodded, turned over, and chipped away at the arm. She was slightly afraid it might come to life all of a sudden and jump out at her from the container, but so far it seemed dormant.

Well, might as well take advantage of that.

She took out a very small piece of the darkness with her tweezers, somehow surprised it was not breaking apart or turning into smoke by the slightest touch. She placed it carefully onto the scale, measuring its weight. To her surprise, it was heavier than expected for such a tiny piece. Over 500 grams for a piece as small as a diamond on a ring. That was quite peculiar.

Several bleeps came from her terminal as the computer scanned the piece. The homunculus went over to it to see the results.

And her face beamed as she read them.

"This...this is it!"

It seemed fate shone a light on them after all.

She pressed the comm button, connecting her to Genjuro's terminal.

"Genjuro-san!" She exclaimed in happiness. "Great success!"