As Akane continued to run toward Mai to deliver the killing slash, Mai outstretched an open palm toward her attacker and deflected the would-be assassin with a small white forcefield generated by her Robe. While Akane staggered, Mai returned her attention to Haruka and pleaded with the blonde-haired Otome to stop fighting. Haruka only continued to watch her floral minions engulf Mai, silently hoping that Shizuru and Natsuki wouldn't mind the slight mission revisions her instincts had devised on the spot. Mai's face froze in a look of horror as the last threads of Haruka's skintight netting finally closed around her head and left her staring into blackness. She quickly drifted into unconsciousness due to lack of oxygen.
Shiho landed beside her two colleagues and regrouped with them. She and Akane observed Mai's cocooned hourglass figure with an uncertain wonder as Haruka rose back to her feet and grinned in anticipation. Within the silky green prison, the vines began privately bathing Mai in a sweet-smelling amber nectar that they had secreted. The natural enzymes quickly corroded Mai's Fire Stirring Ruby GEM, severing her connection to Mikoto and freezing her body in a bare state between her normal and Robed forms. In her forced slumber, Mai could feel the warm fluid flow over her skin like a soothing lotion as it slowly seeped into her pores and replenished her lungs. After some time, the entangled vines allowed the clothes she was wearing before the battle to reappear and preserve her modesty before they carefully released their grip and fell to her ankles.
Mai was dripping wet as she silently stepped out of the remains of the makeshift womb Haruka had placed her in. As she shook some gooey residue from her short orange hair, it became apparent that the chemicals inside of her encasement had mutated Mai's ears into white pointed fins, and her eyes now conveyed a slight reptilian look. A thin puff of smoke also escaped from her lips, as a pocket had grown in the back of her throat that would allow her to exhale small bursts of flame. Although Mai's expression remained peaceful as she approached the other girls, Akane and Shiho began to step back in caution until Haruka nodded for them to stay in place. Upon stopping, Mai tilted her head and sniffed the night air a few times as her fins twitched, then silently determined her onlookers to be friendly. With her original consciousness now hopelessly drowned by the poisons of Haruka's trap, Mai smiled at the three other girls to introduce her reborn self.
"Hi! I'm Mai!"
Akane and Shiho suddenly felt relieved, and the four altered Otome soon felt an instinctive bond growing between them. Akane was now inclined to allow her target to live and be brought back to Garderobe, as she saw Mai's potential as one of Shizuru's pets and felt a sisterly caring for the transformed Meister. Upon the four girls' return, Natsuki was quite shocked by Mai's appearance, but soon decided to have her join Akane's task force when it was discovered Garderobe's injections were fully compatible with the captured Meister's changes. Mai was given a uniform that matched the appearance of Shiho and Haruka's, and she was quickly trained to fight with the rest of the obedient team. Over the next few days, Akane's newly christened team awaited their next mission.
After she became a permanent member of Akane's team, Mai began to raise worries with her colleagues in regard to their loyalty to the Columns. She had the instinctive feeling that the Columns would soon get rid of the four of them, and she urged the rest of the team to turn against their superiors and escape Garderobe while things were still peaceful. Her pleads quickly won over Shiho and Haruka, but Akane took a little more coercion due to her longer history of obeying Shizuru. When Akane finally gave in, Mai extended her plans by saying they should use Haruka's ability to turn at least one Column to their team before they ran away, as, even in her serum-induced state, she had qualms against casually murdering the five young women. Shiho agreed that it would be nice to have another friend on their team, but Haruka sternly rejected the idea after weighing the risks. She was uncertain the chemicals of her summoned plant servants would be powerful enough to convert someone as powerful as a Column, and she felt it was much more efficient to simply eliminate the lot before retreating.
As the leader of the assassin quartet, Akane made the final decision on which strategy to use.
Escape alone: Go to Chapter 20
Take one of the Columns: Go to Chapter 21