Akane reserved her aggression and decided not to attack just yet. In response, Shizuru's next attack came when she flew above Akane's head and swung her naginata downward with enough force to breach Akane's tonfa barricade. Akane was fast enough to avoid this attack, however, and she left Shizuru swinging at empty air.
Shizuru was now positioned in the sky directly below Akane, with her back facing the dodging fighter. Seeing this as the opening she was waiting for, Akane answered with a swooping kick aimed between Shizuru's shoulder blades. Such a move surely would have paralyzed Shizuru for the remainder of the battle, but she stopped the attack with lightning reflex by spinning around toward Akane and launching the naginata's segmented chain mechanism at the enemy Otome. As a result, the chain tangled around Akane's legs, then her arms and torso. These restraints caused Akane to drop her tonfa, and they quickly disappeared and returned to stasis shortly after leaving her grip.
Shizuru smiled to herself and admired her work as she held the hilt of her naginata with one hand. The extended chain had pinned Akane's legs together, pinned her arms to her sides, and ended with a firm knot around her neck. Only the dull sides of each bladed segment squeezed against her, so it wasn't lethal for the time being. With only a small tug, however, Shizuru could instantly break her opponent's neck, or worse.
Akane struggled hopelessly to free her arms. She yelped in pain as Shizuru tauntingly pulled the chain and further tightened its grip around her captive. The chain was particularly tight around Akane's bare flesh thanks to the Pure Heart Malachite Robe's generous cleavage, which obviously did nothing to relieve her discomfort. Shizuru only delighted at her enemy's misery.
"Kittens shouldn't play with snakes, foolish girl."
Despite Akane's continued resistance, Shizuru began speaking sternly, knowing her opponent had no realistic hope of escape.
"I would kill you right now, but you've survived this long, so your ability might be of some use to the Columns."
Shizuru extended her free hand into the air, and in it appeared a syringe filled with clear liquid. She brought the syringe to Akane's eye level and began to speak more calmly.
"You have the options of dying here, right now, or surrendering to us. And if you choose the latter option, this shot will guarantee your loyalty. This new serum Garderobe has developed will interact with your nanomachines, essentially reprogramming you so you'll never disobey orders from the Five Columns. As an added benefit, it will bind certain features your Meister Robe normally provides to your genetic code. In other words, you'll always be able to use certain features of your Robe even when you're not in Materialized form."
Shizuru grinned mischievously as she carefully rolled the syringe between her thumb and index finger and continued to speak.
"We're not exactly sure how much the serum will change you, however. We designed it this way because we plan to turn as many Meister Otome as possible to our side before this war ends, but the Column system only allows a limited number of provisional Meister-level connections at the moment."
Shizuru's subtly taunting tone never faded from her voice. She knew her prey was at her mercy and would never be able to divulge Garderobe's secrets no matter what choice she made.
"To be honest, I was the one who suggested we use you as our first test subject, Akane. You were my best student when you graduated from Garderobe, so I pray you'll make the right choice."
Akane hovered in place, helplessly bound by Shizuru's weapon and unable to do anything but listen to her captor's speech. She only became further agitated by the shallow attempt at flattery, causing her to curse her captor and continue to struggle. Shizuru shook her head in disappointment and continued speaking.
"Why are you still fighting? Don't you understand what this war is about? By conquering all of the neighboring kingdoms, the entire world will be united under one flag. A few sacrifices may need to be made, but it's all for peace; a lasting peace the current world will never truly support. The countries ultimately only care about their own needs. You of all people should realize what we're doing is right, Akane. You were left to defend Chaldea completely by yourself because the other kingdoms didn't want to involve their own Otome in foreign matters."
Akane suddenly felt unsure of herself, but continued struggling against her entanglements.
"You're insane, Shizuru! The... the other rulers stayed out of this because they know I'm strong enough to beat you myself!"
Shizuru sneered at her enemy's response.
"Is that what you really think? Say what you want. Please bear in mind, though, the only way to leave this battle alive is to do as I say."
Akane turned her head as far away as the restraint around her neck would allow. She quietly considered her fate, pondering the likelihood of escaping Shizuru's trap. If she surrendered, there was a chance the injection wouldn't work, and she could escape at a later time. Both options were very dangerous.
Continue fighting: Go to Chapter 12
Surrender: Go to Chapter 13