AN: Hibiki's mother and grandmother go unnamed in the series, so I based their names off of their seiyuus.

-!-

"Oh man oh man oh man why am I so unlucky?"

Those were the words Tachibana Akira muttered to himself as he ran as fast as he could towards his destination. Somehow, just yesterday Harumi had invited him over for dinner, despite their rocky relationship. Ever since he ran out on the family two years ago, he had kept almost zero contact with his wife through that period, too ashamed to face her again. He had swallowed down the regret and shame, continuing to live on the bare minimum as he avoided seeing or contacting any of them. He didn't talk to her, to her mother, or even to Hibiki. Only a chance encounter and a meeting orchestrated by Miku had brought him back into contact with his daughter.

He knew he could have handled that much better. He knew he could have been a much better father, a much better person in general, to all of them; yet the shame and fear were just so overwhelming that he couldn't handle it. Talking to Hibiki again was by far one of the most difficult things he has ever done in his life, and after they had...somewhat made up, meeting his wife felt almost impossible.

He wanted to run away...but he was tired of running away.

That was how, somehow, he found himself in his current position. Following Hibiki's insistence that they start getting along again, the two parents made the utmost effort to meet the girl's expectations; they sat, they talked, and they even managed to laugh at times.

Akira had missed these moments. Just looking at his wife's beautiful face as she laughed at a terrible joke he said made all the effort worth it. He had looked back at himself, and just could not understand how he had ran out on such wonderful people. His cowardice and his fear blinded him to what was most important.

He did not deserve them one bit.

Yet they welcomed him back, even if a bit reluctantly, and he vowed to do all he can to make up for everything he had done. All of the sins he had committed against them he vowed to rectify. He knew that his previous warm and sunny relationship with his wife will take ages to repair, and he knew it won't be the same as it was before. Yet he wanted to try, he wanted to be brave, so he borrowed some strength from Hibiki and made his move, and that put him where he is today.

Unfortunately, his leisurely walk to the house was short lived when it suddenly began to rain. He had bought a bouquet of flowers, specifically picked to cater to Harumi's taste as he remembered it, to give to her. Yet now it was certainly going to be ruined due to all the rain and wind that were buffeting him. Arriving at the house wet and dirty was the absolute worst impression he could give.

Well, not like he had a choice in the matter; the forecast didn't say anything about rain, and he had bothered to check it before he left too.

That was just his luck, crappy as usual.

"I must be cursed." He mumbled as he continued running. Thankfully enough he was already fairly close when the downpour began, so he might be able to escape being absolutely drenched. He could hear the sound of distant thunder in the sky, making him run all that much faster.

It took him about two minutes to finally reach the house. He passed by the concrete wall bordering it, catching a glimpse of paper remains on the floor and on the wall. 'Right, those things.' He said to himself, forcing down the horrible memories. He finally stopped in front of the door, panting heavily. Luckily enough for him, the entrance had a small roof, shielding him from the rain. He was still dripping constantly, but it could have been much worse.

He swallowed, calming down his breaths and rang the doorbell. He quickly hid the still somehow complete bouquet behind his back.

"Coming!" He heard a feminine voice call out. A moment later, the door opened, and he was met with the face of his wife, Tachibana Harumi.

He smiled awkwardly at her, conscious of his current state. "H-hey. I'm on time, right?"

She looked at him evenly, her expression betraying nothing. He knew she wasn't all that glad to see him, but she was doing her best to be civil, for Hibiki's sake. "Yes," She said. "I guess the rain caught you by surprise? Just like always."

He let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, like always," He replied. He swallowed again, and still meeting her gaze, thrust the bouquet forward. "T-this is for you."

She was taken by surprise by the collection of flowers that suddenly appeared. She stayed silent, and he swallowed once again nervously as he waited for her response. His heart beat rapidly, and he found himself going back in time to the day he first asked her out, with exactly the same method.

Harumi slowly took the wet bouquet from his hands and gave a small smile. "These are...beautiful," She murmured, unsure of what more to say right now. She knew him well enough by now to know that even though the flowers were dripping wet, he had done his best to pick out her favorites. "Oh um, come in. I think you should take a shower before dinner." She added, moving aside.

"Thanks." He said gratefully as he entered. "Sorry about the mess."

"It's fine. You remember how to use the shower, right? The knob for the hot water is still a bit broken."

He chuckled to himself. "Still? Thought you'd have it fixed by now," He said, taking off his wet shoes by the entrance. "But yeah, I remember."

It wasn't the first time he's been to the house since Hibiki caused them to meet again. He and Harumi had a lot to talk about, so he came a few times during the past two months. Heck, during the Obon Festival Hibiki came home and everyone sat together for the first time in two years; it was then he suggested having a hot pot together for old times sake, greatly bewildering both Harumi and her mother. That was just one of the first meetings they had, and since then even without Hibiki the two parents sat for dinner on some occasions. Usually they'd grab something outside, but this time Harumi was the one who took the initiative and invited him.

It was a step in the right direction, as he liked to believe. He still didn't exactly know everything that was going through her mind, but he hoped that things were improving. The very fact she invited him already showed something.

"Well, I guess I'll go take that shower now."

One step at a time, just like Hibiki told him.

A flash of light illuminated the sky as lightning struck.

And in that flash, just as Harumi closed the door and unbeknownst to Akira, a dark figure appeared under the light at the end of the street, staring at the house from afar.

-!-

"Phew, that was refreshing." The man let out as he walked down the stairs in clean, dry clothes. It seemed that Harumi had kept some of his wardrobe, despite everything that has happened. Maybe she just couldn't bring herself to get rid of them or something, but he decided not to worry about it. He was thankful enough for her inviting him here.

He walked into the living room, and was greeted by the sight of fresh food on the table. Looking ahead he spotted the two women, Harumi and her mother, in the kitchen. He walked up to them, staring at the counter. "Need help?"

Harumi looked to him. "No, we're okay, you can go sit down." She answered.

'Yikes, I guess she's still kinda cold to me.' He thought, but didn't let it bother him. 'Stay brave. Don't run away.'

Oh, he forgot something important. "Good evening Kiyoko-san." He said to the elderly woman next to his wife.

Kiyoko, Hibiki's grandmother and Harumi's mother, looked to him with a small smile. "Oh, hello there Akira-kun. I heard the rain caught you by surprise and you ran to take a shower. That is quite unlucky I must say, the forecast didn't say anything about that."

He chuckled. "Yeah, I know, I checked before I left home and they said it was only supposed to be cloudy. I guess even the weather forecasters sometimes get that wrong."

In that moment, the lights flickered momentarily, causing the three to look up at the bulbs. "Oh my," Kiyoko added. "It looks like the storm is causing problems. I hope we won't have a power outage."

"In that case I still have that emergency lamp under the sink, mom," Harumi reassured her. "Had to keep it on hand in case those nasties knock out our power again."

Ah, he remembered that story. Harumi told it to him the last time they met: at some point after Hibiki left for Lydian, some neighbourhood boys just came and somehow cut the power cables to their home, leaving them without electricity for a few days until someone fixed it.

He remembered it all too well, how the family were treated as outcasts because of what happened to Hibiki. It was so bad that his former boss fired him just due to being related to her, all because his daughter was one of the victims in the incident. He hated that man until today for laying him off out of spite, but it was that action that caused Akira to spiral down to depression and alcoholism. 'I was so freaking pathetic.'

"Alright, it's all ready now," Harumi said, putting the knife down and picking up the salad bowl. "Let's go eat."

He smiled, "Yes, let's. I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!"

Harumi smiled, and he found his heart fluttering at the beauty of it. He replied with his own goofy grin, and together the three sat down to finally have their dinner.

-!-

Dinner was a fairly quiet affair, and they only exchanged a few words, focusing on enjoying the meal. They didn't talk about anything special, just life and work and whatnot. Soon enough, their plates were empty and the table was cleared, and together they sat down to drink tea. Rain continued to pour outside, and the occasional flash of light signaled the lightning in the sky.

Akira took a sip and sighed contently. "Ahhh, this is the life," He said. "Dinner was amazing, Harumi. You got really good at it!"

"It's only because I had to," She answered with a sad smile. "You were always better than me at that. And besides, mom helped me."

'Oh crap, please no depressing stuff.' "Well I dunno, but it was delicious." He replied with a smile.

She smiled back. 'Yes!' "I'm glad you liked it." She said, taking a sip of her own tea.

They fell into an awkward silence then, neither one having the courage to speak up again. Kiyoko looked at them sadly and sighed. She herself wasn't all too fond of Akira because of what he did, but she was more than willing to give him a second chance despite everything.

These two were acting like lovestruck teenagers, she noticed. It was refreshing and infuriating at the same time; she knew they had their issues and that they managed to talk about them here and there, but they didn't have to be like this all the time.

The lights in the house flickered again, shaking the two parents out of their stupor. "Sheesh, this is one heck of a storm," Akira commented. "Should I check the electric box?"

"It would be better if you didn't. You wouldn't want to get wet again with all this rain, right?" Harumi asked.

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess I don't."

They fell quiet again, sipping on their tea. Akira's gaze darted around, and eventually fell upon Kiyoko, who he noticed was looking at him, drilling into his head that he should speak up.

'Be brave, don't run away.' "So, Harumi, have you been keeping contact with Hibiki lately?" Akira asked. If they have nothing to talk about, Hibiki was always a good subject.

"I have, although I couldn't catch her for the past week. I was really worried when I heard that something happened at their school, so I called Miku-chan too, and she said that Hibiki was fine, if a bit shaken up and that she'll contact me when she can," his wife answered. "She's been working really hard, hasn't she? I'm glad she got to go to school like she wanted."

Akira blinked several times, finding himself slightly confused. He didn't know how much Harumi knew about exactly what Hibiki was doing, but decided not to bring it up. It came as a huge shock to him that Hibiki had somehow become a hero in the time they didn't talk, wielding some kind of super armor. The people at the place she worked at explained the situation to him, and it was so incredible he didn't know how to take it. However, they asked him to sign a non-disclosure agreement, so he couldn't talk about it with anyone. He figured that Hibiki would eventually reveal it to her mother and grandmother, but from her reaction he realized she didn't, at least not yet.

"Yeah, she's been working really hard. She's been through so much yet she can keep her spirits up through it all," He said. "I'm really proud of her. She's...way stronger than me." 'In more ways than one.'

Harumi held her teacup with both hands, appreciating the warmth of the liquid. She looked out the window to the outside, listening to the sound of the rain. "Yeah...she's stronger than me too," She said. "Our little girl...isn't so little anymore huh?"

Akira laughed. "Yeah, she really isn't. Soon enough I'll have to walk her down the aisle too," He said gleefully. "That would be a dream come true."

And Harumi found herself laughing as well just thinking of the scenario. "Yes, it would be!" She exclaimed. "Although that girl hadn't brought anyone like that home. Well, she did say that she wasn't all that popular in school."

Kiyoko looked to the side, muttering to herself quietly. "Not with the boys anyway…"

"Hmmmm? Mom did you say something?"

"Oh no dear, just talking to myself." The elder answered with a smile. There might be a little secret that she knew that she didn't quite share with her daughter yet. After they enjoyed the hotpot during the Obon and the two parents went to talk alone, Kiyoko was left with Hibiki. She hadn't seen her granddaughter in so long she was dying to know how she was doing.

It came as a shock to her when Hibiki confessed something she said she'd been keeping a secret, and that she was scared to tell her parents about it. Ever since she was a little girl, Hibiki had always come to her when there was something she wanted to say that she didn't want her parents to know about. And to think, what she wanted to share was something like this.

Well, somehow despite everything it didn't come as a total surprise to Kiyoko. Looking back, the signs were all over the place and she just failed to notice any of them. But she wasn't one to judge; the smile on Hibiki's face as she spoke told her everything she needed to know.

And that was enough for her.

"Well, with Miku-chan taking care of her, will she even need to get married?" He said jokingly, making his wife laugh again.

"You're right. Miku-chan...has really been a big help to her and to us, hasn't she?"

"Yeah...she has…"

Honestly he couldn't even begin to voice how grateful he was. It was only through her intervention that he managed to get the chance to talk to Hibiki again, which in turn led to where he was now. She presented him with an opportunity, and he decided to take it. Not only that, the support she has shown Hibiki over the long two year period was something he will always be in her debt for.

Hmmm, maybe he should invite her over again at some point, so they could all have dinner like they used to back then-

Lightning struck outside, the sound of rumbling thunder drowning out his thoughts. The lights flickered again in response.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

He was shocked out of his wits by Harumi's sudden screaming. The woman dropped her teacup on the floor and had shot out of her chair in an instant, reeling backwards from the window, her eyes wide.

Both he and Kiyoko immediately stood up. "Harumi, what's wrong?! What happened?!"

The woman was breathing hard, staring at the window. "T-there was something outside! I-I saw something standing just outside the window! It looked like a person!"

Akira's own eyes widened, and he followed her gaze. He looked outside the window too, but only the rain pouring outside greeted him. "Harumi, there is nothing there."

"I swear! There was someone outside!"

"You might be imagining things, honey," Her mother said. "Maybe you're just tired."

Kiyoko's logical answer calmed her mind down slightly. "R-right...Yeah, you're right," She replied, her breathing easing up. It was then she noticed what happened to the cup she was holding. "Oh geez, I should clean this up."

Akira looked at her as she picked up the broken shards of the teacup off the floor. He needed to reassure her somehow that everything was fine. "I'll take a quick look outside alright?"

She looked up at him with a pleading gaze, giving him all the answers he needed. "Okay, just...be careful."

He nodded, and headed straight to the door while Harumi and her mother cleaned up. She was probably just seeing things was truly the logical conclusion, but he would check anyway.

He opened the door and peeked outside, looking left and right. He couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, only the rain beating down everywhere. 'I guess she got scared by the lightning. That reminds me, it always unsettled her in high school. I see she didn't get over it yet.'

Seeing that nothing was wrong, Akira closed the door and headed back inside…

Completely missing the figure that appeared in front of it just as he left.

"I didn't see anything, Harumi." He called out as he entered the living room.

"I see...thank you, Akira." She said with a small smile. He was glad he was able to do this much for her at least. "I think I'll go to bed early today."

"You really should, honey." Kiyoko said, putting a comforting hand on her daughter's shoulder.

And then the lights flickered several times in rapid succession, then shut off completely.

The sudden darkness in the house unnerved the two women, and Akira found himself slightly on edge. "Well, it was only a matter of time I guess." He said jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

The two women had stayed in the kitchen, huddling together. Realizing they were afraid, Akira swallowed and spoke up again. "Hey Harumi, can you take out the portable lamp? It should still work, right?"

She blinked, regaining her composure. "R-right."

As she got right on it, Akira then noticed something very, very strange, other than the fact that the lights were off.

He could barely hear the rain outside anymore. If before it was a constant beating, now it was a very muffled sound, almost completely non existent. The entire house was, for a lack of a better word, deathly quiet.

And then everything stopped and he turned around in a hurry when he heard the front door creak open. The two women, who had also heard the sound, were immediately struck with fear.

"S-someone's entering the house!" Harumi whispered in her terror. The two retreated as much as they could, their backs hitting the wall behind them. However, Akira remained frozen on the spot, his eyes wide.

'No! Be brave. Be brave! No running away! You have to protect them!'

Who would have thought a burglar would come now of all times.

It was then that they heard heavy, metallic steps strike the wooden floor, closing in on them slowly behind the wall.

'What kind of burglar wears metal shoes?'

Akira swallowed nervously, and took steps back in order to cover the two women behind him. He looked to and fro, trying to find something he could use to defend himself and them.

He laid his eyes on the kitchen knife Harumi had used just before, still not washed from cutting the salad. He hurriedly took it and held it in his hand, pointing it forward.

Lightning flashed again, illuminating the house briefly.

And that's when they saw a short figure standing in the doorway of the living room staring right at them.

Akira stepped back even more, attempting to shield the two women. He whispered quietly so only they would hear. "H-Harumi, the lamp."

So frozen in terror was the woman that she almost completely forgot she was holding it. He reached out with his hand behind him and she uneasily handed it over, his eyes still locked on the darkness that returned to the house. 'Where is he? Where is he?!'

He turned on the lamp.

And all three of them promptly screamed when they saw the figure appear right in front of them!

The two women put their hands over their heads in an attempt to defend themselves from any possible attack, while Akira simply remained paralyzed as he looked at the sudden intruder dead in the eye.

Lightning struck again, and together with the light provided by the lamp he was holding, revealed to Akira everything he needed to know. The shape of the hair, the height, and the weird looking armor gave it all away.

Everything except the emerald glow coming from her eyes.

He could only mutter one name in response.

"H-Hibiki?"

Lightning struck again.

Harumi and Kiyoko, not having expected to hear that name now, opened their eyes.

And then promptly widened in shock when they saw who it was.

The girl said only one thing in response.

"Hello, father."

-!-

"What is Maria-kun's position?!" Genjuro yelled across the bridge, waiting for someone to give him answers.

"Sir! The helicopter is five minutes away from its destination!"

'Shit! That's too slow!' Genjuro grumbled to himself. Chiba was at about a 50 kilometer distance from Tokyo, from city center to city center. Seeing as Hibiki's house was slightly south of that area, it would take more time to reach it. However who knew what the situation there was right now, and they had launched the helicopter as soon as Hibiki was located. Not much time passed since then, but with the helicopter going full speed they were bound to reach it faster than usual.

But would that be fast enough?

'Please make it in time. We can't have Hibiki-kun make a mistake she'll regret for the rest of her life.'

Just the thought of it was horrifying. If they failed to stop her and Hibiki killed her own father, it wouldn't matter if they managed to save her or not; she would discover what she had done eventually and would never be the same again.

They have to prevent that no matter what.

'I just have to believe Maria-kun will make it in time. With the new Gears, it should be a bit more even...but we don't know that yet. The only training they've done was in the simulator, and that was just earlier today. They are definitely not used to it yet.'

But there was no time to waste. The situation in Chiba was not the only thing they had to worry about.

Scans of the city were shown on the big display on the bridge, showing the absolutely huge congregation of Noise. Luckily enough, evacuation had started almost instantly, giving enough time for the majority of the civilians to seek shelter.

But of course, that was not fool-proof. There have always been casualties when the Noise appeared, no matter how fast they responded.

This time however was very different, for not only did they have to deal with the return of the Noise, which at the moment seemed to be absurdly large in number, but also with the black beasts that Hibiki created, which were also way bigger in number than before. Their scans indicated at the least a hundred of them spread out all over the city.

They had exactly four people able to deal with the threat at the moment.

To say they were outnumbered would be an understatement, even if one wielder equalled to at the least one thousand Noise.

All four of them were already outside and waiting for orders. Now he just had to maximize the use of their abilities. He stared at the map indicating their position, seeing them standing at the end of the pier that led into S.O.N.G HQ. It is from there that they will deploy.

He opened the comm and spoke. "Chris-kun! You stand guard in the harbor and take out anything that even tries to look at you funny! Don't hold back! Make sure absolutely nothing gets past you!"

Her role in the battle would be mainly the defense of headquarters. With so many Noise, a large number of them would definitely start making their way towards the harbor, and probably accompanied by some of the black beasts as well. To that end, placing Chris, who was the area of effect specialist of the wielders was the optimal choice; not only do her abilities focus on eliminating a large number of enemies at once, but because of the harbor's large open space she didn't have to worry about as much collateral damage in the process. Nowhere in the city is there such a location where she can let completely loose.

"Roger that!" She answered, her amusement obvious in her voice. The marker indicating her location moved back slightly, taking position at the very foot of the pier. It is there that Chris will bottleneck the approaching enemies.

That took care of that. Next. "Kirika-kun! Shirabe-kun! You two take point in the Skytree! Lure the enemy to your position and eliminate them!"

Placing the duo wielders in charge of the city's defense served two purposes: one, the two were incredibly mobile, Shirabe especially, allowing them to reach their intended location in an instant. Also, because there were two of them, they could cover each other's backs as they fought off waves upon waves of Noise and beasts that would come from all directions directly at them.

The second purpose was that the underground of the Skytree housed the largest shelter in the city, a prime target for the human-slaying Noise and the only one in a two kilometer radius. Not only will the two wielders fight off any of the enemies attempting to breach it, but they would also be able to lure any nearby Noise to their location because of the large amount of humans they were directly protecting.

"You got it!" Kirika answered for the two.

He could see the markers representing the girls on the map begin to move. The Skytree was an easy landmark to find so they wouldn't have any problem reaching it quickly. They would also catch the attention of any Noise and beast they encountered along the way, which was extremely helpful.

However, one problem remained: mainly, the rest of the city. Any area not covered by the Zababa duo's or Chris' sphere of influence will be absolutely ravaged by the Noise attacks, not to mention any shelters that they will not be able to directly protect. They are essentially defending only the key points, leaving everything else vulnerable.

Luckily enough, they had a powerful ally who was willing to assist.

"Saint-Germain," He said more quietly. "I will ask that you lure the enemy to either one of the two positions. The beasts are far more formidable than the Noise, so if you encounter any, eliminate them on the spot. The Noise are far too numerous for us to chase after; we must bring them all to one of the two designated points in order to make our job easier. Is that alright with you?"

The rush of static alerted him to the fact that his request had indeed reached its recipient. However, for one reason or another she remained quiet longer than he had expected, causing him to become slightly restless as he saw that the marker indicating her Faust Robe did not move from the harbor. He couldn't order her around, so everything he said could be denied or refuted completely.

It was only twenty second later that she finally responded.

"I acknowledge your orders," She answered. "And it is a fine plan considering our limited forces."

Only then did she move, jumping over obstacles in order to reach a certain location. He could see her marker rapidly change positions, indicating how fast she was moving through the city; however, her lack of complete answer perplexed him.

She resumed talking as she took position on one of the taller buildings overlooking the city on the western side. "However, due to the number of enemies, it will be extremely difficult to successfully divert their attention to our two cut off points. I do not doubt that many of them will indeed be missed and will proceed to breach the shelters,"

Unbeknownst to anyone on the bridge, Saint-Germain unpocketed several very interestingly shaped crystals. "In order to be able to cover every possible corner of the city and ascertain that we successfully eliminated the entire enemy force, I believe that it will be necessary to bolster our own."

Genjuro furrowed his brows. Bolster their own? Tokyo was after all an absolutely gigantic city, so it was obvious that the wielders, especially in their current numbers will not be able to cover it in its entirety, which was why he asked her to essentially act as bait so they would be herded towards the area where they could eliminate them in an orderly fashion. But how was she going to resolve this dilemma if she wasn't going to act as bait?

"As such, I have come up with a solution to this problem." She said.

Genjuro furrowed his brows. "What do you mean by that? What do you have planned?" He asked. He had an inkling of an idea, considering who she was, but he set it aside as too ridiculous.

Until it wasn't.

"I believe you are well acquainted with them by now," She added. "After all, the Symphogears were broken by them during Carol Malus Dienheim's revenge, were they not? An enemy that you did not expect to see again."

Genjuro's eyes widened. "Wait, you can't possibly mean-!"

Something that broke the Symphogears...an enemy they did not expect to see again…

Fujitaka finished that line of thought for him. "No way...you are going to use the Alca-Noise?!"

-!-

"That is correct," Saint-Germain answered as she looked down on the city. She could already see the massive amounts of Noise prowling the city streets, and the green and pink blurs that were the Gears of Zababa, heading towards the Skytree. She had chosen this particular building to stand on because of the large open plaza that stood right beneath it.

"I have synthesized plenty more using the research papers I have retrieved from my previous base. It was the only thing I have been doing for the past few days; at this point, the amount I can deploy at once numbers in the very high thousands. I believe that will be sufficient, is it not?"

"Wait just a damn minute!" She heard Chris yell over the comm. "You are going to summon Noise too? How the hell does that even make sense?! What makes you so sure they won't turn on us?!"

"They have been programmed to be bound to my will. They will only target what I order them to and nothing else; they will serve as the rank-and-file soldiers for this battle." She explained evenly, now holding several dozen of the Alca-Noise crystals in her hand.

"To pit the Alca-Noise against the ancient ones...who would have thought such a scenario would become reality?" Genjuro said in disbelief.

The alchemist huffed. "You said it yourself, that desperate times call for desperate measures. It is unprecedented, but I believe they will prove their effectiveness."

"Can the Noise even kill each other?" Chris asked. If there was one thing Chris never expected to happen, it was to team up with the Noise to fight other Noise! Even when she was using Solomon's Cane she never really considered them soldiers or even alive, just things to throw at her enemies!

"Theoretically yes," Elfnein interjected. "But we won't know until we see it for ourselves."

"Then let me serve as the proof of your hypothesis, Elfnein," Saint-Germain said proudly. "So for the first time in human history, the Noise shall act as the shield of mankind!"

Then she threw the crystals down. A second later they shattered against the ground, and where they broke dozens upon dozens of magic circles appeared, covering the plaza in its entirety.

And from within the seals the Alca-Noise rose by the hundreds, in all shapes and sizes. Humanoid, Crawler, Flying, Cell, Millipede, and even several Giant Noise were summoned out of the crystals, filling the plaza to its absolute limit. Once they had all appeared, the army of Alca-Noise remained immobile, awaiting the orders of the one who had brought them forth.

Saint-Germain stood on the edge of the building's roof, overlooking her summoned pawns. She materialized her gun and raised it high into the air, her voice echoing across the plaza. "Your targets are the Babylonian Noise! Hunt them down and leave none alive! Any human you find is to be spared! Am I clear?!"

The only response she received was the insect-like shuffling of her constructs.

That was all she needed to hear.

She swung the gun down.

'Let this act be the first step in making amends for my sins!'

"FORWARD!"

And the the army of Alca-Noise charged into the streets, seeking their targets.

-!-

"Hibiki? Is that really you?" Harumi spoke up from behind her husband as she rose to her feet. Her mother followed suit, and the two looked with wide eyes at the child of the family.

The girl said nothing, and merely continued staring at her father, her emerald gaze piercing into him, gluing him to the spot. Harumi and Kiyoko went to stand next to him, looking her over. "You scared us half to death, honey. If you planned on coming to visit you should have called first; we were really worried about you when you weren't answering your phone this whole week. Is everything okay?" Harumi continued, strangely oblivious to the eerie atmosphere that accompanied her daughter's arrival.

Hibiki's only response was to stay silent and keep on glaring at her father, who also did not utter a word since she arrived out of nowhere. Akira knew, he just knew, that what he should be feeling at the moment was relief and joy at seeing his daughter again, and that he should be spending the time catching up with her about everything that has been going on.

But the only emotion that filled his being was fear as those absolutely wrong shining eyes bore into him. That was just the first alarm that rang in his mind, seeing this alien color in his daughter's eyes. What's more, this...armor she was wearing was very unlike what he saw the last time: back then it was a sleek white with yellow and orange highlights, a color scheme that very much fit her and her personality.

There was something terribly wrong here. Hibiki's homecoming in a while should not be this unsettling.

Concerned at her daughter's lack of reaction, Harumi took a step forward. "Hibiki? Is everything alright?" She asked. It was then, now that she was no longer obscured by the darkness or by Akira's back that Harumi finally noticed that Hibiki looked very, very different. "What...is that thing you're wearing?"

Narrowing emerald eyes was the only response. Harumi tried to continue digging further. "Hibiki, what is going on?"

"Shut up."

Her daughter's vehement denial took Harumi by surprise. Kiyoko's own expression hardened as she also took a step forward. "Hibiki, that is not a manner to talk to your mother!" She chided. "Tell us what is going on-"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Hibiki yelled, shutting down any further attempts from the two women to understand what is happening. "I'm not here for you."

She didn't even bother to spare them a glance as she spoke, and they could hear her words laced with fury and poison, greatly unnerving the two women. They haven't seen her for a while, and this sudden change in her demeanor was absolutely mind-boggling.

"Hibiki, please, what is happening? Please talk to us!" Harumi pleaded.

Hibiki once again did not respond to her mother, so in a moment of slight bravery, Akira finally managed to open his mouth to speak too. "Hibiki, you should listen to your mothe-"

He didn't even see her move. Once second he was standing in front of her, and the next he found himself grabbed by the collar of his shirt and his back slammed against the wall. He howled at the sudden pain, and the two women screamed at the violence. The lamp and the knife clattered to the ground at his feet.

"G-g-guhhh…"

"HIBIKI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

Once again Hibiki ignored her mother and sent her father a derisive look. His legs flailed and he grabbed her arm, trying to free himself from her grip, but he found that she would not budge even an inch. Lightning flashed again, and with its help he could finally make out all the intricate details of this new armor she was wearing, particularly the nasty looking spikes and the glowing purple veins that he had somehow missed earlier.

Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Hibiki raised her arm to lift her father up even more against the wall. He began to choke as he felt the side of his collar push against his windpipe. "H-Hibiki...I c-can't b-breath-"

"Does it hurt?"

Anything else he wanted to say got caught in his throat as she spoke.

"I asked you," She repeated herself, her emerald eyes still gazing up at him. Then, in a single fast motion unpinned him from the wall and smashed his back against the wooden dining table. It shattered under the force, and Akira screamed in pain, spittle flying out of his mouth.

Harumi and Kiyoko screamed too, and somewhere along the line started begging her to stop, but she ignored them completely. She only had eyes for her father, now filled with nothing but fury and hatred.

"IF IT HURTS!" She yelled, picking him up by the neck and slamming him again against the debris of the table. He screamed again as splinters dug into his back.

Realizing he should most definitely answer her, he gathered all the strength he could muster and choked out a response. "I-it hurts…"

"Is that right?"

She raised him into the air with a single hand, and his arms fell to his side, paralyzed from the pain bombarding his brain. Her grip slightly tightened and he squirmed as less air entered his lungs, and his legs dangled uselessly beneath him. He was taller than she was, but somehow she managed to lift him so high his feet couldn't find purchase on anything. Harumi and Kiyoko continued screaming in the background, unable to stomach the sight but afraid to try and intervene.

"How do you think it compares?" She said harshly. "How do you think I felt when I suffered through hell for two years? How do you think I felt when I looked to you for help, and the only thing you did was scream and yell?"

She squeezed his throat even harder, choking the life out of him. She snarled savagely, her teeth clenching in pure anger. "How do you think I felt when you abandoned me when I needed you the most, YOU DAMN COWARD!"

And then she threw him. He flew across the living room and smashed through the window connecting to the front yard, the glass shattering into a million pieces. Akira fell to the ground and rolled, only stopping when his back hit the outer wall, releasing another painful cry as the cold air rushed into his lungs. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled above him, the rain beating down on him with all its fury.

Hibiki trudged through the house, and through the aura of her anger the furniture in her way was blasted from her path, smashing against the walls. Harumi and Kiyoko's screams were drowned out from the noise. Her eyes still locked on her injured father outside, she reached the broken window and jumped over it easily, joining him in the front yard.

Akira rose to his hands and knees, coughing harshly as Hibiki advanced on him. The downpour only strengthened as she walked, thunder and lightning joining in on the chaotic chorus in the sky.

"You piece of trash," She spit out. "You're nothing but a damned insect who cares only about himself. All you ever think about is how YOU benefit from everything, don't you?!"

And then she kicked him in the stomach just as he began to try and rise to his feet. The wind got knocked out of him and he fell on his side, covering him in mud. "You only pretended to care the entire time! But you actually don't; you never did, I know that now," She continued.

At that moment Harumi dashed outside as well, with Kiyoko right behind her. They ran into the rain and went to Hibiki's side, trying to dissuade her from continuing. "HIBIKI! YOU HAVE TO STOP! PLEASE!"

But she was ignored, and Hibiki simply kept on going with a vile tone. "You went on and on about how things are always so fucking fine, right?! 'It's all right, everything is just fine', HUH?!"

She kicked him again, the tip of her boot slamming into him. This time, he coughed up blood into the mud, and Harumi and Kiyoko stood horrified at what she was doing. "HIBIKI I'M BEGGING YOU! PLEASE STOP!"

"You spouted that garbage every single day, but when it suddenly turns south for you, you just got up and RAN! And you didn't care! You screamed and yelled how you were having it so hard, and then abandoned us when it got too tough for you, leaving us to deal with everything on our own while you hid like a piece of shit!"

She kicked him again, and this time Harumi grabbed her arm, trying to shake her, anything to just make her stop what she was doing, to free her from this nightmare. "HIBIKI! PLEASE LISTEN TO ME!"

But her daughter's only response was to swat her away, and Harumi fell to the ground with a yelp. Kiyoko ran to her side, and the two looked to Hibiki with tears in their eyes as she kept on screaming.

"That's all we were to you, some house for you to crash in while you lived in your own little world, pretending that everything is happy! And we ate it up like a bunch of idiots. How did it feel, knowing you knocked up a woman only to abandon her when she needed you?!"

And she kicked again.

"You think YOU had it so fucking hard?! I was accused of being a murderer! I was pushed down flights of stairs, was punched and kicked and bullied every single day! I stopped going outside after someone tried to kill me when all I wanted was to buy something to eat! So how do you think I felt when not only did the entire world paint me as a killer, but my own father too?!"

And again. Harumi gasped, having not heard that particular part before.

"You don't have the right to complain about being in pain, especially when you don't even know what it is! I didn't put my life on the line so trash like you can keep on bitching about how hard their life is when you don't even know what a hard life really is!"

She delivered one final hard kick that caused him to squirm and writhe from the excruciating pain. Akira's mind reeled, and he could barely make out his wife's cries over the sound of the rain…

But not over what Hibiki was saying.

She was cursing his existence, breaking him down bit by bit. The whole world seemed to go into slow motion as his eyes moved between his daughter and his wife. One was crying, and one was screaming at the top of her lungs. Everything seemed to be mixing and churning together.

He wanted to deny her. He wanted to get up on his feet and tell her she was wrong, that he never looked at them in such a deplorable way.

But his strength had been sapped, and once more fear and cowardice filled him, just like in the past.

'So this how I pay...for what I did?' He managed to realize. Those eyes piercing into him were hellbent on making him suffer, hellbent on making him realize just how much of an insect he was before her. 'In the end, no matter how much I want to make things right...I will never be able to.'

For some reason he could see those scenes from two years ago replay in his mind: the moment he burst into the hospital room Hibiki was in, the moment he was fired from his job, and all those terrible nights he lashed out at his family after excessively drinking due to his despair.

'She's right...all I ever thought about was myself. I never considered what they felt...what she felt. I saw only my own sorrow, completely forgetting that there was someone here who had it much worse than I did. My own daughter nearly lost her life, and the only thing I did was make it much worse for her.'

'It's alright, everything is fine.' That was his life motto, the phrase of optimistic outlooks that he had cursed her with. A phrase that embodies running away from things that are difficult, of turning a blind eye to the truth. And yet even that motto could not help him rise from the depths that he had fallen into, for it very quickly lost all meaning exactly when it was needed the most.

A phrase that forces you to hide what you are truly feeling in order to put up a facade of cheeriness just so others wouldn't worry about you. 'She's right...I really am trash. I had to rely on her, who I had not seen in over two years, begging her to give me another chance. I ran away from all responsibility, blaming everything and everyone else over my own self.'

"It's all YOUR fault!"

'Yeah, it really is. If I had been just a bit braver...if I had not run away, everything would really have turned out fine in the end. I ruined everything, and she has every right to hate me for it.'

He looked up at her weakly, the full brunt of her glare crushing him, accusing him, judging him.

'I'm sorry, Hibiki, for being such a coward. I'm sorry...I couldn't be there for you. I'm sorry...for ruining our family.'

He struggled to move, to try to get back up on his feet somehow. He was in so much pain he didn't understand why he hasn't blacked out yet. Noticing his attempts, Hibiki thrust her arm to the side, and from thin air her spear appeared in her hand. Harumi and Kiyoko gasped in horror again, fearful of the weapon that had materialized out of nowhere.

The rogue wielder raised the spear into the air. "I'm not going to let you use me for your selfishness anymore!"

"NO! HIBIKI! STOP!"

All pleas for mercy were denied.

She swung the spear down, fully intent on killing him here.

Only to stop mid swing and jump away onto the wall itself when something passed through the spot she stood on a moment before.

A silver blade gleamed in the light of a cackling lightning, illuminating the face of the one who had stopped her from delivering the final blow.

"Tch-!"

Maria dislodged her blade from the ground and looked up at Hibiki. "Looks like I made it just in time," She said. Following her arrival, the sound of helicopter blades spinning wildly above them joined in on the cacophony of noise, blowing away rain and dirt in all directions.

A man in a suit landed next to the Airgetlam user and immediately went over to check on the wounded Akira. "Ogawa-san, will he be okay?"

"I believe he will," he answered. "But we should get him to a hospital as quickly as we can."

"Then do so, and take her mother and grandmother with you as well," Maria added, her gaze lingering on the rogue Adaptor. "We can't have them stay here any longer."

"Roger that." He answered, and lifted Akira off the ground. Just as he began to make his way to the two women, Hibiki suddenly appeared in front of him and swung her spear. Reacting quickly, Ogawa jumped away just in time.

"I'm not letting him get away!" Hibiki screamed. "Get the hell out of my way, Maria!"

'Hoh, no -san?' "I'm afraid I can't do that," She said as she turned around to face her. "I'm not about to let you make a mistake you are most definitely going to regret."

"There is nothing to regret about getting rid of a piece of trash like him." Hibiki snapped back.

"I don't know anything about that, but regardless of what he is, he is still your father. The father that you said you would do your best to get along with again. I'm not going to stand aside and let you ruin all the effort you made to win back your happiness."

"His very existence brings me suffering; it's only fair I get rid of the one who caused this problem in the first place."

Maria chuckled. "You really have lost yourself completely, haven't you? But there's nothing to do about this now. Talking to you is like trying to speak to a wall; I'd rather we finish this, just like you wanted. You've got some gripes with me too don't you? Then bring it. I bet kicking around an unarmed person wasn't very fun or liberating, was it?"

Her blatant provocation seemed to have worked as Hibiki's face scrunched up in fury at her words. Maria's mind briefly wandered back to what Genjuro told her to do while she was enroute.

"Maria-kun, when you arrive, do everything you can to provoke her into chasing you. You HAVE to lure her back to Tokyo. We can't have her stay out of the combat zone where we can't monitor her movements completely!"

The air itself shook as Hibiki's anger took on a visible, physical form as a fierce crimson aura. While she was occupied, Ogawa hurriedly took the two catatonic women with him as well. With all of the passengers tucked in, he jumped into the air, grabbing hold of the ladder that hung from the helicopter which soon began to make its way to the nearest hospital, leaving only the two Symphogear wielders in the perimeter of Hibiki's home.

The aura continued growing as the phonic gain levels coming off of Hibiki reached an unprecedented high, but Maria did not falter in the least. No, after going through the hell that was the Super Ignite Module activation, her mind felt much clearer. Much sharper. Much stronger. There was no fear or hesitation in her form as she stood before the devil incarnate that Hibiki had become, merely staring at her with a focused gaze.

'That's right, Hibiki-san. Hate me, be angry at me. Look only at me. Your opponent is right in front of you.'

"MARIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Even the bestial screaming of her own name did not faze her in the slightest. She closed her eyes, listening to the sound of the rain falling around her. It was so serene, and so melancholic at the same time.

But of course, this was not any normal rain. This was a thunderstorm, and lightning struck and thunder clapped loudly in the background as the Heavens themselves shook and roared.

Maria's response was swift.

"IGNITE MODULE! UNSHEATHE!"

Forgoing the standard ritual of the Module's activation, the mere words caused a furious black flame to erupt from her, evaporating the rain that dared to even touch it. Hibiki was confused the sudden spike of power coming from her opponent, but then instantly realized what its source was. Her eyes widened in shock.

"YOU-!"

The flames did not disperse, and within them Maria stood with a glare of tranquil fury in her eyes. The pitch black Airgetlam covering her form sucked in light from all directions; she raised her now dark blade to face Hibiki head on.

"You dare use my own power against me?!" Hibiki howled.

"Yes, we dare!" Maria roared back. "Do you think you can leave us in the dust for long?! I don't think so! We will puke blood if we have to and go through every unimaginable hell in order to catch up to you! All for the sake of one goal: BRINGING YOU BACK HOME!"

More power exploded from Maria as the sheer size of the flames increased, nearly matching Hibiki's own. "Now then, bring it, Hibiki-san!"

"MARIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

The clash of blades and fire that blew away the rain signalled the start of the battle.