Universal Century 0098

Tensions have grown in the world. Last year, the Earth's population had split into two factions; The Confederate Treaty of Liberty Alliance and Great Zogila. While nothing has come of the merges since, unease has slipped into humanity.

Thus, several have taken it upon themselves to be uplifting in this time. The 13th Gundam fight brought fire into humanities hearts, lifting spirit through battles.

Though there are other ways to bring hope, as a duo of idol singers named Zwei Wing hope to achieve.

And in this very concert, the fate of the world will shift…


"Miku? Where are you? I'm at the stadium already!"

13-year old Hibiki Tachibana was talking into her phone, confused why her friend wasn't showing up. She was standing outside the stadium where the Zwei Wing concert was to take place.

"Sorry, something came up." Miku said, on the other end of the phone.

"Eeh?! Why? You're the one that invited me!" Hibiki exclaimed.

"My aunt in Morioka got into an accident, so Dad's gonna drive us there now."

"But I barely know these singers!" Hibiki added.

"I'm really sorry." Miku apologized again.

Hibiki sighed as she hung up.

"I'm starting to think there's a curse on me…" She muttered.

Nearby, a trio of girls about a year younger than her were really excited to go to the concert.

"I think this is the first time I'll be going to a Zwei Wing concert in-person. What about you, Wasshi?" Sonoko asked.

"It's my first time as well." Washio said. "Though I do have all of their songs."

"Well, I've been to a couple before with my whole family so I know very well how these work." Gin said.

"Well then, we'll just leave it to you to guide us. Lead the way, Mino-san!" Sonoko smiled.

"It's a concert. It's not that difficult to follow, Sonoko…" Gin sweatdropped.

"Plus we're in a line so we're technically following the crowd." Washio added.

Speaking of said line, a few steps ahead of them was a young man. He noticeably stood out among the crowd due to the fact he had a red cloak on, along with a red headband.

"I still don't understand why you want me to come here, Rain. I could be training for my next fight." Domon said, arms crossed.

"Because even a fighter like you needs to take a break to keep yourself in tip-top shape." Rain told him.

"But why an idol concert?" Domon asked. "I'm not into this sort of thing."

"Well, you never know. You might end up liking it." Rain proposed.

"Hmph. If that's what you think, fine." Domon said, arms crossed.

"Wonderful." Rain smiled.

Domon kept his arms crossed as he looked up at the stadium. He still felt there wasn't a need for him to be here, yet something felt off at the moment as he looked around.

Why can't I shake off this premonition…?


Backstage, the two idols of Zwei Wing were waiting for their time to go on-stage with Tsubasa crouching herself behind a crate.

"Hey Tsubasa, whatcha doing down there?" Kanade asked as she walked up. "It's almost time to start."

"You still feeling nervous huh, Tsubasa?" Kanade asked.

"Of course." Tsubasa said. "You know that Sakurai and the others said that the show today is suppose to crucial so-"

Flick!

Tsubasa blinked from her forehead being flicked, looking up as she saw that Kanade was the one who did it.

"Heh, why do you gotta be so serious about this thing?" Kanade chuckled.

"Kanade…"

At that, Kanade walked behind Tsubasa and gave her a hug, which caught Tsubasa off-guard at the sudden affection.

"You need to lighten up, Tsubasa." Kanade said, holding her close. "If you always stay this tense, you'll break down one of these days."

"I... I get it, Kanade." Tsubasa softly smiled.

Kanade grasped Tsubasa's hands. "You're my partner, Tsubasa. I can't have fun doing this if you're like this. Otherwise, how are we supposed to make the audience enjoy it if we can't?"

"It'll all work out as long as we're together." Tsubasa said, as the two stood up. "Then let's do this, Kanade!"

"Yeah! We're Zwei Wing, the two wings that can fly to the ends of the Earth."

"We can overcome anything!"


Everyone in the audience were sitting in their seats as the main concert stage started to light up as the Zwei Wing duo descended on down to the stage. Hibiki had started cheering already, as was Gin and her friends. Domon looked unimpressed until they started to sing.

The crowd of people started to cheer very loudly at the idol duo's singing. Hibiki was waving around a glow stick as they sang.

"Wow, it's so different hearing them sing in person compared to on albums." Sonoko noted.

"The real Tsubasa and Kanade, singing in front of us!" Washio added.

"And I get to see it with my two best friends…" Gin grinned. "I think I'll always cherish this day with you two."

"So what do you think so far of their singing, Domon?" Rain asked from their seats.

"It's... not bad, actually." Domon had to admit.

"See, I told you that you'd like it if you gave it a chance." Rain chuckled.

"I never said that-"

"Uh huh, sure, Domon."

"Hmm…" Domon was admittedly enjoying the song, but that odd feeling was still bugging him. Something feels off to me here but I can't tell what or why exactly…

Zwei Wing finished their song to a standing ovation.

"Whoo!" Hibiki cheered, finally understanding why Miku had invited her.

"We're not done yet!" Kanade declared.

BWOOM

But before they could get into their next song, an explosion went off in the center of the stadium.

"What the-?!" Rain shouted.

"Huh...?" Hibiki was confused at the sudden sound. It didn't seem like part of the event. Gin and her friends were on edge.

"We didn't get any alert... then that must mean-!" Sonoko realized.

Noise began to drop from the sky, as panic spread throughout the arena. The audience soon started to try and evacuate out of the concert as the Noise started to disintegrate the concertgoers.

"The Noise?! Why are they here?!" Rain shouted.

"I don't know." Domon grit his teeth, his premonition having come true. "But I'm not letting a single one get out! Rain, help evac-!"

"Croitzal ronzell Gungnir zizzl~"

"Imyuteus Ame no Habakiri tron~"

Upon hearing the song, Domon looked and saw that Kanade and Tsubasa had leapt off the stage and seemingly formed armor on their bodies. Kanade summoned a huge lance while Tsubasa drew a katana as they started to fight the Noise.

"What the...?"

Gin and her friends were also shocked at this development.

"Whoa! Are they also Heroes chosen by Shinju-sama?" Sonoko wondered.

"I really don't think that's the case, Sonoko." Washio narrowed her eyes.

Gin on the other hand, smiled. "Zwei Wing are just like us though... that's awesome! We gotta help them out!"

"But are our weapons going to be able to affect the Noise? They're not like the Vertex." Washio asked, knowing the destruction the monsters could bring.

"It doesn't matter to me!" Gin declared. "We're Heroes, aren't we? And Heroes protect people from monsters like these!"

"I'm with you, Mino-san!" Sonoko said.

"Well, I guess we can't leave Zwei Wing to fight for themselves." Washio said. "We'll help them, together!"

With that, the three girls pulled out their phones and pressed the button on the app. With a flash of light and petals, they all proceeded to transform into their Hero forms. The three of them all jumped down from their seats to help fight off the Noise. To their surprise, their weapons were working on the Noise just as effectively.

"See, our stuff is working just fine, Sumi!" Gin said.

"Then let's keep pushing forward!" Washio shouted, shooting down several.

Tsubasa and Kanade had noticed the three Heroes helping them.

"Huh? We got more Wielders?" Kanade stabbed out a Noise as she looked at the girls.

"No... their appearances aren't like ours." Tsubasa noted.

"Either way, it looks like we just got some backup!"

Back up in the seats, Domon and Rain had helped evacuate several more citizens. Using his skills, Domon had taken down a few Noise by kicking debris at them.

"Domon! That's everyone away from the North set of seats!" Rain shouted.

"Got it! Get to safety, Rain!"

He raised his hand to snap his fingers.

"COME OUT! GUNDAM!"

The girls fighting soon felt the ground start to rumble.

"Oh, what now?!" Kanade groaned.

The answer to that would come as they all soon saw the Shining Gundam rise up, smashing through the North side seats of the arena.

"Is that-?!" Tsubasa widened her eyes.

"The Gundam Fight representative of Japan! The Shining Gundam!" Washio recognized.

"Wait, it was under the stage the whole time?" Kanade asked.

The Shining Gundam's eyes flashed for a second as it stood up. It then pointed its vulcans towards a group of Noise and opened fire, taking them out.

"Noise... monsters of destruction that ruin lives... you're no better than the Dark Army!" Domon shouted. "As the King of Hearts, I will destroy every last one of you!"

The Shining Gundam rocketed forward, taking out the Noise in waves with devastating punches and kicks.

"Whoa, look at him go!" Sonoko said in awe.

"The Shining Gundam... I didn't think I'd get to see it so close today too!" Gin said with a grin.

Tsubasa raised a brow. "But if it was under the stage, how did-?"

"Hey, you five! I'm not sure how you're fighting the Noise like that, but don't just stop! We need to wipe out these bastards!" Domon shouted out of the Shining Gundam's speaker.

"Yes, sir!" Washio said.

The Heroes and Wielders fought alongside the Shining Gundam, now having the upper hand against the Noise. On the side of the stadium, Hibiki was still watching, having not moved from her spot in shock after she was knocked down by the Noise breaking the ground. As Kanade thrusted her lance through a few of the Noise, she soon took notice of Hibiki, before also noticing that there were some Noise trying to approach her.

"Hurry up and get out of here, kid!" Kanade called up.

Hibiki was snapped out of her shock by Kanade's command and tried to do just that, but she was forced to slowly limp away due to her leg having been hurt earlier.

"Look out!" Gin shouted.

Several of the Noise tried to attack Hibiki, but Kanade quickly got in front of her to protect her. Gin rushed in to support them, but couldn't reach in time before the Noise attacked Kanade and broke parts of her armor off. One of the shards hurtled its way towards Hibiki as it then proceeded to pierce itself straight into her chest, causing a gush of blood to erupt from her body. Kanade's pupils shrank in dread.

"She's hurt!" Sonoko noticed.

The Noise tried to capitalize on this, but the Shining Gundam clenched its fists. "Oh no you don't!"

It punched, firing beams of energy that pierced through them and kept them back. Kanade and Gin ended up being the ones to go over to the bleeding girl to check on her.

"Oh god, please be okay!" Gin said.

"Hey!" Kanade picked up the girl. "Don't die! Don't give up on life!"

Hibiki was losing consciousness, but she was holding on, to Kanade's relief.

"She's still clinging on, that's good." Kanade breathed out.

"Yeah, but I think she really needs to get medical attention as soon as possible." Gin said.

Kanade looked at Gin, and saw that she was wounded in a few areas as well from fighting the Noise.

"Hey, do you mind watching over her?" Kanade asked the girl.

"Umm, sure. I can do that."

Kanade gently leaned Hibiki against a broken wall, before picking up her spear. She looked out at Tsubasa, Sonoko, Washio and the Shining Gundam still fighting off the Noise.

"Even with all of us... there's still too many of them…"

"Miss Kanade…" Gin said.

"Hey kid, what's your name?" Kanade asked.

"Gin Minowa."

"You're a strong girl, aren't you, Gin?" Kanade asked. "Then mind watching my back?"

"What are you going to do?"

Kanade looked at her bleeding hand. "This might be my last song... but I'll wipe out every last one of these monsters. I want you to listen to it."

"Last song?" Gin said, alarmed. "Wait, hold on!"

Kanade raised her spear as she began to sing, her song a different tone compared to her other songs. While the others didn't notice, Tsubasa was the only one that realized what Kanade was doing.

"Kanade no! Don't sing that!"

But as Kanade sang, an alert went off on the phones of the three Heroes.

"Is that a phone alert?" Tsubasa noticed, looking at them.

Washio pulled out her phone and saw the notification. "Right now of all times?!"

"What's going on?!" Domon demanded.

His communication screen turned on to show Rain. "Domon! Something else is coming in from above!"

"From above?!"

Several grotesque looking monsters were floating down from the sky. They bore no resemblance to the Noise.

"What-?!" Tsubasa gripped her sword. "What are those creatures?!"

"It's the Vertex!" Sonoko shouted.

"Vertex? What do you mean?!" Domon yelled.

"It's complicated but they're essentially the monsters that me and my friends are used to dealing with." Washio explained.

"But why would they show up now...?" Sonoko questioned.

They noticed the Vertex were moving towards Kanade, who was still singing.

"They're going after-?!" Washio realized.

"Kanade!" Tsubasa screamed.

Kanade noticed them coming, but kept singing. Just as one was about to reach her, Gin managed to push it back with a slash from her axes.

"You're not getting near her! Not if I have anything to say about it!" Gin clanged her weapons.

"Gin!"

"You said you wanted me to hear your song, Miss Kanade! Well, keep singing!" Gin told her.

"Yeah! Let's do this!" Kanade grinned.

"I'll keep both of you safe!" Gin raised her weapons. "You monsters won't get past me!"

She rushed forward, and slashed at them to keep them away.

"Kanade!" Tsubasa called.

"Gin!" Washio shouted.

"If they said they have it covered, let them handle it!" Domon told the two. "Lend your support by taking care of the small fry! SHINING FINGER!"

The Shining Gundam's hand glew green, as it grabbed a Noise, incinerating it.

With that, Washio and Tsubasa reluctantly went back to taking care of the enemies that were near them.

Gin fought the Vertex and Noise, slashing through and pushing back with her axes.

"Agh!"

She took a nasty hit from one of the Vertex, making her hit the ground, but she got up, trying to ignore the pain. Hibiki was watching, barely holding onto her consciousness as she saw the two girls fighting to protect her, Kanade's song resonating in her ears. Gin slashed through a few more of the Vertex and Noise, but then took another nasty hit that caused her to almost collapse to her knees, but she managed to hold strong and still stand up.

"None of you… are getting past me!" She declared.

They kept on attacking, but Gin kept pushing forward, slashing with all her might, even as the Vertex tore into her.

"I'll return! I'll protect! You monsters wouldn't understand this kind of strength!" She roared. "This is what it means to be human! This is determination! This is willpower! THIS IS OUR SPIRIT!"

As Gin finished her declaration, Kanade finished her Superb Song. Blood dripped down her mouth.

"Thanks... Gin…"

A huge burst of energy shot out from Kanade, expanding as it obliterated every single Noise in the area. It even managed to take out a good chunk of the Vertex that were nearby, but it still left a few of them as the energy started to die down.

"It was... a wonderful song... Miss Kanade…" Gin smiled.

Her weapons dropped from her hands, embedding into the ground as she looked up at the Vertex. Kanade could only weakly nod, before falling, her armor shattering. Blood pooled around both of them.

The dust soon cleared for the others, letting them regain their sight as they soon saw that the Noise had all been wiped out. They then took notice of the states of both Kanade and Gin.

"Kanade!" Tsubasa screamed.

"Gin!" Washio and Sonoko both called.

Hibiki saw them run up to her friends, before closing her eyes as she finally let unconsciousness take her. Domon watched them as well, gritting his teeth in anger, before turning to the remaining Vertex that were struggling to stay afloat.

"These Vertex... they're just like the Dark Army and the Noise, taking away things we can never get back! That's something I can never forgive!"

The Shining Gundam started to glow gold as Domon shouted with rage.

"This hand of mine glows with an awesome power! Its burning grip tells me to defeat you!

The Shining Gundam clasped its hands together as a large blade of green energy erupts from it.

"Take this! My love, my anger, and all of my sorrow! SHINING FINGER SWORD! GO! GO! GO!"

Swinging it down the blade with exuberant force, he obliterated the remaining Vertex with a single strike.

With the Vertex completely taken out, the Shining Gundam stops glowing gold and returned to its original colors. Domon took a deep breath, before he turned to look down at the girls once more.

"Kanade! Please wake up!" Tsubasa begged.

Kanade groaned, opening her eyes as she spoke in a hoarse tone. "Tsubasa... is that you...? Is Gin... is she alright...?

"Gin?"

"The girl in red… that was protecting me and the kid… how is she?" Kanade asked.

Tsubasa closed her eyes, lowering her head.

"Tsu... basa...?"

The other two Heroes had approached their friend.

"You managed to hold them off long enough, Mino-san!" Sonoko praised.

"That was amazing Gin!" Washio added. "Serious... ly... G-Gin... the Vertex and Noise are gone now... Let's go to the hospital now, okay...?"

Gin did not respond. One of her axes still had her hand gripping tightly on it... the arm severed from her body.

"G-Gin… please say something..." Washio begged.

Their friend didn't say anything. Gin's expression was hollow, with a calm smile from hearing Kanade's song. The two girls soon collapsed to their knees and started to weep upon realizing that their friend had long since passed away.

The Shining Gundam had taken a knee to pay tribute to Gin's passing. Tsubasa gently held onto Kanade, who's eyes were wide in shock.

There's... there's no way that... she's...? Kanade felt her own tears falling.

"I'm sorry, Kanade…" Tsubasa said softly.

Before any of them could go towards the girls, there was a sudden appearance of odd figures dressed in traditional robes, covering their faces.

"Tsubasa… I'm not hallucinating those guys in the robes, right…" Kanade mumbled.

"No, you're not." Tsubasa quickly drew her blade.

The cockpit of the Shining Gundam opened, and Domon dropped down to confront the robed figures.

"You! Are you responsible for this happening?!" He demanded.

"It's fine everyone… they're here for us..." Washio said through her tears.

"What...?" Tsubasa said. Who are they?

"Hold it! We need answers! What were those new monsters?!" Domon asked.

The robed figures didn't say anything in response to Domon's demands as another set of them soon approached carrying an open casket with them.

"Are you all deaf?! Answer my question!" Domon yelled.

"They won't answer you…" Sonoko said.

"Well, maybe they just need some convincing!" Domon cracked his knuckles.

"Please just...!" Washio stood up, tears streaming down her face. "Just let them be… it's fine…"

"...at least let us know your names. Let us pay respects to your friend later." Tsubasa gently said.

"...Washio Sumi."

"...Nogi Sonoko."

"We'll be sure to remember that." Tsubasa gently smiled.

Sonoko turned to the Gundam pilot. "Mister Domon, Mino-san loved watching the Shining Gundam's matches... please win for her, okay?"

"I was already planning on it, so that's not something you'll have to worry about. ...go on, now."

With that, the two girls followed the robed figures away from the stadium, as the figures also took away the casket that now contained Gin's body in it.

"To lose a life at that age…" Domon closed his eyes.

"It's tragic…" Tsubasa agreed.

Rain had run onto the scene, as did the Section Two members that had survived the destruction of the stadium. They were accompanied by several paramedics to take care of Hibiki and Kanade.

"Domon!" Rain said.

"Rain!"

"Are you alright from facing those new monsters?" She asked in concern.

"Not a scratch on me, or the Shining Gundam."

A tall muscular man in a red suit walked up. "Domon Kasshu, we thank you for your assistance today."

"No problem. Though who exactly are you?" Domon asked.

"Genjuro Kazanari. I'm in charge of the organization Section Two."

"Section Two? What does this organization of yours do?"

"Well, our main priority involves combating the Noise whenever they show up." Genjuro explained.

"They're such a threat, yet your organization is unknown?" Domon questioned.

"Well, that's because it's top-secret!"

A woman in a lab coat with brown hair and glasses walked up.

"And you are?" Domon asked.

"I'm Ryoko Sakurai!" She introduced herself. "Head scientist for Section Two and the developer of the armor that Tsubasa and Kanade used to fight the Nose: The Symphogears."

"Well, I have to say, they're quite impressive from what I've seen." Rain said.

"Oh, that's quite the honor to hear from the mechanic of the Shining Gundam." Ryoko giggled.

"Again, I want to say thanks for you being here to help prevent any further damage, Domon Kasshu." Genjuro thanked.

"You should thank Rain. She was the one that pushed me into coming here." Domon said.

"Though I should ask, how did you get the Shining Gundam under the stadium-?"

Genjuro cut Ryoko off. "I expect nothing less from the student of Master Asia."

"You know my Master?" Domon widened his eyes.

"Yes. It seems that your Master and my father were sparring buddies of sorts."

Domon frowned. "...then you're also aware of...?"

"Yes, we've learned of his more recent actions regarding the Dark Army." Genjuro confirmed.

"That Dark Gundam, from what we've heard, seems like one nasty piece of work." Ryoko said.

"Domon, another thing is that we'd be willing to lend you assistance. Our organization has quite a few resources to help you in the Gundam Fight." Genjuro offered. "It's the least we can do after you helped us."

"Thanks, but Rain and I don't need the help." Domon said, turning down the offer. "I'll win the Gundam Fight on my own terms. But after seeing what happened today, don't hesitate to call me for assistance after the Gundam Fight is over."

"Spoken like a true man." Genjuro nodded in approval. "We'll keep that in mind should the time come. But for now, all I can do is wish you good luck with the Gundam Fight, Domon."

Domon looked over to see Kanade being put in an ambulance, with Tsubasa getting in with her. Hibiki was being escorted away in a separate ambulance.

"Will those two be alright?" He asked.

"I'm sure the paramedics will do the best they can to make sure they're alright." Rain reassured him.

"I can only hope so. Come on, Rain. We'd better get going."

"Alright, Domon."


In the hospital, Hibiki Tachibana opened her eyes as the surgeons worked to save her life.

I'm... I'm alive…


Pre-Battle Quotes vs Noise

Kanade: So you bastards just had to show up, huh? Well, I got more than enough for you!

Tsubasa: To show up now… unforgivable! I'll defeat you all myself!

Washio: From Vertex to Noise… it's like we're always fighting nowadays…

Sonoko: I just wanted to enjoy the day with my friends… I can't believe monsters like you would get in the way.

Gin: Fighting alongside Zwei Wing and the Shining Gundam… man, my brothers would flip if I told them!

Domon: You damn monsters, destroying life as you please! As the King of Hearts, I will put an end to every last one of you!